Archive Genocide Website Mirror

A read-only, self-hostable copy of the archive. The goal is simple: make the documentation impossible to erase. Anyone can run their own mirror, so no single takedown, host, or country can remove the evidence.

This repo is the viewer (a tiny server + front-end). The footage and gallery data are distributed separately as a signed torrent (they're huge and travel peer-to-peer, so anyone can re-seed them).

🐛 Something broken or not working right? Please report it on Telegram — bugs, rough edges, install snags, anything — so we can fix it fast.

📄 Prefer plain text? Everything below is also in README.txt.

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You need three things together in one folder

1. this code — you have it
2. the data files → run get-data to fetch them into data/ (once):
   • Windows: double-click get-data.cmd · Mac/Linux: bash get-data.sh
   • grabs gallery_high.json, gallery_rest.json, gallery_meta.json, victims.json (~33 MB compressed) from the official mirrors — it tries archivegenocide.com → .org → .is in turn, so one being down or blocked doesn't stop you. This is the only step that touches the network; the server never does.
   • Privacy / blocked networks: fetch it your own way instead — bash get-data.sh https://a-mirror-you-trust.example, or route the default fetch through Tor with torsocks bash get-data.sh. (These are just a plain HTTPS download of public, edge-cached files — the same thing your browser does visiting the site.)
3. the footage → the archivegenocide-media/ folder (from the signed torrent)

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Run it — three ways, easiest first

🟢 Easiest — let Claude Code set it up

If you have Claude Code, open it in this folder and say:

read claudeinstall.md and set up the mirror for me

It checks everything, asks where your footage is, starts the server, and opens it in your browser — you never touch any code.

🖱️ No Claude — just double-click

• Windows: double-click Start Mirror.cmd
• Mac / Linux: run start-mirror.sh (double-click, or bash start-mirror.sh)

It asks you to point to your footage folder, then opens the archive at http://localhost:8000. Keep the window open while you use it; close it to stop. (If you drop archivegenocide-media/ right next to these files, it's found automatically and won't even ask.)

⌨️ Manual (advanced) — needs Python 3

python serve.py                                   # footage auto-detected next to serve.py
MEDIA_DIR="/path/to/archivegenocide-media" python3 serve.py   # or point it anywhere

(To let other people see your mirror, see "Share it online" just below.)

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📢 Share it online (let other people see your mirror)

By default the mirror is visible only on your own computer. To share it — easiest first:

• Just want to help it survive? Keep the footage torrent seeding in your torrent app. That alone re-shares the footage so it can't be wiped out — no website needed.

• Want to give people a link right now? One click:

  • Windows: double-click share-online.cmd · Mac/Linux: run share-online.sh

  It prints a public link (ending in .trycloudflare.com) you can paste to anyone. It's free, needs no account, and keeps your home IP address hidden. Your computer serves it, so the link works while your PC is on and that window stays open.

• Want a permanent, always-on mirror? Rent a small cheap server — see HOSTING.md.

Full details and trade-offs, in plain English: HOSTING.md.

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Adding future releases (Volume 2, 3, …)

The archive grows in additive volumes, all sharing the one archivegenocide-media/ folder (so nothing is ever re-downloaded). Adding one is drop-in:

1. Download the new volume's torrent into your existing archivegenocide-media/ folder.
2. If its gallery chunk wasn't bundled in the torrent, drop gallery_<vol>.json into data/.
3. Restart. On startup the server auto-discovers every chunk (from data/ and a bundled archivegenocide-media/_index/), rebuilds data/index.json, and the new footage appears — already searchable and sorted, its source added to the filter dropdown.

You never hand-edit a manifest, and a mirror holding only some volumes just shows those (no broken cards). Static host? run python serve.py --reindex to regenerate the manifest, then redeploy.

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What it is / isn't

It is: a zero-dependency, read-only viewer. Open the footage, search, filter, watch.

It deliberately has NO:

• admin panel, login, or any write/edit capability
• submission or upload form — this protects sources; no legitimate mirror will ever ask you to upload
• tracking, analytics, cookies, or any outbound network request

Everything is served from your own machine. It never phones home.

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⚠️ Verify authenticity before trusting a mirror

Anyone can copy this, so a bad actor could publish a tampered copy. Protect yourself:

• Check the signature. Every official data release is signed with the project's GPG key. Before trusting a copy, verify it — see VERIFY.md or run sh verify.sh.
• Never submit footage to a mirror. Submissions go only through the project's official, verified channel.
• The official domains, public key, and release hashes are the source of truth. A mirror can re-host the data; it cannot be the official source.

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If "Share online" (the Cloudflare tunnel) won't set up

Common snags and fixes:

• "cloudflared not found": install the small free tool, then run share-online again — Windows: winget install --id Cloudflare.cloudflared · macOS: brew install cloudflared · Linux: pkg.cloudflare.com.
• No link ever appears, or it just hangs: some locked-down or shared hosts (managed seedboxes, certain VPS containers) block or kill the tunnel. Run it from a normal computer, or set up a proper VPS — see HOSTING.md.
• The link opens but shows 502 / "origin unreachable": start the mirror first and confirm http://localhost:8000 works in your browser, then run share-online. If you're running cloudflared by hand, point it at http://127.0.0.1:8000, not localhost — on some systems localhost resolves to IPv6 and can't reach the server.
• Link works but is slow, or thumbnails load in bursts: normal — your own computer and home upload speed serve everyone. For a fast, always-on mirror, host it on a VPS (HOSTING.md).
• You just want to help, not host: you don't need the tunnel at all — keep the torrent seeding in your torrent app; that alone re-shares the footage.

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License

Code: MIT (see LICENSE) — reuse and re-host freely. The footage is documentary evidence collected for accountability; provided as-is for documentation and the public record.