Flash Archiver — Self-Hosting Guide

This guide explains how to set up your own copy of the Flash Archiver tool to upload, preview, and embed SWF files hosted from your personal GitHub Pages site.

Step 1: Fork the Repository or Copy Template

1. Visit the original repository at: https://github.com/FlashAdArchiver/swfarchiver
2. Click the "Fork" button in the top-right corner
3. Choose your GitHub account

GitHub will create a forked copy for you at:
https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/swfarchiver

Alternately, you can select "Copy Template" button to its right--that may be simplest.

Step 2: Enable GitHub Pages

1. In your forked repository, go to Settings → Pages
2. Under the "Source" section:
   • Select main as the branch
   • Choose the / (root) folder
3. Click Save

After a few moments, your site will be live at:
https://YOUR_USERNAME.github.io/swfarchiver/

Step 3: Create a GitHub Access Token (Required for Uploads)

To use the upload feature in Flash Archiver, you’ll need a GitHub Personal Access Token (Classic). The newer fine-grained tokens currently don’t provide enough permission to upload files via the GitHub API.

How to Generate:

1. Go to: https://github.com/settings/tokens
2. Click "Generate new token (classic)"
3. Name it something like Flash Archiver Upload
4. Set an expiration if you want
5. Under scopes, check: -repo (this gives the tool permission to read and upload SWF files)
6. Generate and copy the token — you won’t be able to view it again later!

Paste the token into the “GitHub Personal Access Token” field in the Flash Archiver UI when uploading a file.

Note: The token is only used client-side to authorize with GitHub’s API during upload. It’s not stored or shared.

Step 4: Use the Archiver Tool

1. Open your GitHub Pages site in a browser:
   https://YOUR_USERNAME.github.io/swfarchiver/
2. Enter your GitHub Personal Access Token in the input field

   This token must include repo access permissions.

3. Use the tool interface to:
   • Upload SWF files to your GitHub repo
   • View and preview uploaded SWFs
   • Generate embed code for each SWF

The embed code will look like:

https://YOUR_USERNAME.github.io/swfarchiver/index.html?swf=FILENAME.swf&width=WIDTH&height=HEIGHT

Note: The swf/ folder will be created automatically the first time you upload a file.

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Themes and Customization

• The interface supports multiple selectable themes:

  • GeoCities (retro)
  • Bubble (Frutiger Aero-inspired)
  • Dark Glow (dark 2003-style sci-fi)
  • Plain (minimal)

• Use the "Themes" dropdown in the upper-right to switch styles.

• A toggle next to the Ko-fi button allows you to show or hide the scrolling marquee.

• The layout remains consistent across all themes.

To customize further, edit:

• index.html for structure and labels
• Inline or linked CSS for colors and branding

All SWFs are served directly via GitHub Pages — no backend required.

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Troubleshooting

• If GitHub Pages doesn't load right away, wait a minute and refresh
• Ensure index.html is in the root of your repo
• Make sure your token is valid and includes the repo scope
• If the page briefly loads unstyled, this is normal and will resolve once the styles load

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This setup allows you to host your own Flash content securely and independently using only GitHub.

This setup allows you to host your own Flash content securely and independently using only GitHub.

Enjoying this project? Support me on Ko-fi ☕