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Media File Bot

Powered by Wechaty JavaScript

Wechaty Media File Bot helps in saving media attachments of messages to local files.

In this tutorial, you will get step-by-step instructions for building the Wechaty Media File Bot from scratch.

Try out the bot​

Edit wechaty-media-file-bot

You can try out the Wechaty Media File Bot using this interactive CodeSandbox.

Just scan the generated QR code with WeChat app, and you are ready to play with the bot!

Requirements​

  1. Node.js v16+
  2. Wechaty v0.40+

Getting started​

You should have Node.js installed on your system. If you do not have Node.js installed (or have a version below 12), then you need to install the latest version of Node.js by following the links below:

Node.js installation docs

Installation guide for Node.js on other platforms can be found here.

You can head over to the Building the bot section to learn how to build the bot on your own.

Otherwise, if you just want to try out the bot on your local system, follow the steps below:

1. Clone the repository​

Use the following commands to clone the GitHub repository and navigate to the directory:

git clone https://github.com/wechaty/wechaty-getting-started.git
cd wechaty-getting-started

2. Install dependencies​

You can install the npm packages required for running the bot, using this command:

npm install

3. Run the bot​

You have to export/set the environment variables:

export WECHATY_LOG=verbose
export WECHATY_PUPPET=wechaty-puppet-wechat

There are various Wechaty puppets available, you can know more about them here.

Run the bot by using the following command:

node examples/advanced/media-file-bot.js

It will generate a QR code, scan it using WeChat or WhatsApp (according to the puppet you have used), and you are ready to play with the bot.

Building the bot​

Let's get started with building the Wechaty Media File Bot using Wechaty.

1. Initialize project​

Create a new folder called media-file-bot and move into that directory:

mkdir media-file-bot
cd media-file-bot

Use the following command to initialize an npm project:

npm init -y

This will generate the package.json file containing these:

{
  "name": "media-file-bot",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "",
  "main": "index.js",
  "scripts": {
   "test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1"
  },
  "keywords": [],
  "author": "",
  "license": "ISC"
}

2. Install dependencies​

You will need the wechaty NPM package for building this bot & qrcode-terminal for displaying the QR code that can be scanned for using the bot. Install them using the following command:

npm install wechaty
npm install qrcode-terminal

You will also need to add dependencies for using any Wechaty Puppet which helps to integrate Wechaty with various instant messaging (IM) systems (such as WeChat, WhatsApp, and WeCom):

  1. If you want to use WhatsApp, install wechaty-puppet-whatsapp:

    npm install wechaty-puppet-whatsapp

  2. If you want to use WeChat, you can try the following puppets:

    • Web Protocol: Install wechaty-puppet-wechat:

      npm install wechaty-puppet-wechat

    • iPad Protocol:

    • padlocal: Install wechaty-puppet-padlocal:

      npm install wechaty-puppet-padlocal

      Then get a token like puppet_padlocal_XXX, know more about puppet service padlocal here.

    • paimon: Install wechaty-puppet-service:

      npm install wechaty-puppet-service

      Then get a token like puppet_paimon_XXX, know more about puppet service paimon here.

  3. If you want to use WeCom, install wechaty-puppet-service:

    npm install wechaty-puppet-service

    Then get a token like puppet_wxwork_XXXXX, more about puppet service wxwork here.

You can find more information about the puppets here.

3. Write code for bot​

Start by creating a new file media-file-bot.js. We will be writing the code here.

Let's import the required packages in the JavaScript file:

import qrTerm  from 'qrcode-terminal';
import { Wechaty, Message }  from 'wechaty';

Specify some functions that you will require for handling different events returned by the Wechaty bot.

  • onScan

    This function will be used for generating the QR code for the puppet specified, and display it on the console.

    function onScan (qrcode, status) {
      qrTerm.generate(qrcode, { small: true })
    }

  • onLogin

    This will print a log message when a user logs in to the bot, and will call the main() function.

    function onLogin (user) {
      console.log(`${user} login`)
      main()
    }

    We'll look into the content of this main() function in a moment.

  • onLogout

    This will print a log message when a user logs out of the bot.

    function onLogout (user) {
      console.log(`${user} logout`)
    }

  • onError

    This is for printing an error message to the console.

    function onError (e) {
      console.error(e)
    }

  • onMessage

    This is for handling the messages and for determining if the messages contain any file attachments. If it contains then save the file locally.

    async function onMessage(msg) {
      console.log(`RECV: ${msg}`);

      if (msg.type() !== Message.Type.Text) {
        const file = await msg.toFileBox();
        const name = file.name;
        console.log("Save file to: " + name);
        file.toFile(name);
      }
    }

You have completed defining all the functions required for handling various bot events. Now, provide a name to initialize the Wechaty bot:

const bot = new Wechaty({
  name: "media-file-bot",
});

Assign proper function to call when an event is triggered by the bot:

bot.on("scan", onScan);
bot.on("login", onLogin);
bot.on("logout", onLogout);
bot.on("message", onMessage);
bot.on("error", onError);

Use the following to start the bot:

bot.start()
  .catch(console.error)

Running the bot​

In order to run the bot, first you have to export/set an environment variable with the type of puppet to use:

export WECHATY_LOG=verbose
export WECHATY_PUPPET=wechaty-puppet-wechat

# For using WhatsApp:
# export WECHATY_PUPPET=wechaty-puppet-whatsapp

# For using WeCom:
# export WECHATY_PUPPET=wechaty-puppet-service
# export WECHATY_PUPPET_SERVICE_TOKEN="puppet_wxwork_XXXXX"

If you are using WeCom, you can get token from puppet service wxwork.

Run the bot using the following command:

node media-file-bot.js

This will start the bot and generate a QR code.

Scan it using your WeChat/WhatsApp as per the puppet you have selected, and you are ready to play with the bot!

References​