kleinanzeigen-bot/docs/CONFIGURATION.md

Configuration Reference

Complete reference for config.yaml, the main configuration file for kleinanzeigen-bot.

Quick Start

To generate a default configuration file with all current defaults:

kleinanzeigen-bot create-config

For full JSON schema with IDE autocompletion support, see:

• schemas/config.schema.json

A reference snapshot of default values is available at docs/config.default.yaml.

To enable IDE autocompletion in config.yaml, add this at the top of the file:

# yaml-language-server: $schema=https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Second-Hand-Friends/kleinanzeigen-bot/main/schemas/config.schema.json

For ad files, use the ad schema instead:

# yaml-language-server: $schema=https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Second-Hand-Friends/kleinanzeigen-bot/main/schemas/ad.schema.json

Minimal Configuration Example

Here's the smallest viable config.yaml to get started. Only the login section is required—everything else uses sensible defaults:

# yaml-language-server: $schema=https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Second-Hand-Friends/kleinanzeigen-bot/main/schemas/config.schema.json

# REQUIRED: Your kleinanzeigen.de credentials
login:
  username: "your_username"
  password: "your_password"

# OPTIONAL: Where to find your ad files (default pattern shown)
# ad_files:
#   - "./**/ad_*.{json,yml,yaml}"

# OPTIONAL: Default values for all ads
# ad_defaults:
#   price_type: NEGOTIABLE
#   shipping_type: SHIPPING
#   republication_interval: 7

Run kleinanzeigen-bot create-config to generate a complete configuration with all available options and their default values.

The ad_files setting controls where the bot looks for your ad YAML files (default pattern: ./**/ad_*.{json,yml,yaml}). The ad_defaults section lets you set default values that apply to all ads—things like price type, shipping options, and republication interval.

📖 Complete Ad Configuration Reference →

Full documentation for ad YAML files including automatic price reduction, description prefix/suffix, shipping options, category IDs, and special attributes.

File Location

The bot looks for config.yaml in the current directory by default. You can specify a different location using --config:

kleinanzeigen-bot --config /path/to/config.yaml publish

--config selects the configuration file only. Workspace behavior is controlled by installation mode (portable or xdg) and can be overridden via --workspace-mode=portable|xdg (see Installation Modes).

Valid file extensions: .json, .yaml, .yml

Configuration Structure

ad_files

Glob (wildcard) patterns to select ad configuration files. If relative paths are specified, they are relative to this configuration file.

ad_files:
  - "./**/ad_*.{json,yml,yaml}"

ad_defaults

Default values for ads that can be overridden in each ad configuration file.

ad_defaults:
  active: true
  type: OFFER  # one of: OFFER, WANTED

  description_prefix: ""
  description_suffix: ""

  price_type: NEGOTIABLE  # one of: FIXED, NEGOTIABLE, GIVE_AWAY, NOT_APPLICABLE
  shipping_type: SHIPPING  # one of: PICKUP, SHIPPING, NOT_APPLICABLE
  # NOTE: shipping_costs and shipping_options must be configured per-ad, not as defaults
  sell_directly: false  # requires shipping_type SHIPPING to take effect
  contact:
    name: ""
    street: ""
    zipcode: ""
    phone: ""  # IMPORTANT: surround phone number with quotes to prevent removal of leading zeros
  republication_interval: 7  # every X days ads should be re-published

• ad_defaults.republication_interval controls when ads become due for republishing.
• Automatic price reductions (including delay_reposts and delay_days) are evaluated only during publish runs.
• Reductions do not run in the background between runs, and update does not evaluate or apply reductions.
• When auto price reduction is enabled, each publish run logs the reduction decision.
• -v/--verbose adds a detailed reduction calculation trace.
• For full behavior and examples (including timeline examples), see AD_CONFIGURATION.md.

Tip: For current defaults of all timeout and diagnostic settings, run kleinanzeigen-bot create-config or see the JSON schema.

categories

Additional name to category ID mappings. See the default list at: https://github.com/Second-Hand-Friends/kleinanzeigen-bot/blob/main/src/kleinanzeigen_bot/resources/categories.yaml

categories:
  Verschenken & Tauschen > Tauschen: 272/273
  Verschenken & Tauschen > Verleihen: 272/274
  Verschenken & Tauschen > Verschenken: 272/192

timeouts

Timeout tuning for various browser operations. Adjust these if you experience slow page loads or recurring timeouts.

  timeouts:
    multiplier: 1.0                     # Scale all timeouts (e.g. 2.0 for slower networks)
    default: 5.0                        # Base timeout for web_find/web_click/etc.
    page_load: 15.0                     # Timeout for web_open page loads
    captcha_detection: 2.0              # Timeout for captcha iframe detection
    sms_verification: 4.0               # Timeout for SMS verification banners
    email_verification: 4.0             # Timeout for email verification prompts
    gdpr_prompt: 10.0                   # Timeout when handling GDPR dialogs
  login_detection: 10.0               # Timeout for DOM-based login detection (primary method)
  publishing_result: 300.0            # Timeout for publishing status checks
  publishing_confirmation: 20.0         # Timeout for publish confirmation redirect
  image_upload: 30.0                  # Timeout for image upload and server-side processing
  pagination_initial: 10.0            # Timeout for first pagination lookup
  pagination_follow_up: 5.0           # Timeout for subsequent pagination clicks
  quick_dom: 2.0                      # Generic short DOM timeout (shipping dialogs, etc.)
  update_check: 10.0                  # Timeout for GitHub update requests
  chrome_remote_probe: 2.0            # Timeout for local remote-debugging probes
  chrome_remote_debugging: 5.0         # Timeout for remote debugging API calls
  chrome_binary_detection: 10.0       # Timeout for chrome --version subprocess
  retry_enabled: true                 # Enables DOM retry/backoff when timeouts occur
  retry_max_attempts: 2
  retry_backoff_factor: 1.5

Timeout tuning tips:

• Slow networks or sluggish remote browsers often just need a higher timeouts.multiplier
• For truly problematic selectors, override specific keys directly under timeouts
• Keep retry_enabled on so DOM lookups are retried with exponential backoff

For more details on timeout configuration and troubleshooting, see Browser Troubleshooting.

download

Download configuration for the download command.

download:
  include_all_matching_shipping_options: false  # if true, all shipping options matching the package size will be included
  excluded_shipping_options: []  # list of shipping options to exclude, e.g. ['DHL_2', 'DHL_5']
  folder_name_max_length: 100  # maximum length for folder names when downloading ads (default: 100)
  rename_existing_folders: false  # if true, rename existing folders without titles to include titles (default: false)

publishing

Publishing configuration.

publishing:
  delete_old_ads: "AFTER_PUBLISH"  # one of: AFTER_PUBLISH, BEFORE_PUBLISH, NEVER
  delete_old_ads_by_title: true   # only works if delete_old_ads is set to BEFORE_PUBLISH

captcha

Captcha handling configuration. Enable automatic restart to avoid manual confirmation after captchas.

captcha:
  auto_restart: true  # If true, the bot aborts when a Captcha appears and retries publishing later
                      # If false (default), the Captcha must be solved manually to continue
  restart_delay: 1h 30m  # Time to wait before retrying after a Captcha was encountered (default: 6h)

browser

Browser configuration. These settings control how the bot launches and connects to Chromium-based browsers.

browser:
  # See: https://peter.sh/experiments/chromium-command-line-switches/
  arguments:
    # Example arguments
    - --disable-dev-shm-usage
    - --no-sandbox
    # --headless
    # --start-maximized
  binary_location:  # path to custom browser executable, if not specified will be looked up on PATH
  extensions: []    # a list of .crx extension files to be loaded
  use_private_window: true
  user_data_dir: ""  # see https://github.com/chromium/chromium/blob/main/docs/user_data_dir.md
  profile_name: ""

Common browser arguments:

• --disable-dev-shm-usage - Avoids shared memory issues in Docker environments
• --no-sandbox - Required when running as root (not recommended)
• --headless - Run browser in headless mode (no GUI)
• --start-maximized - Start browser maximized

For detailed browser connection troubleshooting, including Chrome 136+ security requirements and remote debugging setup, see Browser Troubleshooting.

update_check

Update check configuration to automatically check for newer versions on GitHub.

update_check:
  enabled: true  # Enable/disable update checks
  channel: latest  # One of: latest, preview
  interval: 7d    # Check interval (e.g. 7d for 7 days)

Interval format:

• s: seconds, m: minutes, h: hours, d: days
• Examples: 7d (7 days), 12h (12 hours), 30d (30 days)
• Validation: minimum 1 day, maximum 30 days

Channels:

• latest: Only final releases
• preview: Includes pre-releases

login

Login credentials.

login:
  username: ""
  password: ""

Security Note: Never commit your credentials to version control. Keep your config.yaml secure and exclude it from git if it contains sensitive information.

diagnostics

Diagnostics configuration for troubleshooting login detection issues and publish failures.

diagnostics:
  capture_on:
    login_detection: false      # Capture screenshot + HTML when login state is UNKNOWN
    publish: false             # Capture screenshot + HTML + JSON on each failed publish attempt (timeouts/protocol errors)
  capture_log_copy: false       # Copy entire bot log file when diagnostics are captured (may duplicate log content)
  pause_on_login_detection_failure: false  # Pause for manual inspection (interactive only)
  timing_collection: true       # Collect timeout timing data locally for troubleshooting and tuning
  output_dir: ""               # Custom output directory (see "Output locations (default)" below)

Migration Note:

Old diagnostics keys have been renamed/moved. Update configs and CI/automation accordingly:

• login_detection_capture → capture_on.login_detection
• publish_error_capture → capture_on.publish

capture_log_copy is a new top-level flag. It may copy the same log multiple times during a single run if multiple diagnostic events are triggered.

Login Detection Behavior:

The bot uses a layered approach to detect login state, prioritizing stealth over reliability:

1. DOM check (primary method - preferred for stealth): Checks for user profile elements

   • Looks for .mr-medium element containing username
   • Falls back to #user-email ID
   • Uses login_detection timeout (default: 10.0 seconds)
   • Minimizes bot-like behavior by avoiding JSON API requests

2. Auth probe fallback (more reliable): Sends a GET request to {root_url}/m-meine-anzeigen-verwalten.json?sort=DEFAULT

   • Returns LOGGED_IN if response is HTTP 200 with valid JSON containing "ads" key
   • Returns LOGGED_OUT if response is HTTP 401/403 or HTML contains login markers
   • Returns UNKNOWN on timeouts, assertion failures, or unexpected response bodies
   • Only used when DOM check is inconclusive (UNKNOWN or timed out)

Optional diagnostics:

• Enable capture_on.login_detection to capture screenshots and HTML dumps when state is UNKNOWN
• Enable capture_on.publish to capture screenshots, HTML dumps, and JSON payloads for each failed publish attempt (e.g., attempts 1–3).
• Enable capture_log_copy to copy the entire bot log file when a diagnostic event triggers (e.g., capture_on.publish or capture_on.login_detection):
  • If multiple diagnostics trigger in the same run, the log will be copied multiple times
  • Review or redact artifacts before sharing publicly
• Enable pause_on_login_detection_failure to pause the bot for manual inspection in interactive sessions. This requires capture_on.login_detection=true; if this is not enabled, the runtime will fail startup with a validation error.
• Use custom output_dir to specify where artifacts are saved

Output locations (default):

• Portable mode + --config /path/to/config.yaml: /path/to/.temp/diagnostics/ (portable runtime files are placed next to the selected config file)
• Portable mode without --config: ./.temp/diagnostics/ (current working directory)
• User directories mode: ~/.cache/kleinanzeigen-bot/diagnostics/ (Linux), ~/Library/Caches/kleinanzeigen-bot/diagnostics/ (macOS), or %LOCALAPPDATA%\kleinanzeigen-bot\Cache\diagnostics\ (Windows)
• Custom: Path resolved relative to your config.yaml if output_dir is specified

Timing collection output (default):

• Portable mode: ./.temp/timing/timing_data.json
• User directories mode: ~/.cache/kleinanzeigen-bot/timing/timing_data.json (Linux) or ~/Library/Caches/kleinanzeigen-bot/timing/timing_data.json (macOS)
• Data is grouped by run/session and retained for 30 days via automatic cleanup during each data write

Example structure:

[
  {
    "session_id": "abc12345",
    "command": "publish",
    "started_at": "2026-02-07T10:00:00+01:00",
    "ended_at": "2026-02-07T10:04:30+01:00",
    "records": [
      {
        "operation_key": "default",
        "operation_type": "web_find",
        "effective_timeout_sec": 5.0,
        "actual_duration_sec": 1.2,
        "attempt_index": 0,
        "success": true
      }
    ]
  }
]

How to read it quickly:

• Group by command and session_id first to compare slow vs fast runs
• Look for high actual_duration_sec values near effective_timeout_sec and repeated success: false entries
• attempt_index is zero-based (0 first attempt, 1 first retry)
• Use operation_key + operation_type to identify which timeout bucket (default, page_load, etc.) needs tuning
• For deeper timeout tuning workflow, see Browser Troubleshooting

⚠️ PII Warning: HTML dumps, JSON payloads, timing data JSON files (for example timing_data.json), and log copies may contain PII. Typical examples include account email, ad titles/descriptions, contact info, and prices. Log copies are produced by capture_log_copy when diagnostics capture runs, such as capture_on.publish or capture_on.login_detection. Review or redact these artifacts before sharing them publicly.

Installation Modes

On first run, when the --workspace-mode flag is not provided, the app may ask which installation mode to use. In non-interactive environments, it defaults to portable mode.

1. Portable mode (recommended for most users, especially on Windows):

   • Stores config, logs, downloads, and state in the current directory
   • No admin permissions required
   • Easy backup/migration; works from USB drives

2. User directories mode (advanced users / multi-user setups):

   • Stores files in OS-standard locations
   • Cleaner directory structure; better separation from working directory
   • Requires proper permissions for user data directories

OS notes:

• Windows: User directories mode uses AppData (Roaming/Local); portable keeps everything beside the .exe.
• Linux: User directories mode uses ~/.config/kleinanzeigen-bot/config.yaml, ~/.local/state/kleinanzeigen-bot/, and ~/.cache/kleinanzeigen-bot/; portable stays in the current working directory (for example ./config.yaml, ./.temp/, ./downloaded-ads/).
• macOS: User directories mode uses ~/Library/Application Support/kleinanzeigen-bot/config.yaml (config), ~/Library/Application Support/kleinanzeigen-bot/ (state/runtime), and ~/Library/Caches/kleinanzeigen-bot/ (cache/diagnostics); portable stays in the current directory.

Mixed footprint cleanup

If both portable and XDG footprints exist, --config without --workspace-mode is intentionally rejected to avoid silent behavior changes.

A footprint is the set of files/directories the bot creates for one mode (configuration file, runtime state/cache directories, and downloaded-ads).

Use one explicit run to choose a mode:

kleinanzeigen-bot --workspace-mode=portable --config /path/to/config.yaml verify

or

kleinanzeigen-bot --workspace-mode=xdg --config /path/to/config.yaml verify

Then remove the unused footprint directories/files to make auto-detection unambiguous for future runs.

• Remove portable footprint items in your working location: config.yaml, .temp/ (Windows: .temp\), and downloaded-ads/ (Windows: downloaded-ads\). Back up or move config.yaml to your desired location before deleting it.
• Remove user directories footprint items: Linux: ~/.config/kleinanzeigen-bot/, ~/.local/state/kleinanzeigen-bot/, ~/.cache/kleinanzeigen-bot/. macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/kleinanzeigen-bot/, ~/Library/Caches/kleinanzeigen-bot/. Windows: %APPDATA%\kleinanzeigen-bot\, %LOCALAPPDATA%\kleinanzeigen-bot\, %LOCALAPPDATA%\kleinanzeigen-bot\Cache\.

Getting Current Defaults

To see all current default values, run:

kleinanzeigen-bot create-config

This generates a config file with exclude_none=True, giving you all the non-None defaults.

For the complete machine-readable reference, see the JSON schema.