🎓 Open Source UM PastYear Paper Downloader

One-click bulk download solution for University Malaya (UM) past year exam papers

Automate the tedious process of manually downloading past year papers one by one. Simply provide your UM credentials and subject code, and get all available papers in a single organized ZIP file.

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🚀 Quick Start (For Regular Users)

Installation

# Install from PyPI
pip install umpaper-fetch

# Upgrade to latest version
pip install --upgrade umpaper-fetch

Basic Usage

# See all available commands and options
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --help

# Run the downloader interactively
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli

# Or with command-line shortcut (if install inside venv and activated)
um-papers --help
um-papers

First Run

Follow the interactive prompts:

1. Enter your UM username (without @siswa.um.edu.my)
2. Enter your password securely
3. Enter subject code (e.g., WIA1005)
4. Choose download location
5. Confirm download of found papers

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✨ Key Features

🚀 Core Functionality

• 🔄 One-Click Bulk Download: Download all past year papers for any subject code automatically
• 📦 Smart ZIP Organization: Automatically organizes papers by year and creates a structured ZIP archive
• 🔐 Secure Authentication: Handles complex UM OpenAthens authentication flow seamlessly
• ⚡ Concurrent Downloads: Multi-threaded downloading for faster performance
• 🔄 Auto-Retry Logic: Robust error handling with configurable retry attempts
• 📊 Real-time Progress: Live progress bars and detailed status updates

📁 File Organization

• 📂 Hierarchical Structure: Papers organized by subject → year → semester
• 🏷️ Smart File Naming: Automatically detects and preserves meaningful filenames
• 📋 Auto-Generated README: Includes download summary and paper inventory in ZIP
• 🗂️ Organized Output: Individual PDFs + consolidated ZIP file
• 🧹 Optional Cleanup: Choice to keep individual files or ZIP only

🖥️ User Experience

• 📱 Terminal-Based Interface: Clean, intuitive command-line interface
• 🎯 Interactive Mode: Prompts for credentials and settings when needed
• ⚙️ Command-Line Mode: Full automation with command-line arguments
• 📍 Custom Download Locations: Choose where to save your papers
• 🔍 Browser Options: Support for Edge, Chrome with auto-detection
• 📝 Comprehensive Logging: Detailed logs for troubleshooting

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📋 Complete Command Reference

For Regular Users

Interactive Mode (Recommended for beginners)

# See all available options first
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --help

# Run interactive mode
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli

Prompts for all required information

Quick Commands

# With username and subject code
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --username john_doe --subject-code WIA1005

# With custom output directory
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -u student123 -s WXES1116 -o "C:/Downloads/Papers"

# Skip location prompt for automation
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIA1005 --no-location-prompt

Available Options

Command	Short	Description	Default
--help	-h	Available command to use
--username	-u	UM username (without @siswa.um.edu.my)	prompted
--subject-code	-s	Subject code to search for (e.g., WIA1005)	prompted
--output-dir	-o	Custom download directory	./downloads
--browser	-b	Browser choice: auto, chrome, edge	edge
--timeout		Session timeout in seconds	30
--max-retries		Maximum retry attempts for failed downloads	3
--no-location-prompt		Skip interactive location selection	false
--verbose	-v	Enable detailed debug logging	false

For Developers & Advanced Users

Development Installation

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/MarcusMQF/umpaper-fetch.git
cd umpaper-fetch

# Install in development mode
pip install -e .

# Install development dependencies
pip install -e .[dev]

Debug Commands

# Show browser window for debugging
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --show-browser --verbose --subject-code WIA1005

# High-performance mode with extended timeouts
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIA1005 --max-retries 5 --timeout 60

# Force specific browser
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --browser chrome --subject-code CSC1025

Developer Options

Command	Description	Use Case
--show-browser	Show browser window (disable headless mode)	Debugging authentication
--verbose	Enable detailed debug logging	Troubleshooting issues
--timeout 60	Extended session timeout	Slow connections
--max-retries 5	More retry attempts	Unstable connections

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💡 Tips for Best Experience

Choose the Right Browser

# Windows users (recommended)
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --browser edge --subject-code WIA1005

# Mac/Linux users
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --browser chrome --subject-code WIA1005

# Auto-detect (fallback)
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --browser auto --subject-code WIA1005

Optimize for Your Connection

# For slow/unstable connections
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --timeout 90 --max-retries 5 --subject-code WIA1005

# For fast connections
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --timeout 15 --max-retries 2 --subject-code WIA1005

Batch Processing Multiple Subjects

# Process multiple subjects
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIA1005 --no-location-prompt -o "./Papers/WIA1005"
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIX1116 --no-location-prompt -o "./Papers/WXES1116"
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s CSC1025 --no-location-prompt -o "./Papers/CSC1025"

Automation-Friendly Commands

# Fully automated (only prompts for password)
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -u your_username -s WIA1005 --no-location-prompt -o "./Papers"

# Silent mode with custom browser
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -u your-username -s WXES1116 --browser edge --no-location-prompt

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📊 What You Get

Organized File Structure

📁 downloads/
├── 📁 WIA1005/
│   ├── 📁 Year_2023/
│   │   ├── WIA1005_Final_2023_S1.pdf
│   │   └── WIA1005_Final_2023_S2.pdf
│   ├── 📁 Year_2022/
│   │   ├── WIA1005_Final_2022_S1.pdf
│   │   └── WIA1005_Final_2022_S2.pdf
│   └── 📁 Unsorted/
│       └── WIA1005_Additional_Papers.pdf
├── 📦 WIA1005_past_years.zip
└── 📄 WIA1005_README.txt

ZIP Archive Contents

• Hierarchical Organization: Subject → Year → Files
• Automatic README: Download summary and file inventory
• Optimized Compression: Balanced compression for size/speed
• Preserve Metadata: Original filenames and dates maintained

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🔧 Prerequisites & Setup

System Requirements

• Python 3.8+ installed
• Internet connection (stable recommended)
• UM student account with active credentials
• Browser: Microsoft Edge (Windows) or Google Chrome (Mac/Linux)

Browser Setup

• Windows: Microsoft Edge (pre-installed, recommended)
• Mac/Linux: Google Chrome (install from google.com/chrome)
• Auto-detection: Tool will find the best available browser

Firewall/Network

• Tool connects to exampaper.um.edu.my via HTTPS
• No special firewall configuration needed
• Works on UM campus network and external networks

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🎯 Quick Command Cheat Sheet

For Regular Users

# Install and run
pip install umpaper-fetch
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli

# Get help and see all options
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --help

# Quick download with subject code
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIA1005

# Custom download location
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -s WIA1005 -o "C:/MyPapers"

# Batch mode (no prompts except password)
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli -u your_username -s WIA1005 --no-location-prompt

For Developers

# Development setup
git clone https://github.com/MarcusMQF/umpaper-fetch.git
cd umpaper-fetch
pip install -e .[dev]

# Debug mode
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --show-browser --verbose -s WIA1005

# Performance testing
python -m umpaper_fetch.cli --max-retries 5 --timeout 60 -s WXES1116

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🔒 Security & Privacy

What We Do

• ✅ Use secure HTTPS connections only
• ✅ Handle UM authentication through official channels
• ✅ Clean up browser data after each session
• ✅ Never store or log passwords
• ✅ Respect server rate limits

What We Don't Do

• ❌ Store credentials anywhere
• ❌ Bypass security measures
• ❌ Access unauthorized content
• ❌ Share or transmit personal data
• ❌ Violate UM terms of service

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⚖️ Legal & Academic Use

Educational Purpose Only: This tool is designed for UM students to efficiently access past year papers for their studies. Users must:

• Have valid UM credentials
• Comply with UM's terms of service
• Use papers for academic purposes only
• Respect copyright and intellectual property rights

Disclaimer: This is an unofficial tool not affiliated with University Malaya.

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🤝 Support & Contributing

Get Help

• 📖 Check this README for common usage patterns
• 🐛 Report issues on GitHub Issues
• 💡 Request features via GitHub Issues

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Make your changes with tests
4. Submit a pull request
5. Follow existing code style

Development Setup

git clone https://github.com/MarcusMQF/umpaper-fetch.git
cd umpaper-fetch
pip install -e .[dev]
pytest  # Run tests