youtube-dl in python does not find ffmpeg

[BORRHOMEE]

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Add the -v flag to your command line you run youtube-dl with (youtube-dl -v <your command line>), copy the whole output and insert it here. It should look similar to one below (replace it with your log inserted between triple ```):

[debug] System config: []
[debug] User config: []
[debug] Command-line args: [u'-v', u'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaW_jenozKcj']
[debug] Encodings: locale cp1251, fs mbcs, out cp866, pref cp1251
[debug] youtube-dl version 2018.11.18
[debug] Python version 2.7.11 - Windows-2003Server-5.2.3790-SP2
[debug] exe versions: ffmpeg N-75573-g1d0487f, ffprobe N-75573-g1d0487f, rtmpdump 2.4
[debug] Proxy map: {}
...
<end of log>

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• Single video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaW_jenozKc
• Single video: https://youtu.be/BaW_jenozKc
• Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4lCao7KL_QFVb7Iudeipvc2BCavECqzc

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[BORRHOMEE]

Good morning, everyone,
I'm desperately trying to use youtube-dl in python, but youtube-dl can't find ffmpeg:
[debug] Encodings: locale UTF-8, fs utf-8, out utf-8, pref UTF-8
[debug] youtube-dl version 2018.11.18
[debug] Python version 3.7.0 (CPython) - Darwin-17.7.0-x86_64-i386-64bit
[debug] exe versions: none
[debug] Proxy map: {} when I downloaded it, what should I do?

[dstftw]

ffmpeg must be in $PATH.

[BORRHOMEE]

I put it in path via: os.environ["PATH"] += os.pathsep + path but it still doesn't work.I think I'm doing it wrong.

[BORRHOMEE]

a other idea?

[dstftw]

Read new issue template and provide complete output along with complete source code you are running. There are no telepathists here.

[BORRHOMEE]

os.environ ["PATH"] += os.pathsep +'/Users/.../ffmpeg-20181028-bdfd2e3-macos64-static/bin/ffmpeg'
print(os.getenv('PATH'))
/usr/bin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/sbin:/Users/.../ffmpeg-20181028-bdfd2e3-macos64-static/bin/ffmpeg
from future import unicode_literals
import youtube_dl

ydl_opts = {'verbose': True}
with youtube_dl.YoutubeDL(ydl_opts) as ydl:
ydl.download(['https://dai.ly/x5zm3r6'])

[debug] Encodings: locale UTF-8, fs utf-8, out utf-8, pref UTF-8
[debug] youtube-dl version 2018.11.18
[debug] Python version 3.7.0 (CPython) - Darwin-17.7.0-x86_64-i386-64bit
[debug] exe versions: none
[debug] Proxy map: {}
[generic] x5zm3r6: Requesting header
[redirect] Following redirect to https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5zm3r6
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading webpage
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading metadata JSON
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[debug] Default format spec: best/bestvideo+bestaudio
[debug] Invoking downloader on 'https://proxy-19.nyc.dailymotion.com/sec(x552e80a727be2574089fafd5bf645e0)/p/video/837/841/362148738_mp4_h264_aac_fhd_1.m3u8'
[download] Destination: Bigflo & Oli - Dommage-x5zm3r6.mp4
�[0;31mERROR:�[0m m3u8 download detected but ffmpeg or avconv could not be found.

[BORRHOMEE]

I didn't understand your comment, I'm sorry. I'm new and it's quite difficult for me

[dstftw]

It must be path to folder with ffmpeg not ffmpeg itself. Alternatively use ffmpeg_location option.

[rautamiekka]

I take it you got your build from https://ffmpeg.zeranoe.com/builds/, which does match your path to FFmpeg. You should update, there have been many updates since that build. But that's not the problem here.

You've designated the very complete path to the binary itself, which doesn't work. Take away the trailing ffmpeg (the name of the binary) from the whole path and try again, it should work after that.

[BORRHOMEE]

os.environ ["PATH"] += os.pathsep + '/Utilisateurs/.../ffmpeg-20181028-bdfd2e3-macos64-statique/bin/'
print (os.getenv ('PATH'))
/usr/bin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/sbin:/Utilisateurs/.../ffmpeg-20181028-bdfd2e3-macos64-statique/bin/

ydl_opts = {'verbose': True}
with youtube_dl.YoutubeDL(ydl_opts) as ydl:
ydl.download(['https://dai.ly/x5zm3r6'])

[debug] Encodings: locale UTF-8, fs utf-8, out utf-8, pref UTF-8
[debug] youtube-dl version 2018.11.18
[debug] Python version 3.7.0 (CPython) - Darwin-17.7.0-x86_64-i386-64bit
[debug] exe versions: none
[debug] Proxy map: {}
[generic] x5zm3r6: Requesting header
[redirect] Following redirect to https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5zm3r6
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading webpage
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading metadata JSON
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[dailymotion] x5zm3r6: Downloading m3u8 information
[debug] Default format spec: best/bestvideo+bestaudio
[debug] Invoking downloader on 'https://proxy-19.nyc.dailymotion.com/sec(x552e80a727be2574089fafd5bf645e0)/p/video/837/841/362148738_mp4_h264_aac_fhd_1.m3u8'
[download] Destination: Bigflo & Oli - Dommage-x5zm3r6.mp4
�[0;31mERROR:�[0m m3u8 download detected but ffmpeg or avconv could not be found. Please install one.
Still not, unless I've been wrong again

[rautamiekka]

^ Dunno if you need to remove the trailing / as well, but are those ... in the path added by you without post-editing the code ? Dunno how Mac's Bash deals with various things, but I doubt that works as a wildcard of sorts; I'm doubting you could use any in Python paths ...

[BORRHOMEE]

actually there is not the last slash at the end when the path is given in consol, but even when I remove the last slash it still doesn't pass

[Hrxn]

os.environ["PATH"] += os.pathsep + path

Not sure what you are trying to do here actually. os.pathsep is the property as given by Python? If yes, then it returns either / or \. But that is not how you separate multiple paths inside your PATH var, that would be either : or ;, according to platform. It should be : on Unixoids.

[BORRHOMEE]

I think I'm the one who misuses ffmpeg with python, I can't figure out how to do it.
If I'm not mistaken during the installation we get a binary file of ffmpeg that we must place so that python can find it and use it for example with youtube-dl?
But however I try to place ffmpeg in path python, it still doesn't find it, so I'm definitely doing it wrong.
Someone could enlighten me on the right way to do it, or a way to make python find it,...?

[Hrxn]

You can put the ffmpeg binaries anywhere that is in your PATH, like /usr/bin for example.

[BORRHOMEE]

I use a sudo cp to put it in /usr/bin but it puts me : Operation not permitted

[rautamiekka]

I use a sudo cp to put it in /usr/bin but it puts me : Operation not permitted

A few possible reasons for that. I've not made any research on these, so some could be wrong:

1. You've a chattr -V +i (immutability (filesystem-level write protection flag)) enabled on the folder, which blocks even the root user.
2. sudoers disallows that. By default on Debian[-based] and Ubuntu[-based] this doesn't happen, and I dunno if that's even possible.
3. OS protection services like SELinux are blocking access. By default on Debian[-based] and Ubuntu[-based] this doesn't happen.
4. The folder, or its parent folder, is mounted with ro (read-only) flag.