Companion Packages

Ytdlp.NET is a wrapper library — it does not include yt-dlp, FFmpeg, FFprobe, or Deno binaries.
To make setup zero-effort and fully portable (no manual PATH changes or downloads), we provide companion NuGet packages that automatically fetch and extract the latest stable binaries into your application's output directory.

These packages are optional but strongly recommended for most users.

Available Companion Packages

Package Name	Purpose	Required?	Latest Version	Install Command
	Latest stable yt-dlp executable	Yes		Install-Package ManuHub.Ytdlp
	Full FFmpeg binary (merging, conversion, thumbnails)	Recommended		Install-Package ManuHub.FFmpeg
	FFprobe (metadata probing, format detection)	Recommended		Install-Package ManuHub.FFprobe
	Deno runtime (advanced JS extractor support)	Yes		Install-Package ManuHub.Deno

Why use these packages?

• Zero manual setup — binaries are extracted automatically at build/run time
• Portable — works in Docker, CI/CD, Azure Functions, desktop apps, etc.
• Always up-to-date — pulls latest stable releases from official sources
• No PATH pollution — no need to install yt-dlp/FFmpeg globally
• Safe & verified — packages are built and signed by the Ytdlp.NET maintainer

Installation (NuGet)

Add any or all of these to your .csproj file:

<ItemGroup>
  <!-- Core yt-dlp (required) -->
  <PackageReference Include="ManuHub.Ytdlp" Version="*" />

  <!-- FFmpeg + FFprobe (highly recommended) -->
  <PackageReference Include="ManuHub.FFmpeg" Version="*" />
  <PackageReference Include="ManuHub.FFprobe" Version="*" />

  <!-- Deno (only if you need advanced JS extraction features) -->
  <PackageReference Include="ManuHub.Deno" Version="*" />
</ItemGroup>

After restoring packages, the binaries will appear in your output folder (usually under bin/Debug/net9.0/runtimes/... or similar).

How Ytdlp.NET detects them

When you create new Ytdlp(), the library automatically searches:

1. Companion package runtimes (highest priority)
2. System PATH for yt-dlp / yt-dlp.exe
3. Custom path passed to constructor

No extra configuration needed.

Manual Override (if needed)

If you prefer your own binaries or a specific version:

var ytdlp = new Ytdlp(ytDlpPath: @"C:\Tools\yt-dlp.exe");

// Optional: override FFmpeg location
ytdlp.WithFFMpegLocation(@"C:\Tools\ffmpeg.exe");

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
"yt-dlp executable not found"	Install ManuHub.Ytdlp or place yt-dlp.exe in PATH
No merging / audio extraction	Install ManuHub.FFmpeg + ManuHub.FFprobe
Advanced JS extractor fails	Install ManuHub.Deno
Old binaries used	Clean/rebuild solution or update packages (Update-Package)

See also

• Usage Examples
• Metadata Model
• NuGet Gallery: https://www.nuget.org/packages/ManuHub.Ytdlp (and others)