Add share-log subcommand to upload install.log to paste.rs by Softer · Pull Request #4511 · archlinux/archinstall

Softer · 2026-05-01T11:51:24Z

Replaces the broken curl ... https://0x0.st hint with an integrated archinstall share-log command that uploads /var/log/archinstall/install.log to paste.rs and prints a shareable URL. Also updates the same hint in the README, the bug report docs, and the GitHub bug issue template, so all four user-facing references now point to the working command.

Refs #4396 (0x0.st has disabled uploads). Supersedes #4507, which removes the hint without offering a replacement.

Why paste.rs

Text-oriented pastebin with extension-based syntax highlighting, so install.log renders as a readable page rather than a raw download
10 MiB upload limit (well above realistic install.log sizes)
Curl-friendly, no account, no server-side state to maintain

The endpoint is referenced exactly once - a constant in archinstall/lib/output.py. If a self-hosted paste service is set up later, or 0x0.st returns, swapping it is a one-line change.

Behavior

$ archinstall share-log
About to upload /var/log/archinstall/install.log (12345 bytes) to https://paste.rs
The log may contain hostname, mirror URLs, package list and partition layout.
The uploaded paste is public.
Continue?
https://paste.rs/abc.def

Runs as a subcommand (archinstall share-log), not a flag - it is a standalone command, not an installer option
Runs before root check so non-root users can share logs too
TUI confirmation via ConfirmationScreen (consistent with the rest of archinstall)
Diagnostics go through info(); only the final URL goes to raw print() so it can be piped (archinstall share-log | xclip -sel clip)
Logs exceeding 10 MiB are truncated from the bottom up (latest entries kept) instead of refusing to upload
File-not-found, empty file, network failure and unexpected response are each handled with a clear message and non-zero exit

Test plan

archinstall share-log on a live ISO - URL is printed and the paste is readable
archinstall share-log answering No - exits cleanly without uploading
archinstall share-log with install.log missing - reports the error and exits non-zero
archinstall share-log with no network - reports the error and exits non-zero
Trigger an install error and confirm the hint says archinstall share-log

Torxed · 2026-05-01T16:41:47Z

Just note that I started a conversation about an arch official channel for posting these logs. I created a ticket to track the progress on gitlab@archlinux #833

Softer · 2026-05-01T16:48:23Z

We can change --share-log behavior transparently for users any time we need without changing user's expectation. :)

…arge logs

Softer · 2026-05-03T02:16:31Z

Changes per review:

archinstall share-log subcommand instead of --share-log flag
Code moved into output.py, share_log.py deleted
Large logs truncated from bottom up instead of refusing upload
TUI ConfirmationScreen instead of input()
info() for diagnostics; final URL stays as print() for pipe-friendliness

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T22:17:28Z

+
+
+def share_install_log() -> int:
+	from archinstall.lib.command import SysCommand


Why are they not global?

Circular import: command.py imports debug, error, logger from output.py, so a top-level from archinstall.lib.command import SysCommand here creates a cycle. Removed in the latest commit anyway - switched to urllib.request so these imports are no longer needed.

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T22:19:04Z

+	header += 'Continue?'
+
+	try:
+		from archinstall.tui.ui.components import tui


Why is this not global?

Circular import: tui.ui.components imports debug from output.py, so a top-level import here creates a cycle. Has to stay local.

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T22:19:28Z

+		from archinstall.tui.ui.components import tui
+
+		confirmed: bool = tui.run(lambda: _confirm_share(header))
+	except Exception:


why do we need a try here?

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T22:20:03Z

+		info('Cancelled.')
+		return 1
+
+	import tempfile


Why not global?

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T22:27:04Z

+	import tempfile
+
+	if size > _PASTE_MAX_SIZE:
+		fd, tmp_path_str = tempfile.mkstemp(suffix='.log')


we can use pathlib here as it's the main pattern in the code base

if size > _PASTE_MAX_SIZE: with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp_dir: upload_path = Path(tmp_dir) / 'archinstall_log_upload.log' upload_path.write_bytes(content) ... else: ...

In addition lets not call curl from syscommand but actually use Python build ins

try: req = urllib.request.Request(_PASTE_URL, data=content) with urllib.request.urlopen(req) as response: url = response.read().decode().strip() except urllib.error.URLError as e: info(f'Upload failed: {e}') return 1

svartkanin · 2026-05-03T23:17:54Z

+	return 0
+
+
+async def _confirm_share(header: str) -> bool:


The TUI code should not be part of this file as archinstall can be used as a lib it should only expose the share function to consumers, but the consumers should be able to call it and use it independently from the TUI logic.

You can move the confirmation out to the main.py where the function is called, and after confirming it will just call the share function which will then run without interruption

I see the point about lib purity, but share_install_log is specifically a CLI subcommand helper - it's invoked from main.py as archinstall share-log and there's no realistic scenario where someone calls it programmatically as a library function. Moving the confirmation out would split a 20-line function into two halves across two files for a separation that nobody will consume. Happy to do it if you feel strongly.

It's about dependency management and footprint, this makes output.py dependent on the tui module which is not necessary.
you create a new public function for sharing the log file, so anyone using archinstall as a lib or otherwise would be able to use it, regardless if they need to or not. If anyone wants to create their own ISOs and use archinstall they are dependent on this hardcoded implementation of using the tui.
Also it makes isolated functionality testing very difficult as now a test needs to mock a full blown tui instead of being able to test the actual sharing logic in an isolated way.

In addtion, these

_PASTE_URL = 'https://paste.rs' _PASTE_MAX_SIZE = 10 * 1024 * 1024

should be parameters into the function as well so the function can be tested easily by providing a simple mock url.

You know better. Decoupled - share_install_log now takes paste_url, max_size, and confirm as parameters, zero TUI imports in output.py. The TUI confirmation lives in main.py as _tui_confirm and is passed via callback.

Per review: use stdlib urllib instead of shelling out to curl, drop unnecessary try/except around TUI confirmation, remove tempfile (content is passed directly as bytes).

Softer · 2026-05-04T16:07:35Z

Since share_install_log is now a standalone function in output.py with no TUI dependencies, I figured it would be a good candidate for unit tests. :-)

Added tests/test_share_log.py covering all code paths:

file not found
empty file
user cancellation
successful upload
large file truncation
network error
unexpected server response

svartkanin · 2026-05-06T04:31:16Z

+  * To upload the log from the ISO image and get a shareable URL, run<br>
    ```shell
-    curl -F'file=@/var/log/archinstall/install.log' https://0x0.st
+    archinstall --share-log


update to

archinstall share-log

svartkanin · 2026-05-06T04:31:41Z

@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+# pylint: disable=redefined-outer-name


Thank you for adding tests!

svartkanin · 2026-05-06T04:32:42Z


 .. tip::
-   | An easy way to submit logs is ``curl -F 'file=@/var/log/archinstall/install.log' https://0x0.st``.
+   | An easy way to submit logs is ``archinstall --share-log``, which uploads ``install.log`` to paste.rs and prints a shareable URL.


update to

archinstall share-log

svartkanin · 2026-05-06T04:39:52Z

-        you can easily post the installation log using the following command:
-        `curl -F'file=@/var/log/archinstall/install.log' https://0x0.st`
+        you can easily upload the installation log and get a shareable URL by running:
+        `archinstall --share-log`


Add --share-log flag to upload install.log to paste.rs

727df5c

Softer requested a review from Torxed as a code owner May 1, 2026 11:51

Softer mentioned this pull request May 1, 2026

fix: remove dead 0x0.st upload hint from error message #4507

Closed

1 task

Softer force-pushed the feat-share-log branch from 384ae72 to 727df5c Compare May 1, 2026 12:00

Apply ruff-format to share_log.py

995ee8a