[Feature Request] - use as server with API

[infoflowmata]

I'm sorry if it was brought up and dismissed already - but have you considered to make convertX available as server with API?

[C4illin]

I think that it better to process the files directly instead. You can look into the converters used by convertx.

There is more info here #193

[C4illin]

I haven't looked into it but there is a forked namned convertx-api https://github.com/nynevi/ConvertX-API

[infoflowmata]

Interesting, thanks!

[cloudmaker97]

Okay, but why wontfix then? I mean, could you not imagine having this in this repository as a cool feature out of the box @C4illin ?

[C4illin]

Well technically you can already use it as an API, just send a post request to the convert endpoint with the file

I dont see the use case where you would do that though.

[infoflowmata]

Well technically you can already use it as an API, just send a post request to the convert endpoint with the file

can you elaborate some more about this? what parameters are available to set?
the use case is simple - an API for file conversion used in some micro-SaaS

[C4illin]

So you want to create a micro-SaaS? Why not just do the conversion directly in the software?

[cloudmaker97]

The purpose of micro-SaaS is mainly, that you don't overgrow your software with features, that other pieces of software solves already better in some way. Why should somebody reinvent the wheel, when some applicable software is already FOSS.

[C4illin]

Well since this is a feature request, the wheel isn't invented yet

[C4illin]

Sorry I don't see the use case, but I would accept a PR if you create one :)

[Rihan9]

Hi,
I can provide an use case: I have my own picture/video library. I access it from a bunch of different devices: Android TV, windows PC, android Phone, web pages etc). Each of these devices are also a "producer" of these files (just think about the phone camera). I'd like to have all my library with only 1 format for these files (all images are jpeg, all videos are mkv with h265 etc) for compatibility and maintenance.

Now, I need to convert all my library to this chosen format. I don't want to do it one by one manually! I can make a script to do it on my local machine for the first time, but for all the future upload I'd like to put a "listener" on a folder (made by another micro-SaaS) and the call convertX to convert it to the correct format when a file is put on it.

[C4illin]

Why can't the "listener" just run ffmpeg or vips directly? Adding a web api makes it much more complex

[Rihan9]

Because putting ffmpeg in a docker container is a pain :D.
So if someone already do a good job with it, I don't see why I should try to redoing the same thing, but worse.
Furthermore I mostly prefer a micro-SaaS architecture, so each software should do only one thing and do it in the best way possible. Your software is perfect to perform a "file conversion" service. If it can be extended to be called even from other services in an architecture, I think it can be the next evolution step for it.
I'm not pressuring you and I understand it can be quite challenging if your software wasn't originally mean to do it, I just hope it can be considered in the future.