Getting Started

This guide will walk you through setting up DiscordDataMirror from scratch. By the end, you'll have a fully functional Discord archiving system running on your machine.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

Requirement Minimum Version Download
.NET SDK 10.0 Download
Docker Desktop 4.0+ Download
Git 2.0+ Download

Verify Installation

# Check .NET version
dotnet --version
# Should output: 10.0.x

# Check Docker is running
docker --version
# Should output: Docker version 24.x or higher

Step 1: Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/JerrettDavis/DiscordDataMirror.git
cd DiscordDataMirror

Step 2: Create a Discord Bot

You'll need a Discord bot to monitor your servers. Follow the complete bot setup guide or use the quick steps below:

  1. Go to Discord Developer Portal
  2. Click "New Application" and name it (e.g., "Server Backup Bot")
  3. Navigate to Bot → Add Bot
  4. Enable Privileged Gateway Intents:
    • ✅ SERVER MEMBERS INTENT
    • ✅ MESSAGE CONTENT INTENT
  5. Click Reset Token and copy your bot token

⚠️ Keep your token secret! Never commit it to git or share it publicly.

Step 3: Configure the Bot Token

# Windows PowerShell
.\scripts\setup-bot.ps1

# Linux/Mac
./scripts/setup-bot.sh

The script will:

  • Prompt for your bot token
  • Store it securely in .NET User Secrets
  • Validate the token works
  • Generate your bot invite URL

Option B: Manual Configuration

cd src/DiscordDataMirror.Bot
dotnet user-secrets set "Discord:Token" "YOUR_BOT_TOKEN_HERE"

Step 4: Invite the Bot to Your Server

  1. The setup script provides an invite URL, or construct one manually:

    https://discord.com/oauth2/authorize?client_id=YOUR_CLIENT_ID&permissions=66560&scope=bot

  2. Open the URL in your browser

  3. Select the server you want to monitor

  4. Click Authorize

📝 Note: You need "Manage Server" permission to add bots.

Step 5: Run the Application

cd src/DiscordDataMirror.AppHost
dotnet run

On first run, .NET Aspire will:

  1. Start a PostgreSQL container
  2. Apply database migrations
  3. Start the Discord bot service
  4. Launch the Blazor dashboard

Step 6: Verify Everything Works

Aspire Dashboard

Open https://localhost:17113 to see:

  • All running services (green = healthy)
  • Real-time logs from each service
  • Distributed traces for debugging

Data Dashboard

Open https://localhost:5001 to:

  • Browse your Discord servers
  • View channels and messages
  • Search across all data

Discord Server

Check your Discord server — the bot should appear online!

What Happens Next?

Once running, DiscordDataMirror will:

  1. Initial Sync — Fetch all accessible message history (may take time for large servers)
  2. Real-time Capture — Record all new messages, edits, and deletions
  3. Background Tasks — Periodically sync user profiles and server structure

Common Issues

"Discord token not configured"

  • Ensure you ran the setup script or set the user secret correctly
  • Check there are no extra spaces in your token

"Missing Access" errors in logs

  • Ensure the bot has the required permissions (66560)
  • Verify privileged intents are enabled in Developer Portal

Bot shows offline

  • Check Docker Desktop is running
  • Look for errors in the Aspire dashboard logs
  • Verify your network allows Discord API access

Database connection errors

  • Ensure Docker Desktop is running
  • Try restarting the application
  • Check no other service is using port 5432

Next Steps

Video Walkthrough

Coming soon: A step-by-step video guide for setting up DiscordDataMirror.

Edit this page