https://github.com/hyperphantasia/clone-github-user-repos
Clone all public repos for a GitHub user with a single command: ideal for bulk cloning and local backups.
https://github.com/hyperphantasia/clone-github-user-repos
automation backup bash bulk-clone cli-tool clone clone-repos deb-package debian git git-tools github github-api mirror repo-backup shell-script ubuntu
Last synced: about 17 hours ago
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Clone all public repos for a GitHub user with a single command: ideal for bulk cloning and local backups.
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/hyperphantasia/clone-github-user-repos
- Owner: hyperphantasia
- License: unlicense
- Created: 2026-03-26T22:40:46.000Z (4 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-04-12T19:01:23.000Z (3 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-05-16T14:54:02.025Z (2 months ago)
- Topics: automation, backup, bash, bulk-clone, cli-tool, clone, clone-repos, deb-package, debian, git, git-tools, github, github-api, mirror, repo-backup, shell-script, ubuntu
- Language: Shell
- Homepage:
- Size: 186 KB
- Stars: 0
- Watchers: 1
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- Contributing: CONTRIBUTING.md
- License: LICENSE
- Code of conduct: CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
- Security: SECURITY.md
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README
# Backup your GitHub repos
**One line to clone them all.**
*No CGI. Thank you [NASA](https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasahqphoto/)!*
`gh-clone-all` is a small Debian package that clones public repos locally for a specified GitHub username.
## Genesis
> This script started as the challenge to code a small shell one-liner, and avoid the hassle of manually copying each clone URL. Created to quickly mirror or back up all public repositories for a GitHub account without manually copying each clone URL when migrating systems. It eventually just grew into a full, reusable package.
## Table of contents
Contents - click to expand
- [Backup your GitHub repos](#backup-your-github-repos)
- [Genesis](#genesis)
- [Table of contents](#table-of-contents)
- [Features](#features)
- [Requirements](#requirements)
- [Project layout](#project-layout)
- [What the tool does](#what-the-tool-does)
- [Installation and usage: the easy way](#installation-and-usage-the-easy-way)
- [Using the standalone script only](#using-the-standalone-script-only)
- [Build the `.deb` by yourself](#build-the-deb-by-yourself)
- [Install the package](#install-the-package)
- [Run the tool](#run-the-tool)
- [Example output](#example-output)
- [Limitations](#limitations)
- [Improvements](#improvements)
- [License](#license)
- [And for the beauty of the view](#and-for-the-beauty-of-the-view)
## Features
- Prompts for a GitHub username if not provided via command-line arguments.
- Lists the user’s public repositories via the GitHub REST API.
- Clones each repository with `git clone`.
- Packaged as a `.deb` for easy installation on Debian-based systems.
## Requirements
Debian or Ubuntu-based system.
- `curl`
- `git`
- `awk`
- `grep`
- `sed`
- `xargs` found in `findutils`
These dependencies are included in the package metadata so they are installed automatically when possible.
## Project layout
```text
clone-github-user-repos/
├── img/
├── src/
| ├── build.sh
| └── gh-clone-all_script.sh
├── install_gh-clone-all.sh
└── README.md
.deb Package structure
└── gh-clone-all_1.0.0_all/
├── DEBIAN/
│ └── control
└── usr/
└── bin/
└── gh-clone-all
```
## What the tool does
The script asks for a GitHub username (if not specified in CLI arguments), calls the GitHub REST API for that user’s repositories ((JSON) with per_page=100), extracts each repository’s `clone_url`, and runs `git clone` for every result.
> [!NOTE]
> GitHub’s repository listing API is paginated, and the `per_page` parameter supports up to 100 results per page, so accounts with more than 100 repositories will need pagination support (not implemented) if you want every repository cloned.
## Installation and usage: the easy way
Just run the command below under Ubuntu/Debian and wait for the script to execute.
- Download and execute the installation script:
```bash
curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/brooks-code/clone-github-user-repos/main/install_gh-clone-all.sh | bash
```
### Using the standalone script only
If you prefer just running the scriplet without installation, the script is located in the `src` folder.
- Pass a substitution before running:
```bash
USERNAME=octocat ./gh-clone-all_script.sh
```
- Or edit the URL to include your username directly in the script
```bash
# Replace the USERNAME in the line below
curl -s "https://api.github.com/users/USERNAME/repos?per_page=100"
```
### Build the `.deb` by yourself
Make the build script executable and run it:
```bash
chmod +x build.sh
./build.sh
```
This will create a file named similar to:
```text
gh-clone-all_1.0.0_all.deb
```
The `.deb` is created from a directory tree that contains a `DEBIAN` metadata directory and the files to be installed into the target filesystem.
#### Install the package
Install the local package with `apt`:
```bash
sudo apt install ./gh-clone-all_1.0.0_all.deb
```
You can also use `dpkg -i`, but `apt` is often preferred for local `.deb` installs (because it can resolve dependencies more conveniently).
#### Run the tool
After a succesfull installation, run:
```bash
gh-clone-all octocat
```
or
```bash
gh-clone-all
```
and when prompted, enter a GitHub username such as:
```text
octocat
```
The script will then clone that user’s public repositories into the current directory.
##### Example output
```bash
$ github-clone-all
Enter GitHub username: octocat
Cloning into 'Spoon-Knife'...
Cloning into 'Hello-World'...
```
## Removal instructions
Just run:
```bash
sudo apt remove gh-clone-all
```
## Limitations
> [!NOTE]
> This clones up to 100 repos. pagination support for more is note implemented (yet).
>
> The command targets **public repositories** by default. Use authenticated endpoints to access private repos.
And last but not least..
- Be mindful of GitHub API **rate limits** for unauthenticated requests.
- Cloning many repos can consume significant disk space and network bandwidth.
## Improvements
Possible improvements include:
- [ ] Adding pagination support for users with large numbers of repositories.
- [ ] Option to filter out forks or archived repositories.
- [X] Adding a username command-line option alongside interactive prompting.
## License
The source code is provided under the [Unlicense](https://unlicense.org/) license. See the [LICENSE](/LICENSE) file for details.
## And for the beauty of the view
*Just to [see](https://ucly.hal.science/hal-05184143v1) the [view](https://chopplet.canalblog.com/archives/2024/01/02/40162097.html).*