Introduction
If you regularly need to download files from public TeraBox shares, manually generating a TeraBox direct download link each time can be time‑consuming. Fortunately, TeraLink offers a free link resolver that can be called from the command line. In this guide we’ll show you how to schedule automatic TeraBox direct download link retrieval on a Linux system using a tiny shell script and cron.
Prerequisites
- A Linux distribution (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, etc.) with internet access.
- **TeraLink** installed or accessible via its public API endpoint.
- Basic familiarity with the terminal and `cron`.
- `curl` and `jq` installed (`sudo apt install curl jq`).
Step 1: Create a Simple Link‑Resolver Script
First, create a script that accepts a public TeraBox share URL and returns the direct download link.
```bash
#!/usr/bin/env bash
# File: tera_link_resolver.sh
# Check for input URL
if [ -z "$1" ]; then
echo "Usage: $0 <tera_box_share_url>"
exit 1
fi
SHARE_URL="$1"
API_ENDPOINT="https://api.teralink.io/v1/generate" # hypothetical endpoint
# Call TeraLink API
response=$(curl -s -G --data-urlencode "url=$SHARE_URL" "$API_ENDPOINT")
# Extract direct link using jq (adjust field name if needed)
direct_link=$(echo "$response" | jq -r '.direct_download_link')
if [ "$direct_link" = "null" ] || [ -z "$direct_link" ]; then
echo "Failed to retrieve direct link. Check the share URL or API status."
exit 1
fi
echo "$direct_link"
```
Make the script executable:
```bash
chmod +x tera_link_resolver.sh
```
Step 2: Test the Script Manually
Run the script with a known public TeraBox URL:
```bash
./tera_link_resolver.sh "https://terabox.com/s/abcd1234"
```
If everything works, the script prints a URL that points directly to the file (e.g., `https://dl.terabox.com/...`). This URL can be fed to `wget` or any download manager.
Step 3: Automate with a Cron Job
Assume you have a text file (`links.txt`) that contains one TeraBox share URL per line. We’ll create another script that reads each line, resolves the direct link, and downloads the file.
```bash
#!/usr/bin/env bash
# File: tera_auto_download.sh
INPUT_FILE="/home/youruser/links.txt"
DOWNLOAD_DIR="/home/youruser/tera_downloads"
mkdir -p "$DOWNLOAD_DIR"
while IFS= read -r share_url; do
# Skip empty lines or comments
[[ -z "$share_url" || "$share_url" =~ ^# ]] && continue
echo "Resolving $share_url..."
direct=$(./tera_link_resolver.sh "$share_url")
if [[ "$direct" == *"Failed"* ]]; then
echo "[ERROR] Could not get direct link for $share_url"
continue
fi
echo "Downloading from $direct..."
wget -q -P "$DOWNLOAD_DIR" "$direct"
echo "Finished $share_url"
done < "$INPUT_FILE"
```
Make it executable:
```bash
chmod +x tera_auto_download.sh
```
Adding the Cron Entry
Open the crontab editor:
```bash
crontab -e
```
Add a line to run the script every day at 2 AM (adjust timing as needed):
```
0 2 * * * /home/youruser/tera_auto_download.sh >> /home/youruser/tera_cron.log 2>&1
```
The cron daemon will now automatically read `links.txt`, generate TeraBox direct download links with TeraLink, and download the files to your chosen folder.
Step 4: Managing Link Expiration and Errors
Public TeraBox share links can expire after a set period. To avoid broken downloads:
- Keep `links.txt` up to date; remove stale URLs.
- Add a simple retry mechanism inside `tera_auto_download.sh` (e.g., loop with `sleep` and a max‑attempt count).
- Monitor the log file (`tera_cron.log`) for failures and act accordingly.
Bonus: Integrating with a Download Manager
If you prefer a GUI download manager (e.g., **uGet** or **aria2**), modify the script to output the direct links to a temporary file and let the manager handle the queue:
```bash
./tera_link_resolver.sh "$share_url" >> /tmp/tera_links.txt
```
Then run `aria2c -i /tmp/tera_links.txt` as part of the cron job.
Conclusion
By combining TeraLink’s API with a lightweight Bash script and cron, you can fully automate the retrieval of TeraBox direct download links on Linux. This approach saves time, eliminates repetitive manual steps, and ensures you always have the latest files from public TeraBox shares.
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*Keywords: TeraBox direct download link, TeraLink, Linux automation, cron job, shell script, public TeraBox share, download manager, link resolver*