fb-rss-bridge/README.md

Facebook to RSS Scraper

This tool scrapes public posts from a Facebook page and converts them into an RSS feed (.xml). It can be run locally or automated using GitHub Actions.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.9+
• pip (Python package installer)

Local Installation & Usage

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone <repository-url>
   cd fb-rss-bridge
   

2. Install dependencies: It is recommended to use a virtual environment.

   python3 -m venv .venv
   source .venv/bin/activate
   pip install -r requirements.txt
   

3. Run the scraper:

   python3 main.py <page_name>
   

   Replace <page_name> with the Facebook page ID or username.

   Options:

   • --output: Specify output file name (default: feed.xml)
   • --pages: Number of pages to scrape (default: 1)

   Example:

   python3 main.py GitHub --pages 2 --output github_feed.xml
   

GitHub Actions Automated Feed (Free Cloud Solution)

This repository is configured to run automatically on GitHub's free tier for public repositories.

1. How it works:

   • The .github/workflows/update_feed.yml file defines a "cron job" that runs every 6 hours.
   • It spins up a temporary server (runner), installs Python, runs the script, and saves the feed.xml back to your code.
   • This entire process is free for public repositories on GitHub.

2. Configuration: The workflow is scheduled to run every 6 hours. You can customize the target Facebook page in .github/workflows/update_feed.yml:

   env:
     FB_PAGE_NAME: "GitHub" # Change this to the desired page ID/username
   

3. Getting your RSS Link: To make the generated feed.xml accessible to your RSS reader, you must enable GitHub Pages:

   1. Go to your repository Settings tab.
   2. On the left sidebar, click Pages.
   3. Under Build and deployment / Branch, select main (or master) and click Save.
   4. Wait a minute or two. GitHub will deploy your site.
   5. Your RSS feed URL will be:

      https://<your-username>.github.io/<repo-name>/feed.xml
      

   Example: If your username is nthrm and the repo is fb-rss-bridge, the link is: https://nthrm.github.io/fb-rss-bridge/feed.xml