Configuration

bili needs no configuration to run. There is no config file; every option is a flag or an environment variable, and the defaults are chosen so the common case needs neither. It runs anonymously against api.bilibili.com over HTTPS.

Directories

bili follows the XDG base directory layout, so its cache, config, and data each live in the standard place for your OS. See the resolved paths any time:

bili config show

{
  "cache_dir": "~/Library/Caches/bili",
  "config_dir": "~/Library/Application Support/bili",
  "data_dir": "~/.local/share/bili",
  "cache_ttl": "1h0m0s",
  "rate": "350ms",
  "retries": 4,
  "timeout": "30s",
  "cookie_set": false
}

The only thing bili keeps on disk is the response cache, under cache_dir. Clear it with bili cache clear; inspect it with bili cache info.

Cookies

Most read endpoints work anonymously. A few are gated by bilibili's anti-bot system for anonymous callers (single-dynamic detail is the main one) and need a logged-in session. Supply it as a cookie header, the same string your browser sends:

# inline
bili dynamic <id> --cookie 'SESSDATA=...; bili_jct=...; DedeUserID=...'

# from the environment (preferred, so it stays out of your shell history)
export BILI_COOKIE='SESSDATA=...; bili_jct=...; DedeUserID=...'
bili dynamic <id>

# from a file
bili dynamic <id> --cookie-file ~/.bili-cookie

bili never prints your cookie back: config show reports only cookie_set: true/false, and the cookie is never logged. Treat the cookie like a password; it is your live session.

Environment variables

Variable	Used for
BILI_COOKIE	Cookie header for logged-in endpoints
BILI_CACHE_DIR	Override the cache directory
BILI_DATA_DIR	Override the data directory
HTTP_PROXY / HTTPS_PROXY	Standard Go proxy variables, honored by the client

Global flags

Flag	Default	Meaning
-o, --output	auto	table, json, jsonl, csv, tsv, yaml, url, raw
-n, --limit	0	Maximum records; 0 is unlimited
--fields	all	Comma-separated columns to keep and order
--template	none	Go text/template applied per record
--no-header	off	Omit the header row in table/csv output
--page, --page-size	endpoint	Pagination, where the endpoint supports it
--order	endpoint	Sort order, where supported
--cookie, --cookie-file	none	Logged-in session
--lang	zh-CN	Locale for localized fields
--rate	350ms	Minimum delay between requests, to stay polite
--retries	4	Retry attempts on rate-limit/risk-control/5xx
--cache / --no-cache	on	Use or bypass the on-disk cache
--cache-ttl	1h	Cache freshness window
--proxy	none	HTTP or SOCKS proxy URL
--dry-run	off	Print the requests that would be made, without calling
--color	auto	auto, always, or never
-q, --quiet	off	Suppress progress output on stderr

Caching and politeness

bili caches API responses on disk for --cache-ttl (one hour by default) so repeated commands and overlapping crawls do not re-fetch the same data. --rate keeps a minimum gap between requests so a busy session stays a good citizen against the public API, and --retries backs off and retries the rate-limit and risk-control responses bilibili returns when you go too fast.

Output auto-detection

The default output format adapts to where it is going: an aligned table when the output is a terminal, JSONL when it is piped. That keeps interactive use readable and scripted use parseable without you setting -o either way. See output formats for the full set.