Skip to main content

​
Welcome to ArcHive

This guide will walk you through setting up your ArcHive account and saving your first piece of content. By the end, you’ll have a fully functional personal knowledge management system.
ArcHive offers multiple ways to capture content: mobile app, Chrome extension, and soon a web dashboard. This guide covers the mobile app and Chrome extension setup.

​
Choose your platform

Mobile app

iOS and Android support with React Native

Chrome extension

Save web pages directly from your browser

​
Mobile app setup

1

Download the app

Download ArcHive from your device’s app store:
  • iOS: Available on the App Store
  • Android: Available on Google Play Store
If you’re building from source, clone the repository and navigate to the archive folder, then run npm start to launch the Expo development server.
2

Create your account

Launch the app and tap “Create Account” to register.Provide the following information:
  • Email address - Your primary email for login
  • Password - A secure password for your account
  • First name - Your first name for personalization
  • Last name - Your last name
The API endpoint for registration is:
POST /api/auth/register
Your account will be created and you’ll receive JWT tokens for authentication.
3

Complete your profile

After registration, you can customize your profile:
  • Upload a profile picture (stored on Cloudinary)
  • Update your first and last name
  • View your usage statistics
Navigate to the Profile tab to access these settings.
4

Save your first content

Now let’s add your first item to ArcHive. Tap the Floating Action Button (FAB) to create new content.

​
Saving a text note

1

Select 'Text' type

Choose Text from the content type options.
2

Enter your note

  • Add a title (optional)
  • Write your note content
  • Add tags for organization (manual or auto-suggested)
3

Save

Tap Save and your note is archived!
1

Select 'Link' type

Choose Link from the content type options.
2

Paste the URL

Enter the web page URL you want to save.ArcHive will automatically:
  • Extract the page title and description
  • Generate a screenshot preview
  • Detect the platform (GitHub, YouTube, Twitter, etc.)
  • Suggest relevant tags using NLP
3

Review and save

Review the extracted metadata and tap Save.

​
Saving a code snippet

1

Select 'Code' type

Choose Code from the content type options.
2

Add your code

  • Enter a descriptive title
  • Paste your code snippet
  • Add language or framework tags
3

Save

Your code is now archived for future reference!
5

Share content from other apps

ArcHive supports iOS and Android share functionality:
  1. Find content you want to save in any app (browser, social media, etc.)
  2. Tap the Share button
  3. Select ArcHive from the share sheet
  4. The content will be automatically saved to your archive
Deep linking is supported - you can open content directly in ArcHive via shared links.

​
Chrome extension setup

1

Install the extension

​
From source (development)

git clone https://github.com/atharvdange618/ArcHive.git
cd ArcHive/web

​
From Chrome Web Store

Coming soon - the extension will be available for one-click installation.
2

Login to your account

Click the ArcHive extension icon in your Chrome toolbar.Enter your credentials:
  • Email - The email you registered with
  • Password - Your account password
Click “Login” to authenticate.
The extension uses JWT-based authentication with automatic token refresh. Your session will persist across browser restarts.
3

Save your first webpage

Now you’re ready to start archiving web content:
  1. Navigate to any webpage you want to save
  2. Click the ArcHive extension icon
  3. Click “Save Current Page”
  4. You’ll see a success message when saved
The extension will automatically:
  • Extract page metadata (title, description)
  • Generate relevant tags using NLP
  • Make the content accessible in your mobile app

​
Search and organize your content

Once you’ve saved some content, here’s how to find it:
1

Use full-text search

The search bar scans all your content, not just titles. Matching keywords are highlighted for context.
2

Filter by content type

Use the filter options to show:
  • All content
  • Links only
  • Text notes only
  • Code snippets only
3

Browse by platform

Navigate to the Browse tab to see content organized by platform:
  • GitHub repositories
  • YouTube videos
  • Twitter/X posts
  • Instagram links
  • And more
Platform statistics show you how many items you’ve saved from each source.
4

View recent searches

Quick access to your search history helps you navigate back to previous queries faster.

​
Managing your content

ArcHive makes it easy to maintain your knowledge base:
  • View details - Tap any item to see full content, metadata, and tags
  • Edit items - Update titles, descriptions, or tags
  • Delete content - Remove items you no longer need
  • Update profile - Manage your account settings and view statistics
Your profile screen shows real-time statistics including total items saved and breakdown by content type (links, text, code).

​
API configuration

The default API endpoint for ArcHive is: 
https://api.archive.atharvdangedev.in/api
For local development, you can configure the extension to use: 
const API_BASE = "http://localhost:3000/api";
Edit the API_BASE constant in background.js for the Chrome extension.

​
Authentication flow

ArcHive uses secure JWT-based authentication:
  1. User registers or logs in via /api/auth/register or /api/auth/login
  2. Server returns access token and refresh token
  3. Access token is included in all API requests
  4. When access token expires, refresh token automatically renews it
  5. Tokens are securely stored in device storage (mobile) or Chrome storage (extension)
{
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "password": "securepassword",
  "firstName": "John",
  "lastName": "Doe"
}

​
Next steps

Mobile app guide

Deep dive into mobile app features and configuration

Chrome extension guide

Advanced extension features and customization

API reference

Complete API documentation for developers

Web dashboard

Explore the upcoming web dashboard and roadmap

​
Troubleshooting

​
Mobile app issues

  • Can’t log in: Verify your email and password, check internet connection
  • Content not saving: Ensure you’re authenticated and have network connectivity
  • Share not working: Grant ArcHive permissions to access shared content

​
Chrome extension issues

  • “Login failed” error: Verify credentials and check that the backend API is accessible
  • “Please login first”: Your session may have expired, log in again
  • Extension not appearing: Enable Developer mode in chrome://extensions/ and reload the extension

​
General issues

  • Screenshot generation slow: Screenshots are processed in background queues using BullMQ, they may take a few moments to appear
  • Tags not auto-generating: Tag generation uses NLP and runs asynchronously, refresh after a few seconds
For additional support, check the GitHub repository or open an issue.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us