PrivateBin API C++ DLL

A cross-platform C++ library for interacting with PrivateBin servers.

Overview

This library provides a simple C++ interface for interacting with PrivateBin services. PrivateBin is a minimalist, open-source online pastebin where the server has zero knowledge of stored data. All data is encrypted and decrypted in the browser using 256-bit AES encryption.

Features

• Create new pastes with optional expiration, formatting, and security settings
• Retrieve existing pastes by ID
• Delete pastes using the deletion token
• Cross-platform compatibility (Windows and Linux)
• Support for PrivateBin API versions 1.3 and later

Development & Build

Prerequisites

• CMake 3.10+
• C++17-capable compiler (MSVC 2022 or GCC/Clang)
• Git
• vcpkg (automatically bootstrapped by the Makefile)

Dependencies

• cryptopp (Crypto++)
• nlohmann-json
• Windows: WinHTTP (SDK)
• Linux: libcurl (used automatically via vcpkg)

Quick start with Makefile (Windows & Linux)

1. Install dependencies, configure, and build:

make

2. Build and run the example:

make example

The Makefile does:

• clone and bootstrap vcpkg
• install packages from vcpkg.json
• configure CMake with the vcpkg toolchain
• build the library and the example

Manual with CMake

# clone and bootstrap vcpkg
git clone https://github.com/microsoft/vcpkg.git "$HOME/vcpkg"
"$HOME/vcpkg/bootstrap-vcpkg.sh"   # Linux/macOS
# Windows (PowerShell):
# powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command "& '$env:USERPROFILE\vcpkg\bootstrap-vcpkg.bat'"

# Configure
cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE="$HOME/vcpkg/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake"

# Build
cmake --build build --config Release

# Example
cmake -S example -B example/build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build example/build --config Release

Windows (PowerShell) – Build via build_thinkpad.bat

For systems with Visual Studio 2022 Build Tools (C++ workload) and vcpkg in the user profile, there is a robust build script:

cd C:\Users\mbusc\source\repos\lib-privatebin
./build_thinkpad.bat

Notes:

• Requires Visual Studio 2022 Build Tools with C++ tools and the Windows 11 SDK. If VsDevCmd.bat is found, the script automatically initializes the MSVC environment.
• vcpkg is bootstrapped if needed; missing dependencies (cryptopp, nlohmann-json) are installed.
• If vcpkg requires a baseline, the script sets it automatically.

Edition/Path notes:

• If you use another VS edition (e.g., Professional/Enterprise), adjust the paths in build_thinkpad.bat:
  • C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio\2022\Professional\Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat
  • C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio\2022\Enterprise\Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat
• Alternatively, you can use vswhere.exe to discover the installation path:

  & 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\vswhere.exe' -latest -products * -requires Microsoft.VisualStudio.Component.VC.Tools.x86.x64 -property installationPath
  

Usage

API Functions

// Create a new paste
int create_paste(const char* server_url, const char* content, 
                 const char* password, const char* expiration,
                 const char* format, int burn_after_reading, 
                 int open_discussion, char** paste_url, 
                 char** delete_token);

// Retrieve a paste
int get_paste(const char* server_url, const char* paste_id, 
              const char* key, char** content);

// Delete a paste
int delete_paste(const char* server_url, const char* paste_id, 
                 const char* delete_token);

// Free memory allocated by the API functions
void free_string(char* str);

Example

#include "privatebinapi.h"
#include <iostream>

int main() {
    char* paste_url = nullptr;
    char* delete_token = nullptr;
    
    int result = create_paste(
        "https://privatebin.net",
        "Hello, PrivateBin!",
        nullptr,           // No password
        "1hour",           // Expire in 1 hour
        "plaintext",       // Plain text format
        0,                 // Don't burn after reading
        0,                 // No discussion
        &paste_url,
        &delete_token
    );
    
    if (result == 0) {
        std::cout << "Paste created: " << paste_url << std::endl;
        std::cout << "Delete token: " << delete_token << std::endl;
        
        // Free allocated memory
        free_string(paste_url);
        free_string(delete_token);
    } else {
        std::cout << "Failed to create paste: " << result << std::endl;
    }
    
    return 0;
}

Error Codes

• 0: Success
• 1: Network error
• 2: Encryption/decryption error
• 3: Invalid input
• 4: Server error
• 5: JSON parsing error

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Troubleshooting

• vcpkg requires a baseline / "this vcpkg instance requires a manifest with a specified baseline"

  • Run in the repo root to add an initial builtin baseline to vcpkg.json:

    $env:VCPKG_ROOT = "$env:USERPROFILE\vcpkg"
    & "$env:VCPKG_ROOT\vcpkg.exe" x-update-baseline --add-initial-baseline
    

  • Then configure/build again.

• Visual Studio instance not found / "could not find specified instance of Visual Studio"

  • Ensure VS 2022 Build Tools or Community with C++ tools and Windows 11 SDK are installed.
  • Use the Developer Command Prompt (VsDevCmd):

    cmd /c "call `"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Microsoft Visual Studio\\2022\\BuildTools\\Common7\\Tools\\VsDevCmd.bat`" -arch=x64 && build.bat"
    

  • Or delete the build folder to clear stale CMake cache and reconfigure:

    Remove-Item -Recurse -Force build
    

• vswhere.exe not found

  • Add the VS Installer directory to PATH for the current session:

    $env:PATH = 'C:\\Program Files\\Microsoft Visual Studio\\Installer;' + $env:PATH
    

  • Or install/download vswhere from Microsoft and place it under the Installer folder.

• cryptoppConfig.cmake / cryptopp-config.cmake not found during CMake configure

  • Make sure CMake uses vcpkg's toolchain file and that the ports are installed for the active triplet:

    $env:VCPKG_ROOT = "$env:USERPROFILE\vcpkg"
    cmake -S . -B build -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE="$env:VCPKG_ROOT/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake"
    & "$env:VCPKG_ROOT\vcpkg.exe" install cryptopp nlohmann-json --triplet x64-windows
    

• PowerShell line continuation issues / parser errors

  • Prefer single-line commands in PowerShell (avoid backticks if unsure). The README uses single-line examples for reliability.

LLVM/clang-cl Coverage (Windows)

Requirements:

• clang/clang-cl toolchain installed
• LLVM tools on PATH (llvm-profdata, llvm-cov)

Configure with coverage:

cmd /c "call ""C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2022\BuildTools\Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat"" -arch=x64 && cmake -S . -B build-llvm -G "Ninja" -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=clang -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=clang-cl -DENABLE_LLVM_COVERAGE=ON -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=""%USERPROFILE%\vcpkg\scripts\buildsystems\vcpkg.cmake"" && cmake --build build-llvm --config Release"

Run coverage target (executes tests, merges profiles, generates HTML report):

cmd /c "call ""C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2022\BuildTools\Common7\Tools\VsDevCmd.bat"" -arch=x64 && cmake --build build-llvm --target coverage_llvm --config Release && start build-llvm\coverage\html\index.html"

Notes:

• If Ninja is not available, you can use the VS generator, but Ninja is recommended for clang.
• You can override LLVM_PROFDATA and LLVM_COV cache variables to absolute tool paths if needed.