Mastodon Client: Python API Integration and Deployment

A Python-based client for interacting with Mastodon instances, supporting app registration, posting, and managing toots. This project integrates Google Cloud services for secret management and logging, facilitating robust deployment and operation.

Features

• Register Mastodon applications with customizable scopes and redirect URIs.
• Retrieve and update posts (toots) via REST API endpoints.
• Integration with Google Cloud Secret Manager for secure credential storage.
• Google Cloud Logging integration for centralized log management.
• Dockerized for containerized deployment.

Tech Stack

• Python 3.6+
• Mastodon.py (Mastodon API client)
• Google Cloud Secret Manager
• Google Cloud Logging
• Requests (HTTP client)
• Docker

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Python 3.6 or higher
• Google Cloud SDK installed and authenticated
• Docker (optional, for containerized usage)

Installation

Clone the repository and set up a virtual environment:

git clone https://github.com/justin-napolitano/mastodon-client.git
cd mastodon-client
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

Configuration

1. Create a .env file in the root directory (if needed):

PROJECT_NAME=your_google_cloud_project_id

2. Store the following secrets in Google Cloud Secret Manager:

• MASTODON_PASSWORD
• MASTODON_USERNAME
• MASTODON_CLIENT_ID
• MASTODON_SECRET
• MASTODON_BASE_URL
• MASTODON_USER_AGENT

Usage

Run the main scripts or utilities as needed:

• Register a Mastodon app:

python mastodon-app-registration.py --api_base_url mastodon.social

• Retrieve a new post:

python get_post.py --table toots --url http://localhost:8080

• Run the Mastodon client script (adjust URL and flags as needed):

python mastodon-client.py --url http://localhost:8080

Docker Build and Push

Build and push the Docker image using the provided Cloud Build config:

gcloud builds submit --config cloudbuild.yaml .

Project Structure

mastodon-client/
├── cloudbuild.yaml          # Google Cloud Build configuration
├── Dockerfile               # Docker image build instructions
├── gcputils/                # Google Cloud utility submodule
│   ├── GoogleCloudLogging.py
│   ├── GoogleSecretManager.py
│   ├── gcpclient.py
│   └── BigQueryClient.py
├── get_post.py              # Script to retrieve posts from API
├── mastodon-app-registration.py  # App registration utility
├── mastodon-client.py       # Main Mastodon client script
├── requirements.txt         # Python dependencies
├── readme.md                # This README file
├── sql/                    # SQL schema files
│   └── mastodon-table.sql
└── test-update-toots.sh     # Shell script for testing toot updates

Future Work / Roadmap

• Expand support for more Mastodon API endpoints and features.
• Add comprehensive error handling and retry logic.
• Implement automated tests and CI/CD pipelines.
• Enhance documentation with usage examples and API references.
• Support OAuth flows with redirect URIs.
• Integrate BigQuery data analytics on stored toot data.
• Improve Docker image for production readiness.

For questions or contributions, please open an issue or pull request on GitHub.