Get Google search results, but without any ads, javascript, AMP links, cookies, or IP address tracking. Easily deployable in one click as a Docker app, and customizable with a single config file. Quick and simple to implement as a primary search engine replacement on both desktop and mobile.
Contents
1. [Features](#features)
3. [Install/Deploy Options](#install)
1. [Heroku Quick Deploy](#heroku-quick-deploy)
1. [Repl.it](#replit)
1. [Fly.io](#flyio)
1. [Koyeb](#koyeb)
1. [pipx](#pipx)
1. [pip](#pip)
1. [Manual](#manual)
1. [Docker](#manual-docker)
1. [Arch/AUR](#arch-linux--arch-based-distributions)
1. [Helm/Kubernetes](#helm-chart-for-kubernetes)
4. [Environment Variables and Configuration](#environment-variables)
5. [Usage](#usage)
6. [Extra Steps](#extra-steps)
1. [Set Primary Search Engine](#set-whoogle-as-your-primary-search-engine)
2. [Prevent Downtime (Heroku Only)](#prevent-downtime-heroku-only)
3. [Manual HTTPS Enforcement](#https-enforcement)
4. [Using with Firefox Containers](#using-with-firefox-containers)
5. [Reverse Proxying](#reverse-proxying)
1. [Nginx](#nginx)
7. [Contributing](#contributing)
8. [FAQ](#faq)
9. [Public Instances](#public-instances)
10. [Screenshots](#screenshots)
## Features
- No ads or sponsored content
- No JavaScript\*
- No cookies\*\*
- No tracking/linking of your personal IP address\*\*\*
- No AMP links
- No URL tracking tags (i.e. utm=%s)
- No referrer header
- Tor and HTTP/SOCKS proxy support
- Autocomplete/search suggestions
- POST request search and suggestion queries (when possible)
- View images at full res without site redirect (currently mobile only)
- Light/Dark/System theme modes (with support for [custom CSS theming](https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search/wiki/User-Contributed-CSS-Themes))
- Randomly generated User Agent
- Easy to install/deploy
- DDG-style bang (i.e. `!`) searches
- Optional location-based searching (i.e. results near \)
- Optional NoJS mode to view search results in a separate window with JavaScript blocked
*No third party JavaScript. Whoogle can be used with JavaScript disabled, but if enabled, uses JavaScript for things like presenting search suggestions.**No third party cookies. Whoogle uses server side cookies (sessions) to store non-sensitive configuration settings such as theme, language, etc. Just like with JavaScript, cookies can be disabled and not affect Whoogle's search functionality.***If deployed to a remote server, or configured to send requests through a VPN, Tor, proxy, etc.
## Install
There are a few different ways to begin using the app, depending on your preferences:
___
### [Heroku Quick Deploy](https://heroku.com/about)
[![Deploy](https://www.herokucdn.com/deploy/button.svg)](https://heroku.com/deploy?template=https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search/tree/main)
Provides:
- Easy Deployment of App
- A HTTPS url (https://\.herokuapp.com)
Notes:
- Requires a **PAID** Heroku Account.
- Sometimes has issues with auto-redirecting to `https`. Make sure to navigate to the `https` version of your app before adding as a default search engine.
___
### [Repl.it](https://repl.it)
[![Run on Repl.it](https://repl.it/badge/github/benbusby/whoogle-search)](https://repl.it/github/benbusby/whoogle-search)
*Note: Requires a (free) Replit account*
Provides:
- Free deployment of app
- Free HTTPS url (https://\.\\.repl\.co)
- Supports custom domains
- Downtime after periods of inactivity \([solution 1](https://repl.it/talk/ask/use-this-pingmat1replco-just-enter/28821/101298), [solution 2](https://repl.it/talk/learn/How-to-use-and-setup-UptimeRobot/9003)\)
___
### [Fly.io](https://fly.io)
You will need a **PAID** [Fly.io](https://fly.io) account to deploy Whoogle.
#### Install the CLI: https://fly.io/docs/hands-on/installing/
#### Deploy the app
```bash
flyctl auth login
flyctl launch --image benbusby/whoogle-search:latest
```
The first deploy won't succeed because the default `internal_port` is wrong.
To fix this, open the generated `fly.toml` file, set `services.internal_port` to `5000` and run `flyctl launch` again.
Your app is now available at `https://.fly.dev`.
___
### [Koyeb](https://www.koyeb.com)
Use one of the following guides to install Whoogle on Koyeb:
1. Using GitHub: https://www.koyeb.com/docs/quickstart/deploy-with-git
2. Using Docker: https://www.koyeb.com/docs/quickstart/deploy-a-docker-application
___
### [pipx](https://github.com/pipxproject/pipx#install-pipx)
Persistent install:
`pipx install git+https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git`
Sandboxed temporary instance:
`pipx run --spec git+https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git whoogle-search`
___
### pip
`pip install whoogle-search`
```bash
$ whoogle-search --help
usage: whoogle-search [-h] [--port ] [--host ] [--debug] [--https-only] [--userpass ]
[--proxyauth ] [--proxytype ] [--proxyloc ]
Whoogle Search console runner
optional arguments:
-h, --help Show this help message and exit
--port Specifies a port to run on (default 5000)
--host Specifies the host address to use (default 127.0.0.1)
--debug Activates debug mode for the server (default False)
--https-only Enforces HTTPS redirects for all requests
--userpass
Sets a username/password basic auth combo (default None)
--proxyauth
Sets a username/password for a HTTP/SOCKS proxy (default None)
--proxytype
Sets a proxy type for all connections (default None)
--proxyloc
Sets a proxy location for all connections (default None)
```
See the [available environment variables](#environment-variables) for additional configuration.
___
### Manual
*Note: `Content-Security-Policy` headers can be sent by Whoogle if you set `WHOOGLE_CSP`.*
#### Dependencies
- [Python3](https://www.python.org/downloads/)
- `libcurl4-openssl-dev` and `libssl-dev`
- macOS: `brew install openssl curl-openssl`
- Ubuntu: `sudo apt-get install -y libcurl4-openssl-dev libssl-dev`
- Arch: `pacman -S curl openssl`
#### Install
Clone the repo and run the following commands to start the app in a local-only environment:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git
cd whoogle-search
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
./run
```
See the [available environment variables](#environment-variables) for additional configuration.
#### systemd Configuration
After building the virtual environment, you can add something like the following to `/lib/systemd/system/whoogle.service` to set up a Whoogle Search systemd service:
```ini
[Unit]
Description=Whoogle
[Service]
# Basic auth configuration, uncomment to enable
#Environment=WHOOGLE_USER=
#Environment=WHOOGLE_PASS=
# Proxy configuration, uncomment to enable
#Environment=WHOOGLE_PROXY_USER=
#Environment=WHOOGLE_PROXY_PASS=
#Environment=WHOOGLE_PROXY_TYPE=
# Site alternative configurations, uncomment to enable
# Note: If not set, the feature will still be available
# with default values.
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_TW=farside.link/nitter
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_YT=farside.link/invidious
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_RD=farside.link/libreddit
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_MD=farside.link/scribe
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_TL=farside.link/lingva
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_IMG=farside.link/rimgo
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_WIKI=farside.link/wikiless
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_IMDB=farside.link/libremdb
#Environment=WHOOGLE_ALT_QUORA=farside.link/quetre
# Load values from dotenv only
#Environment=WHOOGLE_DOTENV=1
Type=simple
User=
# If installed as a package, add:
ExecStart=/python3 /whoogle-search --host 127.0.0.1 --port 5000
# For example:
# ExecStart=/usr/bin/python3 /home/my_username/.local/bin/whoogle-search --host 127.0.0.1 --port 5000
# Otherwise if running the app from source, add:
ExecStart=/run
# For example:
# ExecStart=/var/www/whoogle-search/run
ExecReload=/bin/kill -HUP $MAINPID
Restart=always
RestartSec=3
SyslogIdentifier=whoogle
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
```
Then,
```
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable whoogle
sudo systemctl start whoogle
```
#### Tor Configuration *optional*
If routing your request through Tor you will need to make the following adjustments.
Due to the nature of interacting with Google through Tor we will need to be able to send signals to Tor and therefore authenticate with it.
There are two authentication methods, password and cookie. You will need to make changes to your torrc:
* Cookie
1. Uncomment or add the following lines in your torrc:
- `ControlPort 9051`
- `CookieAuthentication 1`
- `DataDirectoryGroupReadable 1`
- `CookieAuthFileGroupReadable 1`
2. Make the tor auth cookie readable:
- This is assuming that you are using a dedicated user to run whoogle. If you are using a different user replace `whoogle` with that user.
1. `chmod tor:whoogle /var/lib/tor`
2. `chmod tor:whoogle /var/lib/tor/control_auth_cookie`
3. Restart the tor service:
- `systemctl restart tor`
4. Set the Tor environment variable to 1, `WHOOGLE_CONFIG_TOR`. Refer to the [Environment Variables](#environment-variables) section for more details.
- This may be added in the systemd unit file or env file `WHOOGLE_CONFIG_TOR=1`
* Password
1. Run this command:
- `tor --hash-password {Your Password Here}`; put your password in place of `{Your Password Here}`.
- Keep the output of this command, you will be placing it in your torrc.
- Keep the password input of this command, you will be using it later.
2. Uncomment or add the following lines in your torrc:
- `ControlPort 9051`
- `HashedControlPassword {Place output here}`; put the output of the previous command in place of `{Place output here}`.
3. Now take the password from the first step and place it in the control.conf file within the whoogle working directory, ie. [misc/tor/control.conf](misc/tor/control.conf)
- If you want to place your password file in a different location set this location with the `WHOOGLE_TOR_CONF` environment variable. Refer to the [Environment Variables](#environment-variables) section for more details.
4. Heavily restrict access to control.conf to only be readable by the user running whoogle:
- `chmod 400 control.conf`
5. Finally set the Tor environment variable and use password variable to 1, `WHOOGLE_CONFIG_TOR` and `WHOOGLE_TOR_USE_PASS`. Refer to the [Environment Variables](#environment-variables) section for more details.
- These may be added to the systemd unit file or env file:
- `WHOOGLE_CONFIG_TOR=1`
- `WHOOGLE_TOR_USE_PASS=1`
___
### Manual (Docker)
1. Ensure the Docker daemon is running, and is accessible by your user account
- To add user permissions, you can execute `sudo usermod -aG docker yourusername`
- Running `docker ps` should return something besides an error. If you encounter an error saying the daemon isn't running, try `sudo systemctl start docker` (Linux) or ensure the docker tool is running (Windows/macOS).
2. Clone and deploy the docker app using a method below:
#### Docker CLI
Through Docker Hub:
```bash
docker pull benbusby/whoogle-search
docker run --publish 5000:5000 --detach --name whoogle-search benbusby/whoogle-search:latest
```
or with docker-compose:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git
cd whoogle-search
docker-compose up
```
or by building yourself:
```bash
git clone https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git
cd whoogle-search
docker build --tag whoogle-search:1.0 .
docker run --publish 5000:5000 --detach --name whoogle-search whoogle-search:1.0
```
Optionally, you can also enable some of the following environment variables to further customize your instance:
```bash
docker run --publish 5000:5000 --detach --name whoogle-search \
-e WHOOGLE_USER=username \
-e WHOOGLE_PASS=password \
-e WHOOGLE_PROXY_USER=username \
-e WHOOGLE_PROXY_PASS=password \
-e WHOOGLE_PROXY_TYPE=socks5 \
-e WHOOGLE_PROXY_LOC=ip \
whoogle-search:1.0
```
And kill with: `docker rm --force whoogle-search`
#### Using [Heroku CLI](https://devcenter.heroku.com/articles/heroku-cli)
```bash
heroku login
heroku container:login
git clone https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search.git
cd whoogle-search
heroku create
heroku container:push web
heroku container:release web
heroku open
```
This series of commands can take a while, but once you run it once, you shouldn't have to run it again. The final command, `heroku open` will launch a tab in your web browser, where you can test out Whoogle and even [set it as your primary search engine](https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle#set-whoogle-as-your-primary-search-engine).
You may also edit environment variables from your app’s Settings tab in the Heroku Dashboard.
___
### Arch Linux & Arch-based Distributions
There is an [AUR package available](https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/whoogle-git/), as well as a pre-built and daily updated package available at [Chaotic-AUR](https://chaotic.cx).
___
### Helm chart for Kubernetes
To use the Kubernetes Helm Chart:
1. Ensure you have [Helm](https://helm.sh/docs/intro/install/) `>=3.0.0` installed
2. Clone this repository
3. Update [charts/whoogle/values.yaml](./charts/whoogle/values.yaml) as desired
4. Run `helm install whoogle ./charts/whoogle`
___
#### Using your own server, or alternative container deployment
There are other methods for deploying docker containers that are well outlined in [this article](https://rollout.io/blog/the-shortlist-of-docker-hosting/), but there are too many to describe set up for each here. Generally it should be about the same amount of effort as the Heroku deployment.
Depending on your preferences, you can also deploy the app yourself on your own infrastructure. This route would require a few extra steps:
- A server (I personally recommend [Digital Ocean](https://www.digitalocean.com/pricing/) or [Linode](https://www.linode.com/pricing/), their cheapest tiers will work fine)
- Your own URL (I suppose this is optional, but recommended)
- SSL certificates (free through [Let's Encrypt](https://letsencrypt.org/getting-started/))
- A bit more experience or willingness to work through issues
## Environment Variables
There are a few optional environment variables available for customizing a Whoogle instance. These can be set manually, or copied into `whoogle.env` and enabled for your preferred deployment method:
- Local runs: Set `WHOOGLE_DOTENV=1` before running
- With `docker-compose`: Uncomment the `env_file` option
- With `docker build/run`: Add `--env-file ./whoogle.env` to your command
| Variable | Description |
| -------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| WHOOGLE_URL_PREFIX | The URL prefix to use for the whoogle instance (i.e. "/whoogle") |
| WHOOGLE_DOTENV | Load environment variables in `whoogle.env` |
| WHOOGLE_USER | The username for basic auth. WHOOGLE_PASS must also be set if used. |
| WHOOGLE_PASS | The password for basic auth. WHOOGLE_USER must also be set if used. |
| WHOOGLE_PROXY_USER | The username of the proxy server. |
| WHOOGLE_PROXY_PASS | The password of the proxy server. |
| WHOOGLE_PROXY_TYPE | The type of the proxy server. Can be "socks5", "socks4", or "http". |
| WHOOGLE_PROXY_LOC | The location of the proxy server (host or ip). |
| EXPOSE_PORT | The port where Whoogle will be exposed. |
| HTTPS_ONLY | Enforce HTTPS. (See [here](https://github.com/benbusby/whoogle-search#https-enforcement)) |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_TW | The twitter.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_YT | The youtube.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_RD | The reddit.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_TL | The Google Translate alternative to use. This is used for all "translate ____" searches. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_MD | The medium.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_IMG | The imgur.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_WIKI | The wikipedia.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_IMDB | The imdb.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_ALT_QUORA | The quora.com alternative to use when site alternatives are enabled in the config. Set to "" to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_AUTOCOMPLETE | Controls visibility of autocomplete/search suggestions. Default on -- use '0' to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_MINIMAL | Remove everything except basic result cards from all search queries. |
| WHOOGLE_CSP | Sets a default set of 'Content-Security-Policy' headers |
| WHOOGLE_RESULTS_PER_PAGE | Set the number of results per page |
| WHOOGLE_TOR_SERVICE | Enable/disable the Tor service on startup. Default on -- use '0' to disable. |
| WHOOGLE_TOR_USE_PASS | Use password authentication for tor control port. |
| WHOOGLE_TOR_CONF | The absolute path to the config file containing the password for the tor control port. Default: ./misc/tor/control.conf WHOOGLE_TOR_PASS must be 1 for this to work.|
### Config Environment Variables
These environment variables allow setting default config values, but can be overwritten manually by using the home page config menu. These allow a shortcut for destroying/rebuilding an instance to the same config state every time.
| Variable | Description |
| ------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_DISABLE | Hide config from UI and disallow changes to config by client |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_COUNTRY | Filter results by hosting country |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_LANGUAGE | Set interface language |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_SEARCH_LANGUAGE | Set search result language |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_BLOCK | Block websites from search results (use comma-separated list) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_THEME | Set theme mode (light, dark, or system) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_SAFE | Enable safe searches |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_ALTS | Use social media site alternatives (nitter, invidious, etc) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_NEAR | Restrict results to only those near a particular city |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_TOR | Use Tor routing (if available) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_NEW_TAB | Always open results in new tab |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_VIEW_IMAGE | Enable View Image option |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_GET_ONLY | Search using GET requests only |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_URL | The root url of the instance (`https:///`) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_STYLE | The custom CSS to use for styling (should be single line) |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_PREFERENCES_ENCRYPTED | Encrypt preferences token, requires preferences key |
| WHOOGLE_CONFIG_PREFERENCES_KEY | Key to encrypt preferences in URL (REQUIRED to show url) |
## Usage
Same as most search engines, with the exception of filtering by time range.
To filter by a range of time, append ":past