PictShare - the smart CDN | WarmIndex

PictShare is an open-source, self-hostable image, MP4, and pastebin hosting service with a simple resizing and upload API, designed for developers and sysadmins seeking full control over media sharing.

🚀 Overview

PictShare is a versatile, open-source platform for uploading and sharing images, GIFs, MP4 videos, and text files (pastebin-style) with powerful on-the-fly processing via URL parameters. It acts like a smart CDN, allowing resizing, filtering, rotation, and conversions without storing modified versions or requiring a database—everything is file-based for simplicity and speed.

What problem does this project solve? It provides a privacy-focused, customizable alternative to third-party services like Imgur or Cloudinary, enabling self-hosting with features like EXIF stripping, duplicate detection, and scalable storage to avoid vendor lock-in and data limits.

Who is it built for? Developers integrating media APIs, teams needing internal sharing tools, and self-hosting enthusiasts.

Why did you build it? HaschekSolutions created it as part of their suite of open-source tools to deliver an easy-to-deploy, feature-packed solution for media hosting that's fully under user control.

✨ Key Features

Simple uploads via direct file, URL, or Base64; supports images, GIFs, MP4s, and text with raw views
URL-based modifiers: resize (e.g., /800x600/), forcesize zoom, filters (brightness, contrast, colorize, etc.), rotation, EXIF removal
Advanced processing: GIF to MP4, JPG/PNG to WEBP, MP4 resizing via FFMPEG; duplicate detection saves space
Admin panel for stats/logs, delete codes (per-file/global), identicon/placeholder generation
Scalable: file-based storage, S3/encryption support, Docker-ready; optional URL shortening
Optional: upcoming or experimental features like new filters and HTMX integration in recent updates

🛠 Tech Stack

Frontend: HTML/CSS, JavaScript, HTMX
Backend: PHP, FFMPEG for video/GIF processing
Database: None (100% file-based storage)
Auth: Configurable upload codes, master delete codes/IPs
Hosting: Docker, self-hosted; supports S3 external storage

👥 Who Is This For?

This project is useful for:

Developers who want to ___ integrate quick image/video upload and processing APIs
Teams looking for ___ self-hosted, database-free media sharing
Indie makers building ___ apps or sites needing on-the-fly image manipulation without extra costs

📸 Screenshots / Demo

Live demo: https://www.pictshare.net
GitHub: https://github.com/HaschekSolutions/pictshare

🔥 Project Status

🟢 Actively building

Last updated: 2026-03-24

❓ FAQ

Is this project free?

Yes / Freemium / Paid / Open Source (Fully open source, free to self-host and use public instance at pictshare.net with no limits mentioned.)

Is the source code available?

Yes — link to repository https://github.com/HaschekSolutions/pictshare

Can I contribute?

Submit issues, PRs, or feedback via GitHub. 23 contributors so far; recent commits (e.g., March 23, 2026) and open development welcome unit tests, docs, features.