Easy Auto Downloads - HTTP call w/ Cookies - Slaps Automa, sellenium etc...

How to Automate Daily File Downloads Without Premium Plans

I've been trying to automate downloading backup files daily from dynalist.io without paying for their premium version.

Here's how I did it using make.com instead of more complicated tools like Automa or Selenium.

TLDR:

Automate daily file downloads via Make.com using cookies and headers.

No premium subscription needed.

Works with any URL that stays constant.

Key steps:

1. Get cookies from network tab

2. Create headers in Make.com

3. Set up daily automation

Why I Needed This Automation

I use Dynalist regularly and wanted automatic backups without manually downloading them every day.

While they offer sync functionality, daily backups to Dropbox or Google Drive require upgrading to premium.

Why Automa Didn't Work For Me

I first tried Automa, but couldn't get it to properly click through and download the file.

Even with a "press enter" command, it wouldn't actually download anything.

The Pathfinder in Automa couldn't locate the downloads properly, making this approach frustrating.

The Make.com Solution

Here's what worked perfectly:

First, I needed to understand how the download process works

When you click "download backup" in Dynalist, it sends you to a specific link

This link is always the same, but requires your cookies to identify you

If you have a similar project where the link is consistent but requires login, this approach will work

Step-by-Step Process

Inspect the element on your download page

Go to the Network tab

Refresh the page (Command+R)

Open the first request

Look for Request Headers - these contain your cookies

In make.com, create a new scenario with an HTTP module

Copy each header from the browser into make.com:

Accept

Accept-Encoding

Accept-Language

Cache-Control

Cookie (this is the important one!)

Handling the Downloaded File

When you run this setup, you'll get binary data. I wanted to save this directly to Google Drive for daily backups.

The binary data gets passed to the Google Drive module

I named the file with the date and ".zip" extension (since Dynalist backups are zip files)

Specified my Google Drive folder ID

Set the scenario to run daily at a specific time

The Final Result

Instead of manually:

Going to Dynalist

Clicking download backup

Choosing the folder

Saving the file

Now it happens automatically every day at my scheduled time.

And I don't need to pay for the Pro plan!

FAQ

Q: Will this work for other websites?

A: Yes, as long as you have a direct download link that uses cookies for authentication.

Q: Do I need coding knowledge?

A: No, just basic understanding of how to inspect elements in your browser.

Q: Is this against terms of service?

A: This is just automating what you could do manually as a user, so it's generally fine.

Q: How much does make.com cost?

A: They have a free plan that allows for a certain number of operations per month, which is enough for daily backups.