Frequently asked questions
Auto-generates captions for images dropped into a Drive folder and publishes them to Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
What is ai-poster?
A tool that watches a folder in your Google Drive and, when you drop in new images, automatically writes a caption with an LLM and publishes a post to your connected Facebook Page, Instagram account, or Threads profile.
Which platforms does it post to?
Facebook (Pages), Instagram, and Threads. Each platform is connected separately under Social accounts and can be enabled or disabled per Drive watch.
How does it know when to post?
Each watch monitors a single Drive folder in one of two modes: webhook (Drive pushes change notifications to the system in near real-time) or polling (the worker checks the folder on a configurable interval, default 10 seconds).
What kinds of files are picked up?
Image files (JPEG, PNG, etc.) added directly to the watched folder. Other file types are ignored, and files in subfolders are not picked up unless that subfolder is its own watch.
Who writes the caption?
An LLM does. The system supports any OpenAI-compatible endpoint — OpenAI, Gemini (via the OpenAI-compat shim), and others. You can supply a prompt template and optional hints per watch.
Does the LLM see my images?
Yes — the image bytes are sent to the LLM you've configured so it can describe what it sees and produce a relevant caption. Use a model and provider whose data policy you're comfortable with.
What permissions does it ask for?
Google: read-only access to your Drive (drive.readonly), plus your basic profile so we know which account is connected. Facebook / Instagram / Threads: permission to publish posts on the Pages or accounts you explicitly choose during the connect flow.
Where are my access tokens stored?
In the system's database, scoped to your user account. They're used only to read the Drive folders you've designated and to publish to the social accounts you've connected.
Can multiple people use the same install?
Yes — each user signs up with their own email and password and only sees their own Drive accounts, social accounts, watches, and posts.
Can I review a post before it goes live?
Not in the current version — when an image lands in a watched folder, the post is generated and published end-to-end. A review/approval step is on the roadmap.
What happens if a publish fails?
The post is recorded in the database with the error and which platform failed. You can see it on the Posts page; the others (if any) still go out.
How do I disconnect an account?
Sign in, go to Social accounts or Drive accounts, and remove the entry. To revoke from the provider's side as well, visit the connected-apps page in Google / Facebook / Instagram / Threads.
Is there a free tier?
The system itself is self-hosted — there is no usage fee from us. You pay only for whatever LLM provider and (if applicable) cloud infrastructure you point it at.