# downloading-batch-export-files

Starts on-demand PostHog exports for events or HogQL queries and downloads resulting Parquet or JSONLines files directly via REST.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 319 installs · ★ 76
- Author: PostHog
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/PostHog/skills/tree/HEAD/skills/omnibus/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-10-24
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/downloading-batch-export-files

## What it does

The skill configures one-off batch data exports from PostHog. An agent creates the export job using `posthog:file-download-batch-exports-create` and monitors progress with `posthog:file-download-batch-exports-retrieve`. It handles events, persons, sessions, or custom HogQL queries. Active jobs can also be cancelled when needed.

File downloads intentionally bypass MCP. The download endpoint responds with an HTTP redirect, which MCP does not support directly yet. Because of that, the agent downloads completed files through direct REST calls. The default chunk size is 1024 MiB. For standard models like events or sessions, time bounds cannot exceed one week. The `hogql` model remains in closed beta and requires team-level enablement.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add PostHog/skills --skill downloading-batch-export-files -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add PostHog/skills --skill downloading-batch-export-files -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add PostHog/skills --skill downloading-batch-export-files -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install PostHog/skills downloading-batch-export-files
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add PostHog/skills --skill downloading-batch-export-files -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/PostHog/skills --path skills/omnibus/downloading-batch-export-files
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add PostHog/skills --skill downloading-batch-export-files -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/PostHog/skills/tree/HEAD/skills/omnibus/downloading-batch-export-files/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- run an on-demand export of PostHog events for a specified date range
- export custom HogQL query results into a Parquet file
- track batch export job progress using MCP polling tools
- download finished export parts via direct REST endpoints

## Example prompts
- Export yesterday's `$pageview` events to a Parquet file.
- Export HogQL query results for the past week as JSONLines compressed with gzip.
- Check the status of export run `018f-export-run` and download all completed parts.

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 6fe52e86902a542b.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 6fe52e86902a542b
```text
---
name: downloading-batch-export-files
description: >
  Export PostHog events, persons, sessions, or the results of a HogQL query on demand and download the resulting
  files. Use when the user asks to download/export raw PostHog data, export HogQL query results, create a one-off
  file export, fetch a Parquet or JSONLines export, or use the file_download_batch_exports API.
  Covers starting the export with MCP, polling completion, and downloading via the existing REST redirect endpoint.
---

# Downloading batch export files

Use this skill when a user wants a one-off downloadable export of PostHog data.
The export is started and monitored through MCP, but the final file download uses the existing REST endpoint directly.

## Available MCP tools

| Tool                                           | Purpose                                                  |
| ---------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| `posthog:file-download-batch-exports-create`   | Start an on-demand export and return the run ID          |
| `posthog:file-download-batch-exports-retrieve` | Poll the run status and return file IDs after completion |

Do not rely on a generated MCP tool for the `/download/` endpoint.
That endpoint is a redirecting file download endpoint, so raw HTTP/download handling is the right interface until MCP has explicit redirect support.

## Workflow

### 1. Choose the export shape

Ask a short clarifying question if the user did not specify the required inputs:

- `model`: one of `events`, `persons`, `sessions`, or `hogql`
- `data_interval_start` and `data_interval_end`: ISO 8601 datetimes. Any supplied bound may not be in the future. When both bounds are supplied, they must be ordered and at most one week apart
  Required for `events`, `persons`, and `sessions`.
  For `hogql`, required only for the placeholders the query references. If only one placeholder is referenced, the other bound may be omitted and the one-week limit does not apply.
- `file.format`: `Parquet` or `JSONLines`; prefer `Parquet` for compact analytics exports and `JSONLines` for line-oriented text processing
- `file.compression`: optional, one of `zstd`, `gzip`, `brotli`, `lz4`, or `snappy`. If `JSONLines` was chosen as format, only `gzip` and `brotli` are supported.
- `file.max_size_mb`: part size in MiB, 1024 by default. A part can go a little over this size.
  Lower it when the user wants smaller parts, raise it for fewer and bigger ones, or set it to `null` to write a single file of any size.

For `events`, `include` and `exclude` are optional event-name filters.
Use them only when the user asks for specific events or wants to omit specific events.
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 6fe52e86902a542b

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