Webservice::Overleaf::API

A Perl client for Overleaf integration surfaces.

The distribution deliberately separates:

• Official/supported interfaces — Overleaf's Open in Overleaf import interface and Git bridge.
• Experimental interfaces — browser-session project listing, project ZIP download, remote compilation, PDF download, and compile artifacts. These use undocumented Overleaf web-application endpoints and require experimental => 1.

use Webservice::Overleaf::API;

my $ol = Webservice::Overleaf::API->new;

my $url = $ol->open_uri(
    uri           => 'https://example.org/paper.zip',
    engine        => 'lualatex',
    main_document => 'main.tex',
);

say $ol->git_url('PROJECT_ID');

Experimental use:

my $ol = Webservice::Overleaf::API->new(
    experimental => 1,
    session      => $ENV{OVERLEAF_SESSION},
);

for my $project ($ol->projects->all) {
    say $project->name;
}

my $compile = $ol->compile('PROJECT_ID');
$ol->download_pdf('PROJECT_ID', compile => $compile, to => 'paper.pdf');
$ol->download_output($compile, 'output.log', to => 'output.log');

OVERLEAF_SESSION is a browser authentication credential. The current practical method is to copy only the value of the overleaf_session2 cookie from an authenticated browser. Overleaf's Cookie Policy (last modified 5 August 2026) lists a 5-day retention period for this cookie; treat that as an approximate credential lifetime, since logout or server-side invalidation can end it earlier. Treat the value like a password: do not commit it, print it, or put it in command-line arguments.

Command-line client

The distribution includes the overleaf modulino in bin/overleaf.

overleaf --help
overleaf --version

overleaf project-url PROJECT_ID
overleaf git-url PROJECT_ID
overleaf clone PROJECT_ID paper
overleaf open-uri --engine lualatex --main-document main.tex https://example.org/paper.zip

printf '%s\n' 'PASTE_COOKIE_VALUE_HERE' > session.out
chmod 600 session.out
overleaf --experimental --session-file ./session.out projects

# or via the environment
export OVERLEAF_SESSION='...'
overleaf --experimental projects
overleaf --experimental --resource-path main.tex compile PROJECT_ID
overleaf --experimental --resource-path main.tex --output paper.pdf pdf PROJECT_ID
overleaf --experimental --output output.log output PROJECT_ID output.log

The CLI uses Util::H2O::More::Getopt2h2o for options and Dispatch::Fu for command dispatch. Its --help output is rendered directly from the embedded POD with Pod::Text. Git authentication remains with Git's credential handling. Experimental web-application operations use OVERLEAF_SESSION, --session-file, or --session.

Development

cpanm Dist::Zilla
dzil authordeps --missing | cpanm --notest
dzil listdeps --missing | cpanm --notest
dzil test
dzil build

All tests use injected mock transports/runners and make no live Overleaf requests.

License

Same terms as Perl itself.

Testing and CI

The test suite is network-hermetic: Overleaf HTTP traffic and Git operations are mocked where external access would otherwise be required. GitHub Actions tests Perl 5.10, 5.20, 5.30, 5.40, and 5.44. Dist::Zilla remains part of the local development/release workflow but is not used by CI.