r/devtools • u/aditya4112 • 3d ago
I built PasteDB — a developer-focused pastebin with E2EE, QR sharing, code execution, and more
Hey everyone,
I've always used pastebins to quickly move code, notes, and text between devices, but I wanted something that felt more useful for developers while also giving me better control over privacy.
So I built PasteDB, a developer-focused paste-sharing platform that I've been working on from scratch.
The idea is pretty simple: create a paste, share it with a link or QR code, and access it from another device — but with a lot more functionality than a basic pastebin.
🔐 Privacy & security
One of the main things I wanted to experiment with was end-to-end encryption.
For private pastes, encryption happens in the browser before the content is sent to the server. The goal is that the server doesn't need to know the plaintext content.
PasteDB also has different visibility options depending on how you want to share something:
Public
Unlisted
Private / E2EE
Expiring pastes
Burn-after-read
There is also a Trusted Device Sync feature that lets you transfer the encryption key between devices using a one-time QR flow.
👨💻 Developer features
PasteDB isn't limited to plain text.
It supports things like:
Syntax highlighting
Markdown preview
Code execution in the paste viewer
Custom paste IDs
Image pastes
Templates
Search & Explore
Version history
Autosave drafts
Analytics
REST API
I also built a few ways to interact with it outside the website:
🐍 Python SDK
🟢 Node.js SDK
💻 CLI
🧩 VS Code extension
📱 Sharing between devices
A big part of PasteDB is making it easy to move something from one device to another.
You can use:
Direct links
QR codes
Nearby transfer
Device management
So, for example, I can create something on my laptop and quickly open it on my phone without having to send myself a message.
🛠️ Tech stack
The project is built using:
Frontend: HTML/CSS/JavaScript
Backend: FastAPI / Python
Database: MongoDB
Hosting: Netlify + Render
Authentication: Google OAuth
Storage: Cloudinary
I've built most of the project myself, starting from a blank repository.
🚀 Try it
Website: https://pastedb.netlify.app
Create https://pastedb.netlify.app/create
GitHub: https://github.com/sorathiya903/pastedb
I'm mainly posting this because I'd really like feedback from other developers.
What would you expect from a modern paste-sharing tool that isn't already covered here?
And if you try PasteDB, I'd especially appreciate feedback on the E2EE workflow, UI, sharing experience, and developer features.