# Hydrating PluRule This directory contains the three scripts a user runs to **reconstitute the full PluRule benchmark** from the released dehydrated dataset. If you instead want to rebuild PluRule from scratch starting from the raw Pushshift archives, see [`../pipeline/README.md`](../pipeline/README.md). ## Why hydration? The released dataset ships only IDs, metadata, rules, cluster labels, and answer options — every comment body, submission, and media file is replaced with a `[NEEDS_HYDRATION]` placeholder. This keeps the distribution small and avoids redistributing Reddit content that originates from the Pushshift archives. To run the benchmark you first populate those placeholders from a local Pushshift mirror (which you download from Academic Torrents) and then download the submission media. ## Prerequisites - Python **3.10+** - `aria2c` on `PATH` (for torrent download) - A BitTorrent port open in your firewall - **Disk**: plan for several hundred GB to ~1–2 TB for the Pushshift subset. Large subreddits (`r/askreddit`, `r/worldnews`, …) contribute most of the volume; small subreddits are tens of MB each. - **Bandwidth**: torrent throughput depends on seeders; budget several hours. ### Install The quickest path uses the bundled conda env (pulls `aria2` from conda-forge so you don't need root): ```bash conda env create -f ../environment-hydrate.yml conda activate plurule-hydrate ``` If you already have a Python environment, install the minimal hydrate deps from the yml's `pip:` section (`zstandard`, `orjson`, `tqdm`, `requests`, `torf`) and make sure `aria2c` is on PATH: ``` Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install aria2 macOS: brew install aria2 Fedora/CentOS: sudo dnf install aria2 No root: conda install -c conda-forge aria2 ``` ### Get the dehydrated dataset Place the three dehydrated split files under `./data/`: ``` data/ ├── train_dehydrated_clustered.json.zst ├── val_dehydrated_clustered.json.zst └── test_dehydrated_clustered.json.zst ``` ## Quick start Three steps, from repo root: ```bash # 1. Download the Pushshift subset referenced by the dataset (~3,978 files) python hydrate/0_download.py # 2. Fill every [NEEDS_HYDRATION] placeholder using the downloaded archives python hydrate/1_hydrate_dataset.py # 3. (Optional) Download submission images python hydrate/2_download_media.py ``` After step 1 the Pushshift subset lives under the path configured in `config.PUSHSHIFT_DATA`. After step 2 you have `data/{train,val,test}_hydrated_clustered.json.zst`. After step 3 those same files have their `media_files` arrays populated with local paths. --- ## 0. `0_download.py` — fetch the Pushshift subset Reads the dehydrated splits, computes the set of per-subreddit comment and submission files referenced (~3,978 files across ~1,989 subreddits), fetches only those from the Pushshift [academictorrent](https://academictorrents.com/details/3e3f64dee22dc304cdd2546254ca1f8e8ae542b4) via `aria2c`, and reorganizes them into a first-letter bucket layout: ``` / ├── a/ │ ├── askreddit_comments.zst │ ├── askreddit_submissions.zst │ └── … ├── b/ │ └── … └── hydrate_manifest.json ``` ### Common invocations ```bash # Default (reads ./data, writes to config.PUSHSHIFT_DATA) python hydrate/0_download.py # Preview torrent match without downloading python hydrate/0_download.py --dry-run # Custom output directory python hydrate/0_download.py --output-dir /mnt/big/pushshift # Skip the torrent; build manifest from an existing local mirror python hydrate/0_download.py --from-dir /path/to/pushshift/subreddits ``` ### Flags | Flag | Default | Purpose | |---|---|---| | `--dataset-dir` | `./data` | where the three `*_dehydrated_clustered.json.zst` files live | | `--output-dir` | `config.PUSHSHIFT_DATA` | destination for Pushshift files | | `--torrent-file` | *(fetched)* | use a pre-downloaded `.torrent` instead of the Academic Torrents URL | | `--dry-run` | off | preview match report without downloading | | `--from-dir` | *(off)* | skip torrent; use an existing local mirror | ### What it writes - Downloaded files under `//` - `/hydrate_manifest.json` — `basename_to_path` map consumed by step 1 - `/pushshift.torrent` — cached `.torrent` so re-runs don't re-fetch ### Resuming `aria2c` keeps `.aria2` control files next to each download. Re-running the script picks up where it left off. Files already in the letter-bucket layout are detected and not re-downloaded. ### Subreddits missing from the torrent Expect a small tail (<2%) of subreddits in the dataset that aren't in this particular torrent snapshot (renamed, banned, or post-cutoff subs). The script reports them and writes their names to `hydrate_manifest.json`; step 1 marks those subreddits with `hydration_status: source_unavailable`. --- ## 1. `1_hydrate_dataset.py` — fill the placeholders Streams each Pushshift file exactly **once** across all three splits (most subreddits appear in multiple splits), extracts only the referenced comment and submission IDs, and fills the placeholders in each split's JSON. ### Run ```bash # Default (reads ./data + config.PUSHSHIFT_DATA, writes ./data) python hydrate/1_hydrate_dataset.py # Only one split python hydrate/1_hydrate_dataset.py --splits test # Tune parallelism (default from config.PROCESSES) python hydrate/1_hydrate_dataset.py --num-workers 16 ``` ### Flags | Flag | Default | Purpose | |---|---|---| | `--dataset-dir` | `./data` | input dehydrated files | | `--pushshift-dir` | `config.PUSHSHIFT_DATA` | where `hydrate_manifest.json` lives | | `--output-dir` | `./data` | output hydrated files | | `--splits` | all | subset of {train, val, test} | | `--num-workers` | `config.PROCESSES` | parallel subreddit workers | ### How it fills things | Placeholder in dehydrated JSON | Filled by step 1 from | |---|---| | `submissions[sid].submission_object` | `{sub}_submissions.zst` | | `thread_pairs[i].mod_comment` | `{sub}_comments.zst` (id = `mod_comment_id`) | | `thread_pairs[i].violating_thread` | root→leaf walk of `violating_thread_ids` | | `thread_pairs[i].compliant_thread` | root→leaf walk of `compliant_thread_ids` | | `submissions[sid].media_files` | **not filled** — see step 2 | Missing IDs (the Pushshift archive doesn't contain them) become `{"hydration_status": "missing", "id": ...}` instead of aborting the script. Subreddits whose Pushshift files aren't in the manifest have a `hydration_status: "source_unavailable"` flag set on their `sub_data`; their thread pairs are left with placeholders in place. Partial hydration is fine for these data-quality cases, and the script records them in the summary instead of aborting. ### Output - `./data/{train,val,test}_hydrated_clustered.json.zst` — same schema as `pipeline/10_assign_cluster_labels.py`'s hydrated output - `./data/hydrate_summary.json` — per-split counts + list of source-unavailable subreddits --- ## 2. `2_download_media.py` — submission images (optional) For each hydrated submission, follows the priority hierarchy (`media_metadata` → `url` → `oembed` → `preview`), validates Content-Type, caps files at 50 MB, and writes actual local paths into each submission's `media_files` array in the hydrated JSON. This step reuses the same extraction + download logic as `pipeline/7_collect_media.py` via `utils/media.py`. ### Run ```bash # Default python hydrate/2_download_media.py # Only test split, more parallelism python hydrate/2_download_media.py --splits test --num-workers 32 # Skip submissions whose media is already on disk python hydrate/2_download_media.py --skip-existing ``` ### Flags | Flag | Default | Purpose | |---|---|---| | `--dataset-dir` | `./data` | hydrated files from step 1 | | `--media-dir` | `./data/media` | where images land (per-subreddit subdirs) | | `--splits` | all | subset of {train, val, test} | | `--num-workers` | 16 | HTTP threads (I/O-bound; threads, not processes) | | `--skip-existing` | off | keep existing `media_files` paths that still exist on disk | ### What to expect - Media is **best-effort**. Many historical Reddit URLs are dead or rate-limit. A 60–80% success rate is typical. The benchmark works fine without 100% media coverage; models that don't consume images are unaffected. - Videos, crossposts, and NSFW submissions are skipped at the top (same rule as the pipeline). - Files are named `{submission_id}_{media_id}.{ext}` or `{submission_id}_{index}_{safe_media_id}.{ext}` for gallery items. ### Output - `./data/media//_*.{jpg,png,gif,webp,bmp}` - Each `submission.media_files` array in the hydrated JSON now holds real paths - `./data/hydrate_media_summary.json` — per-split status / error counts --- ## Output format After all three steps, each `{split}_hydrated_clustered.json.zst` matches the schema produced by `pipeline/10_assign_cluster_labels.py`: ```jsonc { "metadata": { /* split-level, hydration dates, version */ }, "subreddits": [ { "subreddit": "excel", "title": "...", "description": "...", "language": "en", "rules": [ /* full rule objects with cluster ids */ ], "subreddit_cluster_id": 2, "subreddit_cluster_label": "tech communities", "submissions": { "": { "submission_object": { /* full submission JSON */ }, "num_media": 1, "media_files": ["data/media/excel/_direct.png"] } }, "thread_pairs": [ { "mod_comment_id": "...", "mod_comment": { /* full comment */ }, "violating_thread": [ /* root→leaf comments, each with level */ ], "compliant_thread": [ /* same */ ], "violating_answer_options": [ /* shuffled MCQ */ ], "violating_correct_answer": "(c)", "compliant_answer_options": [ /* shuffled MCQ */ ], "compliant_correct_answer": "(b)", "metadata": { "rule": "No low-effort posts", "rule_cluster_id": 5, "rule_cluster_label": "spam / self-promotion", /* plus similarity score, depths, scores, ancestor IDs, … */ } } ] } ] } ``` ## Re-running All three scripts are safe to re-run: - Step 0: `aria2c` resumes from `.aria2` control files. Files already in the letter-bucket layout are detected and skipped. - Step 1: overwrites `*_hydrated_clustered.json.zst` each run. - Step 2: with `--skip-existing`, submissions whose media already exists on disk are not re-downloaded. ## Troubleshooting | Symptom | Likely cause / fix | |---|---| | `aria2c not found` | install it (see Prerequisites) | | Step 0 very slow | few seeders for some files; try again later, or use `--from-dir` with a local mirror | | Step 1 OOMs on a big subreddit | use `--num-workers 1`; the streaming hydrator caps per-subreddit memory at only the needed IDs, not the full file — if you still OOM, file an issue | | Step 1 reports many missing IDs for one sub | that subreddit's Pushshift file is truncated or corrupt; re-download just that pair via `aria2c --torrent-file=... --select-file=` | | Step 2 dies with 429s | lower `--num-workers`, the retry logic backs off but heavy parallelism against single hosts (e.g. Imgur) can trip limits | | `hydration_status: source_unavailable` on several subs | those subs aren't in the Pushshift torrent snapshot — expected for a small tail of renamed/banned subreddits |