[Feature] Add support for uploading Instants (Quick Snaps)

[SkyPlay-Code]

Problem to solve

Users cannot interact with Instagram's new "QuickSnaps" feature. There is currently no way to retrieve a user's QuickSnap history, upload a QuickSnap, or configure it for the default "Mutual Followers" audience.

Proposed API

# To retrieve the paginated history of QuickSnaps
cl.quicksnap_history(amount: int = 20) -> dict

# To upload and send a new QuickSnap
cl.quicksnap_send(photo_path: Path, audience: str = "mutual_followers") -> dict

Example usage

from instagrapi import Client

cl = Client()
cl.login("username", "password")

# 1. Retrieve the last 20 QuickSnaps
history = cl.quicksnap_history(amount=20)
print(history)

# 2. Send a new QuickSnap to Mutual Followers
response = cl.quicksnap_send("path/to/snap.jpg", audience="mutual_followers")
print(f"QuickSnap sent successfully. Media ID: {response['media_ids'][0]}")

Why current methods are insufficient

Existing methods like cl.photo_upload_to_direct() or cl.photo_upload_to_story() use different configuration endpoints (such as configure_to_direct or configure_to_story). These endpoints do not route to the QuickSnap pipeline, do not support the "mutual_followers" audience parameter, and do not trigger the 24-hour ephemeral behavior required for QuickSnaps.

Does this require new Instagram endpoint knowledge?

yes

References, logs, HAR, or similar implementations

GLOBAL SESSION & DEVICE IDENTIFIERS

• Instagram App ID: 567067343352427
• Target User ID (UID / PK): 123456789
• Account Username: your_username
• Session UUID: 3a66a40d-b663-4ab8-8d7c-14d1291f7406
• Media Upload ID: 102893695060748
• Device Context: vivo 1819 (Android 11, API Level 30)

---

PART 1: QUICKSNAP HISTORY PAGINATED QUERY (GRAPHQL)

• Method: POST
• URL: https://i.instagram.com/graphql_www
• Query ID (client_doc_id): 202528380816979569862257718136
• Variables: {"first": 20}

---

PART 2: RAW MEDIA INGESTION (RUPLOAD IGPHOTO)

• Method: POST
• URL: https://i.instagram.com/rupload_igphoto/102893695060748_0_1085846678
• Headers:
  • x-entity-name: 102893695060748_0_1085846678
  • x-entity-type: image/jpeg
• Response:

{
  "upload_id": "102893695060748",
  "status": "ok"
}

---

PART 3: MEDIA CONFIGURATION AND PUBLICATION API

• Method: POST
• URL: https://i.instagram.com/api/v1/media/configure_to_quick_snap/
• Headers:
  • x-ig-client-endpoint: InsightsHostImpl:quick_snap_audience_picker
  • x-ig-nav-chain: DirectInboxFragment:direct_inbox:2:main_direct:1782916129.748:::1782916129.748,QuickSnapUnifiedFragment:quicksnap_unified_fragment:3:button:1782916165.844:::1782916165.844,ConstAnalyticsModule:quick_snap_camera:4:button:1782916165.990:::1782916166.398,InsightsHostImpl:quick_snap_audience_picker:6:button:1782916180.717:::1782916180.717
• Signed Request Payload (Decoded):

{
  "original_height": "0",
  "original_width": "0",
  "include_e2ee_mentioned_user_list": "1",
  "hide_from_profile_grid": "false",
  "timezone_offset": "19800",
  "source_type": "3",
  "_uid": "123456789",
  "async_publish": "1",
  "device_id": "android-mock_device_id",
  "_uuid": "3a66a40d-b663-4ab8-8d7c-14d1291f7406",
  "audience": "mutual_followers",
  "upload_id": "102893695060748",
  "bottom_camera_dial_selected": "11",
  "publish_id": "1",
  "device": {
    "manufacturer": "vivo",
    "model": "vivo 1819",
    "android_version": 30,
    "android_release": "11"
  }
}

• Response JSON snippet (Confirming QuickSnap expiration):

{
  "posts": [
    {
      "id": 3931708346854699261,
      "post_client_id": "102893695060748",
      "status": "COMPLETED"
    }
  ],
  "medias": [
    {
      "media_dict": {
        "subtype_name_for_REST__": "XDTQuickSnapMedia",
        "product_type": "quick_snap",
        "audience": "mutual_followers",
        "taken_at": 1782916183,
        "expiring_at": 1783002583
      }
    }
  ]
}

---

PART 4: MEDIA INTEGRITY / PDQ HASH INFO UPDATE

• Method: POST
• URL Endpoint: https://i.instagram.com/api/v1/media/update_media_with_pdq_hash_info/
• Signed Request Payload (Decoded):

{
  "_uid": "123456789",
  "_uuid": "3a66a40d-b663-4ab8-8d7c-14d1291f7406",
  "upload_id": "102893695060748",
  "pdq_hash_info": "[{\"pdq_hash\":\"905b28d5556aa54a15ed8c4d14ea60ad2aed749aaaad5ce9bee9704ab75189d3:100\",\"frame_time\":0}]"
}

---

Technical Update: Part 5 - The Deletion Pipeline (soft_delete)

To complete the full lifecycle mapping for this feature, I also captured the deletion flow. When a user deletes an active QuickSnap, the client does not hit the standard deletion endpoint. Instead, it routes the request through a specific soft_delete endpoint triggered from the quick_snap_archive module.

Endpoint: POST https://i.instagram.com/api/v1/media/{media_id}/soft_delete/

Key Headers:

• x-ig-client-endpoint: ConstAnalyticsModule:quick_snap_archive

Request Payload:

media_id=<MEDIA_ID>&_uuid=<CLIENT_UUID>

(Sent as standard signed body/form-data)

Server Response:

{
  "did_delete": true,
  "cxp_deep_deletion_global_response": {},
  "cxp_deep_deletion_waterfall_id": "77401009-9e2e-4053-8277-1105586bf225",
  "status": "ok"
}

Proposed API Addition:

def quicksnap_delete(self, media_id: str) -> bool:
    """Soft-deletes an active QuickSnap."""
    media_id = self.media_id(media_id)
    data = {
        "media_id": media_id,
        "_uuid": self.uuid
    }
    result = self.private_request(
        f"media/{media_id}/soft_delete/",
        data=self.with_default_data(data)
    )
    return result.get("did_delete") is True

This should provide everything needed to build out the complete QuickSnap (Instants) module.

QuickSnaps_Docs.md

[subzeroid]

@SkyPlay-Code hi, could you clarify why you closed this as not planned?

Trying to understand whether the Quick Snap upload flow is no longer relevant, the captured payload turned out not to work reliably, or you plan to handle it another way. The reason matters before we decide whether maintainers should investigate or leave this closed.

[SkyPlay-Code]

@SkyPlay-Code hi, could you clarify why you closed this as not planned?

Trying to understand whether the Quick Snap upload flow is no longer relevant, the captured payload turned out not to work reliably, or you plan to handle it another way. The reason matters before we decide whether maintainers should investigate or leave this closed.

Hi @subzeroid, sorry for the confusion!

I closed this temporarily because I want to investigate the payload further and test its consistency across different Instagram app versions before having you guys spend time triaging it. I want to make sure the exact endpoint requirements and payload fields are 100% verified on my end first.

The feature is definitely still highly relevant and needed for automated flows. Once I finish my research and verify the exact request flows under different environments, I will reopen this issue with the final, verified data.

[subzeroid]

@SkyPlay-Code thanks for clarifying and for doing the extra validation. That makes sense.

We will leave this closed for now and wait for your verified Quick Snap request flow/payload before triaging or implementing it. Please reopen the issue or add the final data here when you are ready.