Dgen Automation Disable

DGen Ad-Level Automation Disable

Purpose: Programmatically set all Demand Gen ad-level asset automation settings to OPTED_OUT across one or many accounts.

Type: Mutation skill (two-step approval required)

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Auto-Invoke When

• "disable dgen automation"
• "fix dgen asset settings"
• "turn off dgen auto assets"
• "dgen automation fix"
• "fix demand gen automation"

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Background

Demand Gen asset automation operates at the ad level (not campaign level like PMax). Google auto-generates creative variations that frequently drift off-brand or reduce quality control for managed accounts.

Settings Controlled

DemandGenMultiAssetAd: | Setting | Description | Default | |---------|-------------|---------| | GENERATE_DESIGN_VERSIONS_FOR_IMAGES | Adds design elements to images | ON | | GENERATE_VIDEOS_FROM_OTHER_ASSETS | Generates videos from images/text | ON |

DemandGenVideoResponsiveAd: | Setting | Description | Default | |---------|-------------|---------| | GENERATE_VERTICAL_YOUTUBE_VIDEOS | Converts horizontal to vertical | ON | | GENERATE_SHORTER_YOUTUBE_VIDEOS | Shortens videos | ON | | GENERATE_LANDING_PAGE_PREVIEW | Landing page screenshot in ads | OFF (but found ON in some accounts) |

DEMAND_GEN_CAROUSEL_AD and DEMAND_GEN_PRODUCT_AD have no automation settings — skipped.

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Two-Step Mutation Flow

This skill follows the [mutation-safety](../mutation-safety/) pattern. Never skip the dry-run, never auto-approve.

Step 1 — Dry-run preview

# Single account
python scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py --cid 1234567890

# Multiple accounts (comma-separated CIDs)
python scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py --cids "1234567890,2345678901"

# All enabled accounts under the MCC
python scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py --all

Output includes:

• Per-account list of ads needing changes
• Specific settings that will flip from OPTED_IN → OPTED_OUT
• Total count (ads, settings, accounts)
• An APPROVAL CODE like APPROVE-A3F9B2C1

Step 2 — Execute with approval code

python scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py --cid 1234567890 APPROVE-A3F9B2C1

The script:

• Re-computes the approval code from current ad state
• Refuses to execute if the code doesn't match (safety net if ads changed since the dry-run)
• Mutates via AdGroupAdService.mutate_ad_group_ads
• Writes to local log at ./logs/mutations_log.jsonl
• Optionally writes to a Google Sheet log (--log-sheet-id)

Step 3 — Verify (optional, single-account only)

python scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py --cid 1234567890 APPROVE-A3F9B2C1 --verify

Re-queries the account and confirms every DGen ad is now OPTED_OUT on all applicable settings. Reports any non-compliant ads.

How the approval code works

The code is a SHA-256 hash of the sorted (cid, ad_id, settings_to_fix) tuples across all pending mutations, truncated to 8 hex chars.

• Deterministic: same pending work → same code. No state file needed.
• Safe against drift: if ads change between dry-run and execute (new ads, settings changed by Google's defaults reappearing, etc.), the code changes and execution is refused.

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CLI Reference

| Flag | Default | Purpose | |------|---------|---------| | --cid CID | — | Single account (mutually exclusive with --cids/--all) | | --cids CID1,CID2,... | — | Multiple accounts | | --all | — | All enabled non-manager accounts under login_customer_id from google-ads.yaml | | approval_code (positional) | — | APPROVE-XXXXXXXX from dry-run. Omit for dry-run mode. | | --config | google-ads.yaml | Path to Google Ads credentials YAML | | --log-dir | logs | Directory for local JSONL mutation log | | --log-sheet-id | (off) | Optional Google Sheet ID for central mutation log | | --verify | off | Post-execute re-query (single account only) |

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Mutation Logging

Local (always on)

Every execution appends to ./logs/mutations_log.jsonl:

{"timestamp_utc": "2026-04-23T15:30:00+00:00", "approval_code": "APPROVE-A3F9B2C1",
 "account_cid": "1234567890", "account_name": "Example Account", "action_type": "DISABLE_DGEN_AUTOMATION",
 "details": {"ads_updated": 3, "settings_changed": [...], "ad_types": [...]},
 "success": true, "error": null}

This is your audit trail. The script creates the directory if it doesn't exist.

Google Sheet (opt-in)

Pass --log-sheet-id YOUR_SHEET_ID to also log to a central Sheet with columns: Timestamp | Account | CID | Action Type | Details | Success | Error | Approval Code

Uses the refresh token in google-ads.yaml — that token must have the spreadsheets scope.

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CRITICAL Implementation Note

Replacement behavior: When updating ad_group_ad_asset_automation_settings, you must specify ALL applicable settings for the ad type. If you only specify one, the others reset to defaults (OPTED_IN).

The script handles this correctly — it always sets every applicable setting for each ad type. If you write your own tooling against this field, do the same.

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Prerequisites

1. Google Ads API credentials — google-ads.yaml at project root (see [google-ads-api-setup](../google-ads-api-setup/))
2. Python: pip install google-ads google-auth google-api-python-client pyyaml
3. For --log-sheet-id: the refresh token in google-ads.yaml must include https://www.googleapis.com/auth/spreadsheets scope

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Installation

mkdir -p .claude/skills/dgen-automation-disable/scripts
curl -o .claude/skills/dgen-automation-disable/SKILL.md \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/fourteenwm/ppc-ai-skills/main/dgen-automation-disable/SKILL.md
curl -o .claude/skills/dgen-automation-disable/scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/fourteenwm/ppc-ai-skills/main/dgen-automation-disable/scripts/fix_dgen_ad_automation.py

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Related Skills

• [mutation-safety](../mutation-safety/) — two-step approval pattern this skill implements
• [pmax-asset-automation](../pmax-asset-automation/) — PMax equivalent (campaign-level, not ad-level)
• [ad-copy-verification-standard](../ad-copy-verification-standard/) — the underlying philosophy: Empty > Inaccurate. Google's auto-generated assets frequently violate this.

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When to Run

• Post-onboarding — run once after taking over any new account with DGen campaigns
• Periodic audit — DGen settings are observed to reset silently after certain campaign edits. Re-run monthly to catch drift.
• Before a brand-sensitive launch — confirm no auto-generation is active right before a new creative goes live

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: fourteenwm
• Source: fourteenwm/ppc-ai-skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.