Readarr is supported natively on Windows. Readarr can be installed on Windows as Windows Service or system tray application.
Windows versions are limited for support to those currently supported by Microsoft, others may work but this is an unsupported configuration
A Windows Service runs even when the user is not logged in, but special care must be taken since Windows Services cannot access network drives (X:\ mapped drives or \\server\share UNC paths) without special configuration steps.
Additionally the Windows Service runs under the 'Local Service' account, by default this account does not have permissions to access your user's home directory unless permissions have been assigned manually. This is particularly relevant when using download clients that are configured to download to your home directory.
It's therefore advisable to install Readarr as a system tray application if the user can remain logged in. The option to do so is provided during the installer.
You will likely have to run once "As Administrator" after installing in tray mode, if you get an access error -- such as Access to the path
C:\ProgramData\Readarr\config.xmlis denied -- or you use mapped network drives. This gives Readarr the permissions it needs. You should not need to run As Administrator every time.
Warning: If you run Plex as a service via PmsService you will either need to change PMsService's port from
8787or you will need to modify the port Readarr runs on in theconfig.xmlfile.
It is possible to install Readarr manually using the x64 .zip download. However in that case you must manually deal with dependencies, installation and permissions.
Readarr is not compatible with OSX versions < 10.15 (Catalina) due to .NET incompatibilities.
codesign --force --deep -s - Readarr.appNote: Raspberry Pi OS and Raspbian are both flavors of Debian
For the Debian / Ubuntu / Raspbian beginners there isn't an Apt Repository or Deb package.
If you want an easy life, follow this community provided and maintained Easy Install script for a base Debian (Raspbian / Raspberry Pi OS) / Ubuntu install.
For the official installation instructions that are 'Hands on' follow the Debian / Ubuntu Hands on Install steps further below.
Please see the *Arr Community Installation Script
You'll need to install the binaries using the below commands.
The steps below will download Readarr and install it into
/opt
Readarr will run under the userreadarrand groupmedia;mediais the commonly suggested group to run the *Arrs, download clients, and media server under.
Readarr's configuration files will be stored in/var/lib/readarr
sudo apt install curl sqlite3
Warning: Ignoring the below prerequisites will result in a failed installation and non-functional application.
Installation Prerequisites
The below instructions are based on the following prerequisites. Change the instructions as needed to suit your specific needs if necessary.
* The userreadarris created
* The userreadarris part of the groupmedia
* Your download clients and media server run as and are a part of the groupmedia
* Your paths used by your download clients and media server are accessible (read/write) to the groupmedia
* If Calibre will be used, Calibre runs as the groupmediaand the Calibre library has read/write permissions formedia
* You created the directory/var/lib/readarrand ensured the userreadarrhas read/write permissions for it
By continuing below, you acknowledge that you have read and met the above requirements.
dpkg --print-architecture
arch=x64arch=armarch=arm64wget --content-disposition 'http://readarr.servarr.com/v1/update/develop/updatefile?os=linux&runtime=netcore&arch=x64'
tar -xvzf Readarr*.linux*.tar.gz
/opt/sudo mv Readarr /opt/
Note: This assumes you have created the user and will run as the user
readarrand groupmedia. You may change this to fit your usecase. It's important to choose these correctly to avoid permission issues with your media files. We suggest you keep at least the group name identical between your download client(s) and Readarr. Please note that if use wish to use Calibre - Readarr will need permissions for that directory.
sudo chown readarr:readarr -R /opt/Readarr
The below systemd creation script will use a data directory of
/var/lib/readarr. Ensure it exists or modify it as needed. For the default data directory of/home/$USER/.config/Readarrsimply remove the-dataargument. Note: that$USERis the User Readarr runs as and is defined below.
cat << EOF | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/readarr.service > /dev/null
[Unit]
Description=Readarr Daemon
After=syslog.target network.target
[Service]
User=readarr
Group=media
Type=simple
ExecStart=/opt/Readarr/Readarr -nobrowser -data=/var/lib/readarr/
TimeoutStopSec=20
KillMode=process
Restart=on-failure
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF
sudo systemctl -q daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now -q readarr
rm Readarr*.linux*.tar.gz
Typically to access the Readarr web GUI browse to http://{Your server IP Address}:8787
If Readarr did not appear to start, then check the status of the service:
sudo journalctl --since today -u readarr
To uninstall and purge:
Warning: This will destroy your application data.
sudo systemctl stop readarr
sudo rm -rf /opt/Readarr
sudo rm -rf /var/lib/readarr
sudo rm -rf /etc/systemd/system/readarr.service
sudo systemctl -q daemon-reload
To uninstall and keep your application data:
sudo systemctl stop readarr
sudo rm -rf /opt/Readarr
sudo rm -rf /etc/systemd/system/readarr.service
sudo systemctl -q daemon-reload
The Readarr team only provides builds for FreeBSD. Plugins and Ports are maintained and created by the FreeBSD community.
Instructions for FreeBSD installations are also maintained by the FreeBSD community and anyone with a GitHub account may update the wiki as needed.
From the main screen select Jails
Click ADD
Click Advanced Jail Creation
Name (any name will work): Readarr
Jail Type: Default (Clone Jail)
Release: 12.2-Release (or newer)
Configure Basic Properties to your liking
Configure Jail Properties to your liking but add
allow_raw_socketsis helpful for troubleshooting (e.g. ping, traceroute) but is not a requirement.
Configure Network Properties to your liking
Configure Custom Properties to your liking
Click Save
After the jail is created it will start automatically. One more property is required to be set in order for Readarr to see the storage space of your mounted media locations. Open a root shell on the server and enter these commands:
iocage stop <jailname>
iocage set enforce_statfs=1 <jailname>
iocage start <jailname>
Back on the jails list find your newly created jail for readarr and click "Shell"
To install Readarr
* Ensure your pkg repo is configured to get packages from
/latestand not/quarterly
* Check/usr/local/etc/pkg/repos/FreeBSD.conf
* If that does not exist, copy over/etc/pkg/FreeBSD.confto that location, open it, and replacequarterlywithlatest
pkg install readarr
Don't close the shell out yet we still have a few more things!
Now that we have it installed a few more steps are required.
Time to enable the service but before we do, a note:
The updater is disabled by default. The pkg-message gives instructions on how to enable the updater but keep in mind: this can break things like pkg check -s and pkg remove for Readarr when the built-in updater replaces files.
To enable the service:
sysrc readarr_enable=TRUE
If you do not want to use user/group readarr you will need to tell the service file what user/group it should be running under
sysrc readarr_user="USER_YOU_WANT"
sysrc readarr_group="GROUP_YOU_WANT"
readarr stores its data, config, logs, and PID files in /usr/local/readarr by default. The service file will create this and take ownership of it IF AND ONLY IF IT DOES NOT EXIST. If you want to store these files in a different place (e.g., a dataset mounted into the jail for easier snapshots) then you will need to change it using sysrc
sysrc readarr_data_dir="DIR_YOU_WANT"
Reminder: If you are using an existing location then you will manually need to either: change the ownership to the UID/GID readarr uses AND/OR add readarr to a GID that has write access.
Almost done, let's start the service:
service readarr start
If everything went according to plan then readarr should be up and running on the IP of the jail (port 8787)!
You can now safely close the shell
The service appears to be running but the UI is not loading or the page is timing out
allow_mlock is enabled in the jailSystem.NET.Sockets.SocketException (43): Protocol not supported
VNET turned on for your jail, ip6=inherit, or ip6=newThe service script should now work around the lack of VNET and/or IP6 thus removing the requirement for VNET or ip6=inherit
The Readarr team does not offer an official Docker image. However, a number of third parties have created and maintain their own.
These instructions provide generic guidance that should apply to any Readarr Docker image.
There are two common problems with Docker volumes: Paths that differ between the Readarr and download client container and paths that prevent fast moves and hard links.
The first is a problem because the download client will report a download's path as /torrents/My.Movie.2018/, but in the Readarr container that might be at /downloads/My.Movie.2018/. The second is a performance issue and causes problems for seeding torrents. Both problems can be solved with well planned, consistent paths.
Most Docker images suggest paths like /books and /downloads. This causes slow moves and doesn't allow hard links because they are considered two different file systems inside the container. Some also recommend paths for the download client container that are different from the Readarr container, like /torrents.
The best solution is to use a single, common volume inside the containers, such as /data. Your Movies would be in /data/Movies, torrents in /data/downloads/torrents and/or usenet downloads in /data/downloads/usenet.
If this advice is not followed, you may have to configure a Remote Path Mapping in the Readarr web UI (Settings › Download Clients).
When installing Readarr, you can choose to use Calibre integration or not. This choice can only be made during installation, and if you choose not to utilize Calibre you cannot add it later. If you currently use Calibre to manage your book library, you should choose this option. If you use it, Calibre will name and organize your book files for you.
If you are running Calibre, you must first start the Calibre Content Server (Preferences / Sharing over the net), and also set up a user and password. This will require a Calibre restart.
Please note that Calibre Content Server and Calibre are NOT Calibre Web. Calibre Web is a separate tool unrelated to either of these programs, and is not required nor used by Readarr in any way.
Permissions and ownership of files is one of the most common problems for Readarr users, both inside and outside Docker. Most images have environment variables that can be used to override the default user, group and umask, you should decide this before setting up all of your containers. The recommendation is to use a common group for all related containers so that each container can use the shared group permissions to read and write files on the mounted volumes.
Keep in mind that Readarr will need read and write to the download folders as well as the final folders.
For a more detailed explanation of these issues, see The Best Docker Setup and Docker Guide wiki article.
To install and use these Docker images, you will need to keep the above in mind while following their documentation. There are many ways to manage Docker images and containers too, so installation and maintenance of them will depend on the route you choose.
Temporarily, you will need to use the :nightly or :develop tags with docker images, as there is no master branch. See this FAQ entey for the meaning of the branches
Sample config examples for configuring Readarr to be accessible from the outside world through a reverse proxy.
These examples assumes the default port of
8787and that you set a baseurl ofreadarr. It also assumes your web server i.e nginx and Readarr running on the same server accessible atlocalhost(127.0.0.1). If not, use the host IP address or hostname instead for the proxy pass directive.
Add the following configuration to nginx.conf located in the root of your Nginx configuration. The code block should be added inside the server context. Full example of a typical Nginx configuration
If you're using a non-standard http/https server port, make sure your Host header also includes it, i.e.:
proxy_set_header Host $host:$server_port
location ^~ /readarr {
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8787;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
proxy_redirect off;
proxy_http_version 1.1;
proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
proxy_set_header Connection $http_connection;
}
# Allow the API External Access via NGINX
location ^~ /readarr/api {
auth_basic off;
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8787;
}
A better way to organize your configuration files for Nginx would be to store the configuration for each site in a separate file.
To achieve this it is required to modify nginx.conf and add include subfolders-enabled/*.conf in the server context. So it will look something like this.
server {
listen 80;
server_name _;
# more configuration
include subfolders-enabled/*.conf
}
Adding this line will include all files that end with .conf to the Nginx configuration. Make a new directory called subfolders-enabled in the same folder as your nginx.conf file is located. In that folder create a file with a recognizable name that ends with .conf. Add the configuration from above from the file and restart or reload Nginx. You should be able to visit Readarr at yourdomain.tld/readarr. tld is short for Top Level Domain
Alternatively you can use a subdomain for readarr. In this case you would visit readarr.yourdomain.tld. For this you would need to configure a A record or CNAME record in your DNS.
Many free DNS providers do not support this
By default Nginx includes the sites-enabled folder. You can check this in nginx.conf, if not you can add it using the include directive. And really important, it has to be inside the http context. Now create a config file inside the sites-enabled folder and enter the following configuration.
For this configuration it is recommended to set baseurl to '' (empty). This configuration assumes you are using the default
8787and Readarr is accessible on the localhost (127.0.0.1). For this configuration the subdomainreadarris chosen (line 5).
If you're using a non-standard http/https server port, make sure your Host header also includes it, i.e.:
proxy_set_header Host $host:$server_port
server {
listen 80;
listen [::]:80;
server_name readarr.*;
location / {
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
proxy_set_header Connection $http_connection;
proxy_redirect off;
proxy_http_version 1.1;
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8787;
}
}
Now restart Nginx and Readarr should be available at your selected subdomain.
This should be added within an existing VirtualHost site. If you wish to use the root of a domain or subdomain, remove readarr from the Location block and simply use / as the location.
Note: Do not remove the baseurl from ProxyPass and ProxyPassReverse if you want to use / as the location.
<Location /readarr>
ProxyPreserveHost on
ProxyPass http://127.0.0.1:8787/readarr connectiontimeout=5 timeout=300
ProxyPassReverse http://127.0.0.1:8787/readarr
</Location>
ProxyPreserveHost on prevents apache2 from redirecting to localhost when using a reverse proxy.
Or for making an entire VirtualHost for Readarr:
ProxyPass / http://127.0.0.1:8787/readarr/
ProxyPassReverse / http://127.0.0.1:8787/readarr/
If you implement any additional authentication through Apache, you should exclude the following paths:
/readarr/api/It is possible to run multiple instances of Readarr. This is typically done when one wants a audiobook and ebook copy of a book.
Note that you can configure Readarr to use a second Readarr as a list. This is helpful if you wish to keep both in sync.
The following requirements should be noted:
-data= or /data= argument passedThis guide will show you how to run multiple instances of Readarr on Windows using only one base installation. This guide was put together using Windows 10; if you are using a previous version of Windows (7, 8, etc.) you may need to adjust some things. This guide also assumes that you have installed Readarr to the default directory, and your second instance of Readarr will be called Readarr-audiobooks. Feel free to change things to fit your own installations, though.
nssm stop Readarrsc config Readarr binpath= "C:\ProgramData\Readarr\bin\Readarr.exe -data=C:\ProgramData\Readarr"This command tells the original instance of Readarr to explicitly use
C:\ProgramData\Readarr for its data directory. If you didn't use the
default Readarr install, or if your data folder is somewhere else, you
may have to change your paths here.
C:\ProgramData\Readarr-audiobooksnssm install Readarr-audiobooks. A popup window will open where you can type yourC:\ProgramData\Readarr\bin\Readarr.exeC:\ProgramData\Readarr\bin-data=C:\ProgramData\Readarr-audiobooksNote that Arguments points to the new folder created in step 1.
This is crucial, as it keeps all the data files from both instances in
separate locations.
/data= argument to allow multiple instances%appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup and edit the existing shortcut if needed.C:\ProgramData\Readarr\bin\Readarr.exe /data=C:\ProgramData\Readarr-audiobooksReadarr-audiobooks and finish the wizard.Port Number from 8787 to a different port e.g. 8879 so Readarr and Readarr-audiobooks do not conflictRun with highest privileges
On Launch5 or 10 minutesStart a Programpowershell-File D:\ReadarrInstancesChecker.ps1
################################################################################################
### ReadarrInstancesChecker.ps1 ###
################################################################################################
### Keeps multiple Readarr Instances up by checking the port ###
### Please use Readarr´s Discord or Reddit for support! ###
### https://wiki.servarr.com/readarr/installation#windows-multi ###
################################################################################################
### Version: 1.1 ###
### Updated: 2020-10-22 ###
### Author: reloxx13 ###
################################################################################################
### SET YOUR CONFIGURATION HERE ###
# Set your host ip and port correctly and use your service or scheduledtask names!
# (string) The type how Readarr is starting
# "Service" (default) Service process is used
# "ScheduledTask" Task Scheduler is used
$startType = 'Service'
# (bool) Writes the log to C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\log.txt when enabled
# $false (default)
# $true
$logToFile = $false
$instances = @(
[pscustomobject]@{ # Instance 1
Name = 'Readarr'; # (string) Service or Task name (default: Readarr)
IP = '192.168.178.12'; # (string) Server IP where Readarr runs (default: 192.168.178.12)
Port = '8873'; # (string) Server Port where Readarr runs (default: 8873)
}
[pscustomobject]@{ # Instance 2
Name = 'Readarr-audiobooks'; # (string) Service or Task name (default: Readarr-audiobooks)
IP = '192.168.178.12'; # (string) Server IP where Readarr runs (default: 192.168.178.12)
Port = '8874'; # (string) Server Port where Readarr runs (default: 8874)
}
# If needed you can add more instances here... by uncommenting out the below lines
# [pscustomobject]@{ # Instance 3
# Name='Readarr-3D'; # (string) Service or Task name (default: Readarr-3D)
# IP='192.168.178.12'; # (string) Server IP where Readarr runs (default: 192.168.178.12)
# Port='8875'; # (string) Server Port where Readarr runs (default: 7875)
# }
)
### DONT CHANGE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE ###
###
# This function will write to a log file or in console output
###
function Write-Log
{
#Will write to C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\log.txt
Param(
$Message,
$Path = "$env:USERPROFILE\log.txt"
)
function TS { Get-Date -Format 'hh:mm:ss' }
#Console output
Write-Output "[$(TS)]$Message"
#File Output
if ($logToFile)
{
"[$(TS)]$Message" | Tee-Object -FilePath $Path -Append | Write-Verbose
}
}
Write-Log 'START ====================='
$instances | ForEach-Object {
Write-Log "Check $($_.Name) $($_.IP):$($_.Port)"
$PortOpen = ( Test-NetConnection $_.IP -Port $_.Port -WarningAction SilentlyContinue ).TcpTestSucceeded
if (!$PortOpen)
{
Write-Log "Port $($_.Port) is closed, restart $($startType) $($_.Name)!"
if ($startType -eq 'Service')
{
Get-Service -Name $_.Name | Stop-Service
Get-Service -Name $_.Name | Start-Service
}
elseif ($startType -eq 'ScheduledTask')
{
Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName $_.Name | Stop-ScheduledTask
Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName $_.Name | Start-ScheduledTask
}
else
{
Write-Log '[ERROR] STARTTYPE UNKNOWN! USE Service or ScheduledTask !'
}
}
else
{
Write-Log "Port $($_.Port) is open!"
}
}
Write-Log 'END ====================='
-data= argument passed.systemctl stop readarrBelow is an example script to create a Readarr-audiobooks instance. The below systemd creation script will use a data directory of
/var/lib/readarr-audiobooks/. Ensure the directory exists or modify it as needed.
cat << EOF | sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/readarr-audiobooks.service > /dev/null
[Unit]
Description=Readarr-audiobooks Daemon
After=syslog.target network.target
[Service]
User=readarr
Group=media
Type=simple
ExecStart=/opt/Readarr/Readarr -nobrowser -data=/var/lib/Readarr-audiobooks/
TimeoutStopSec=20
KillMode=process
Restart=on-failure
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF
sudo systemctl -q daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now -q readarr-audiobooks