Media automation with Docker, in one container

What media automation does

For every series and film you follow, Nabbed:

1. Watches for new releases with RSS sync, plus a daily search for missing episodes and a backfill search for older ones.
2. Searches your Newznab and Torznab indexers and scores every result against your quality profile.
3. Downloads the best one over Usenet or BitTorrent, with clients built into the agent.
4. Verifies and extracts it, renames it to your library’s naming scheme and moves it into place.
5. Triggers a Plex or Jellyfin scan, so it shows up straight away.
6. Keeps looking for a better release until one meets your profile’s cutoff.

Deciding what to grab happens in the web app. Everything that touches files happens in the container, on your hardware.

The container

The agent image is ghcr.io/getnabbed/agent, built for linux/amd64, linux/arm64 and linux/arm/v7. You need a Nabbed account and Docker 20.10 or newer. Create a folder for the agent, save this as compose.yaml inside it and replace /srv/media with the folder that holds your libraries:

name: nabbed

services:
  agent:
    image: ghcr.io/getnabbed/agent:0.2
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      NABBED_API_URL: https://api.nabbed.media
      NABBED_LIBRARY_ROOTS: /media
    volumes:
      - data:/data # credentials and state: must persist
      - ./downloads:/downloads # downloads before they're imported
      - /srv/media:/media # your libraries
    ports:
      - "6881:6881/tcp" # BitTorrent, optional but faster
      - "6881:6881/udp"
    read_only: true
    tmpfs:
      - /tmp:size=64m,mode=1777
    cap_drop: [ALL]
    security_opt:
      - no-new-privileges:true
    stop_grace_period: 30s

volumes:
  data:

Start it and follow the logs:

docker compose up -d
docker compose logs -f agent

What each part is for

Pair it with your account

On first start, the agent prints a link and a code:

To pair this agent, open: https://app.nabbed.media/device?code=ABCD-EFGH
and enter the code: ABCD-EFGH

Open the link while signed in, check the code matches and approve it. The agent connects within a few seconds and appears under Settings → Agents. Codes are valid for 15 minutes; restart the container to get a new one.

Then tell it what you want

In the web app, add your Usenet provider (your browser encrypts its credentials to the agent’s key, so only the agent can read them), check your library folders and indexers, and pick a quality profile. Then search for a series or film and add it. The library setup guide walks through each setting, and notifications can tell you when something is ready.

Not using Docker?

The same agent installs on Kubernetes with a Helm chart, or as a signed binary for Linux, macOS or Windows with a hardened systemd unit. Coming from Sonarr and Radarr? Read the Sonarr and Radarr comparison or see how one container replaces the whole *arr stack.

Questions