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Deployment Checklist - Print This!

Quick reference checklist for deploying the Home Media Server stack.

PRE-DEPLOYMENT (Fresh Linux Server)

System Preparation

  • [ ] Ubuntu 20.04+ installed
  • [ ] SSH access configured
  • [ ] 4GB+ RAM available
  • [ ] 20GB+ disk space available

Package Installation

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install -y wget curl git ca-certificates
- [ ] System updated

Docker Installation

curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com -o get-docker.sh
sudo sh get-docker.sh
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker
docker ps # Should work without sudo
- [ ] Docker installed & working - [ ] User added to docker group

Tailscale Installation

curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
sudo tailscale up
- [ ] Tailscale installed - [ ] Tailscale authenticated - [ ] Tailscale IP noted: _____________ (from tailscale ip -4)

UFW Firewall

sudo ufw allow 22/tcp
sudo ufw enable
sudo ufw status # Should show: active, Port 22/tcp allow
- [ ] UFW enabled - [ ] SSH access allowed

Data Directories

sudo mkdir -p /data/media/{movies,tv,music,books}
sudo mkdir -p /data/torrents/{movies,tv,music,books}
sudo chown -R 1000:1000 /data
sudo chmod -R 755 /data
- [ ] /data directories created - [ ] Permissions set correctly

REPOSITORY SETUP

Clone Repository

cd ~
wget https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/home_media/archive/main.zip
unzip main.zip
mv home_media-main home_media
cd home_media
- [ ] Repository cloned - [ ] In correct directory

Configure Environment

cp .env.example .env
nano .env # Edit these values:

Required Values to Set: - [ ] PUID = _ (from id -u) - [ ] PGID = _ (from id -g) - [ ] TZ = _ (your timezone) - [ ] TSDPROXY_AUTHKEY = _ (from https://login.tailscale.com/admin/settings/keys) - [ ] TSDPROXY_HOSTNAME = _ (your Tailscale IP) - [ ] PLEX_CLAIM_TOKEN = _ (from https://www.plex.tv/claim/, optional)

Note: Save the .env file. This is CRITICAL - never commit to git!

Prepare Application Data

cd ent/
mkdir -p appdata/{radarr,sonarr,lidarr,readarr,prowlarr,qbittorrent,jellyfin,jellyseerr,bazarr,plex,dockhand,termix}
chmod -R 775 appdata/
- [ ] Application directories created - [ ] Permissions set

LAUNCH STACK

Start Services

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d
docker compose ps # All containers should show "Up"
- [ ] All containers started - [ ] All showing "Up" status

Verify Tailscale Connection

docker compose logs tsdproxy
- [ ] TSDProxy connected message visible

Quick Health Check

chmod +x ../health_check.sh
../health_check.sh
- [ ] Health check passes - [ ] Containers responsive

SECURITY SETUP (Follow in Order)

1. qBittorrent (CRITICAL - Do First!)

# Access: https://YOUR_TAILSCALE_IP:port
# Default: admin / adminpass
- [ ] Logged in with default credentials - [ ] Changed username and password - Tools → Options → Web UI → Authentication - "Require authentication" enabled - [ ] Container restarted: docker compose restart qbittorrent

2. Jellyfin (Setup User Account)

# Access: https://YOUR_TAILSCALE_IP:port
- [ ] Initial setup wizard completed - [ ] Admin account created - [ ] Library paths configured - [ ] Test: Can access and play media?

3. Jellyseerr (Request Interface)

# Access: https://YOUR_TAILSCALE_IP:port
- [ ] Setup wizard completed - [ ] Jellyfin linked - [ ] Radarr linked - [ ] Sonarr linked - [ ] User account created - [ ] Test: Requested a movie?

4. Plex (If Using)

  • [ ] Method A: Claim token in .env (recommended)
  • [ ] Plex account linked
  • [ ] Libraries visible
  • [ ] OR Method B: Manual setup
  • [ ] Accessed via Tailscale
  • [ ] Account linked
  • [ ] Libraries configured

5. Radarr/Sonarr/Lidarr/Readarr (Optional Passwords)

# For each service:
# Settings → General → Security
# Set Authentication to "Basic" or "Forms"
- [ ] Radarr secured (optional but recommended) - [ ] Sonarr secured (optional but recommended) - [ ] Lidarr secured (optional but recommended) - [ ] Readarr secured (optional but recommended)

6. Prowlarr (Indexers)

# Optional: Settings → General → Security
- [ ] Indexers added - [ ] API key noted

7. Bazarr (Subtitles)

  • [ ] Configured (if using)
  • [ ] Linked to Radarr/Sonarr

FINAL VERIFICATION

Service Access Test

  • [ ] Jellyseerr accessible via Tailscale
  • [ ] Jellyfin accessible and can play video
  • [ ] Radarr accessible
  • [ ] Sonarr accessible
  • [ ] Can request movie in Jellyseerr
  • [ ] Radarr picked up request
  • [ ] No "Port already in use" errors

Network Security

sudo netstat -tlnp | grep docker
- [ ] NO services exposed to internet - [ ] Only SSH (port 22) accessible

Health Check

./health_check.sh
- [ ] All containers running - [ ] All connectivity tests pass - [ ] Tailscale connected - [ ] Disk space OK

DOCUMENTATION

Bookmark These

Regular Maintenance

  • [ ] Weekly: Run ./health_check.sh
  • [ ] Monthly: Update images (docker compose pull && docker compose up -d)
  • [ ] Quarterly: Backup appdata and .env

TROUBLESHOOTING

Container Won't Start

  1. Check logs: docker compose logs service_name
  2. Verify permissions: ls -la ent/appdata/
  3. Check disk space: df -h /data

Services Can't Talk

  1. Verify running: docker compose ps
  2. Test ping: docker compose exec radarr ping sonarr
  3. Check network: docker network inspect arr_network

Tailscale Issues

  1. Verify running: sudo tailscale status
  2. Check TSDProxy: docker compose logs tsdproxy
  3. Regenerate auth key at: https://login.tailscale.com/admin/settings/keys

Disk Space

  1. Check usage: du -sh /data/* | sort -rh
  2. Remove old torrents: find /data/torrents -type f -mtime +30 -delete

MAINTENANCE NOTES

Things That Should NOT Be Exposed

  • qBittorrent (Tailscale only)
  • Jellyfin (Tailscale only)
  • Radarr (Tailscale only)
  • Sonarr (Tailscale only)
  • Termix (Tailscale only)
  • Dockhand (Tailscale only)

Critical Files

  • .env - NEVER commit to git (in .gitignore)
  • appdata/ - Contains configurations (in .gitignore)
  • .env.example - Safe to commit
  • Docker compose files - Safe to commit

Emergency Contacts

  • Servarr Discord: https://discord.gg/servarr
  • Jellyfin Forums: https://jellyfin.org/
  • Tailscale Support: https://support.tailscale.com/

DEPLOYMENT DATE

Date Started: ___ Date Completed: __ System: __ (Ubuntu version) Tailscale IP: ___ Disk Capacity: _______

Print this checklist and keep it handy during deployment!

For detailed information, see INDEX.md