Remote torrent management
Add a magnet link, follow progress, and manage downloads on your own server.
AUTOLYCUS / HOME SERVER COMPANION
Your server does the work. Your browser brings it together.
Search, download, organize, and play files from a self-hosted home-server workspace built for your phone and desktop.
Public source. Self-host on your infrastructure.
Built around your workflow
Home-server ownersRemote file collectionsOpenly licensed media and datasets
Inside Autolycus
Find it. Bring it home. Open it anywhere.
Incremental Jackett search
Browse search results as sources respond, then filter and sort what has arrived.
File browsing, organization and indexed search
Find a file, browse folders, and organize the result without copying your collection to every device.
Browser playback and byte-range streaming
Open compatible media from the browser and seek through files stored on the server.
Background transcoding
Create another video resolution in the background and keep an eye on progress.
Deliberate file links and FTP access
Choose when to activate a file link, and connect supported desktop workflows through the account's FTP access.
Engineering the workflow
From a search record to a resumable library
Autolycus connects concurrent source search, native torrent pieces, byte-oriented playback, and background media jobs.
Autolycus / system flow01 → 06
- 01
Search
Concurrent Jackett sources emit NDJSON
- 02
Inspect
Account-scoped metadata preview lease
- 03
Acquire
Piece deadlines and selected-file priorities
- 04
Play
Byte ranges or leased native byte transport
- 05
Process
Queued encoding with atomic output publish
- 06
Resume
Catalog metadata plus profile bookmarks
01 / MECHANISM
Search arrives as sources finish
Async Jackett requests run behind bounded semaphores and emit newline-delimited JSON as each source completes. Typed errors preserve successful results. The newer implementation replays bounded cached batches, refreshes them by source, and cancels pending work when the browser disconnects.
02 / MECHANISM
Seeking drives torrent piece demand
Temporary preview leases begin with metadata-only intent and zero file priorities. Playback maps byte offsets to torrent pieces, assigns immediate deadlines to requested pieces, and maintains a bounded read-ahead window. Verified pieces are read in small chunks; idle or cancelled previews release demand.
03 / MECHANISM
A catalog joins files with viewing state
Cinema scans the account library within fixed work limits, combines filename parsing with stored metadata, and groups titles and episodes. The cached account catalog is joined with profile-specific bookmarks, keeping a shared video collection separate from each viewer’s progress.
04 / MECHANISM
Only finished encodings become playable
Celery workers acquire bounded Redis encoding slots and renew their leases while tracking progress. Encoders write hidden partial outputs, support process-group cancellation, and publish completed files atomically. Playback enumerates ready quality variants rather than exposing files still being written.
Implementation parameters · not benchmarks
- Preview read-ahead
- 16 MiB
- configured bound
- Preview chunk read
- 256 KiB
- configured bound
- Search snapshot lifetime
- 10 minutes
- cache TTL
The public repository provides the download-and-file foundation; Cinema, profiles, previews, and newer playback mechanisms shown here reflect the current development deployment.
Read the full engineering storyHow it works
A clear path from
setup to useful work.
- 01Find an authorized source
- 02Let your server download
- 03Organize, convert and open
A closer look
Let long jobs run on the server.
Start a background transcode or archive, follow its progress, and come back to the result. Your browser remains the workspace while your server handles the job.
/ workflow
Search → Download → Organize → Play
Conceptual workflow · configured for your environment
Practical questions
Know what
fits your setup.
What can I download?
You can manage magnet-based downloads from sources you are authorized to use. Availability and speed depend on the swarm, storage and network. Jackett search requires a configured, accessible service.
Will every video play in the browser?
Playback depends on browser codec support. Background transcoding creates another output resolution; it is not universal live adaptive streaming or a promise of hardware acceleration.
How do shared file links work?
Activate a public link deliberately and deactivate it when no longer needed. Anyone holding an active public link can access that file. FTP access is not automatically encrypted FTPS or SFTP.
Can I self-host it?
Yes. The public repository documents the Docker-based application and its backing services. You manage deployment, storage and maintenance on your own infrastructure.
Make it work for you