Media Management Workflow

This document illustrates a streamlined media management workflow using the *Arr suite of applications with direct integration to Jellyfin libraries, utilizing mergerfs for storage pooling and supporting both torrent and Usenet downloads.

Complete Workflow Diagram

Workflow Components

1. Request Management

• Jellyseerr: Web interface for users to request Movies and TV shows
• Provides a clean, user-friendly interface for content requests
• Integrates with Radarr and Sonarr for automated processing

2. Content Management (*Arr Suite)

• Radarr: Handles movie requests and management
• Sonarr: Manages TV show requests and episode tracking
• Prowlarr: Unified indexer management with Flaresolverr for CloudFlare bypass
• Flaresolverr: Solves CloudFlare challenges for indexer access
• Configured to move completed downloads directly to Jellyfin libraries

3. Download Management

• qBittorrent: Primary torrent client for downloading content
• Usenet Client: Handles Usenet downloads (SABnzbd, NZBGet, etc.)
• Downloads to centralized /downloads folder
• Both torrent and Usenet sources managed through Prowlarr

4. Storage Management

• mergerfs: Union filesystem that pools multiple drives into a single mount point
• Provides unified storage view for Jellyfin libraries
• Allows mixing different drive sizes and types
• Enables easy expansion by adding new drives
• No RAID overhead - full capacity utilization

5. Media Library Integration

• Direct Integration: *Arr applications move content directly to Jellyfin libraries
• Automatic Organization: Files are properly named and organized automatically
• Jellyfin: Media server streams content from mergerfs-pooled storage
• Immediate Availability: Content becomes available for streaming as soon as download completes

Key Benefits

1. Streamlined Workflow: Fully automated from request to availability
2. Dual Download Sources: Both torrent and Usenet support for maximum availability
3. Direct Integration: No intermediate processing steps - content goes straight to libraries
4. Flexible Storage: mergerfs allows easy expansion and mixed drive configurations
5. User-Friendly: Jellyseerr provides easy request interface
6. High Availability: Multiple indexers and download methods ensure content acquisition
7. Storage Efficiency: Full drive capacity utilization without RAID overhead
8. Fault Tolerance: Individual drive failures only affect content on that specific drive

Folder Structure

/media/merged/         # mergerfs mount point
├── movies/            # Jellyfin Movies library
├── tv/                # Jellyfin TV Shows library
├── music/             # Jellyfin Music library (if using Lidarr)
├── books/             # Jellyfin Books library (if using Readarr)
├── downloads/         # Download location (bind mount)
    └── Torrent/       # qBittorrent download location
        ├── temp/      # Temp download location
        ├── radarr/ 
        └── tv-sonarr/
    └── Usenet/        # Usenet download location
        └── temp/      # Usenet temp download location
├── cache/             # Tdarr cache location (bind mount)
    └── tdarr_cache/

/mnt/               # Individual drive mount points
├── disk1/          # First storage drive
├── disk2/          # Second storage drive
├── disk3/          # Third storage drive
└── diskN/          # Additional drives as needed

# mergerfs pools all /mnt/disk* into /media/merged

mergerfs Configuration

Basic mergerfs Setup

# Install mergerfs
sudo apt install mergerfs

# Create mount points
sudo mkdir -p /mnt/disk{1,2,3}  # Adjust number based on your drives
sudo mkdir -p /media/merged

# Mount individual drives (add to /etc/fstab for persistence)
UUID=your-disk1-uuid /mnt/disk1 ext4 defaults,noatime 0 2
UUID=your-disk2-uuid /mnt/disk2 ext4 defaults,noatime 0 2
UUID=your-disk3-uuid /mnt/disk3 ext4 defaults,noatime 0 2

# Mount mergerfs pool (add to /etc/fstab for persistence)
/mnt/disk1:/mnt/disk2:/mnt/disk3 /media/merged mergerfs defaults,nonempty,allow_other,use_ino,cache.files=off,moveonenospc=true,dropcacheonclose=true,minfreespace=50G,fsname=mergerfs-pool,category.create=mfs 0 0

# Use bind mounts for these directories so media doesnt get added on this drive
# Bind mount downloads from Processing drive
sudo mkdir -p /media/merged/downloads
sudo mount --bind /media/server/Processing/downloads /media/merged/downloads

# Keep Tdarr cache separate
sudo mkdir -p /media/merged/cache
sudo mount --bind /media/server/Processing/Tdarr /media/merged/cache

Docker Integration

Ensure your *Arr containers mount the mergerfs pool with specific media type paths:

# Example for Radarr
volumes:
  - /media/merged/movies:/movies  # mergerfs movies library

# Example for Sonarr  
volumes:
  - /media/merged/tv:/tv          # mergerfs TV library

Additional Considerations

• Storage Expansion: Easy to add new drives to the mergerfs pool
• Drive Failure: Only content on failed drive is affected, rest remains accessible
• Network Usage: Usenet typically faster than torrents, reduces bandwidth impact
• Monitoring: Regular checks of drive health and mergerfs status
• Backup Strategy: Important to backup configurations and consider redundancy for critical content
• Performance: Direct file placement eliminates processing delays
• Space Management: mergerfs policies ensure optimal space utilization across drives

Usenet Integration

Recommended Usenet Clients

• SABnzbd: Popular, web-based Usenet client with excellent *Arr integration
• NZBGet: Lightweight, efficient Usenet downloader
• Both integrate seamlessly with Prowlarr for indexer management

Usenet Benefits

• Speed: Typically faster than torrent downloads
• Availability: Better retention for older content
• Privacy: No uploading/seeding requirements
• Reliability: More consistent download speeds

This streamlined workflow provides a robust, automated solution for media management with minimal manual intervention and maximum storage flexibility.