Getting Started with Apps¶
You've installed Eight.ly OS and you're looking at 3,200+ apps. Here's how to cut through the catalog and get a useful setup running in under an hour.
Starter Stacks by Use Case¶
These are the most common setups. Deploy them in Bridge mode to start — you can switch to Traefik later.
Media Server¶
Stream movies, TV, and music to any device in your house.
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Plex or Jellyfin | Media server (Plex requires an account; Jellyfin is fully open source) |
| Sonarr | Automatically download TV shows |
| Radarr | Automatically download movies |
| Prowlarr | Indexer manager for Sonarr + Radarr |
| qBittorrent | Download client |
Deploy Prowlarr first, then Sonarr and Radarr, then your media server. Prowlarr pushes indexer configs to the *arr apps automatically.
Follow TRaSH Guides for optimal quality
TRaSH Guides are the gold standard for configuring the arr stack. They provide recommended quality profiles, custom formats, naming conventions, and download client settings that will save you hours of trial and error. After deploying your arr apps, follow the TRaSH Guides for Sonarr, Radarr, and Prowlarr — your media library will thank you.
Optional additions to round out the stack:
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Bazarr | Automatic subtitles for Sonarr + Radarr |
| Overseerr or Jellyseerr | Request portal — let family/friends request movies and shows |
| Tautulli | Plex monitoring and statistics |
| Lidarr | Automatic music downloads (same concept as Sonarr, for music) |
| Readarr | Automatic ebook/audiobook downloads |
| Tdarr | Automated media transcoding (H.265, smaller file sizes) |
| Recyclarr | Syncs TRaSH Guide profiles to Sonarr/Radarr automatically |
Recyclarr deserves special mention — it automatically syncs TRaSH Guides quality profiles and custom formats into your Sonarr and Radarr instances, so you don't have to manually configure them. Deploy it from the Eight.ly App Store and point it at your *arr apps.
Home Automation¶
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Home Assistant | Central hub for smart home devices |
| Node-RED | Visual automation flows |
| Zigbee2MQTT | Bridge Zigbee devices to MQTT (requires a Zigbee USB stick) |
| ESPHome | Flash and manage ESP32/ESP8266 devices |
AI and Machine Learning¶
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Ollama | Run LLMs locally (Llama, Mistral, Gemma, etc.) |
| Open-WebUI | ChatGPT-style interface for Ollama |
| ComfyUI | Node-based Stable Diffusion image generation |
GPU passthrough
Ollama and ComfyUI benefit enormously from a GPU. When deploying, toggle GPU passthrough in the deploy modal. Eight.ly auto-detects NVIDIA and Intel GPUs.
Productivity and Documents¶
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Nextcloud | File sync, calendar, contacts — a self-hosted Google Workspace |
| Paperless-ngx | Scan, OCR, and organize documents |
| Bookstack | Wiki and documentation |
Privacy and Security¶
| App | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Pi-hole or AdGuard Home | Network-wide ad blocking (set as your router's DNS) |
| Vaultwarden | Self-hosted Bitwarden password manager |
| WireGuard | VPN access to your home network from anywhere |
Deploying Your First App¶
- Find the app in the catalog (use the search bar or browse by category)
- Click the Deploy button on the app card
- In the deploy modal:
- Choose Bridge mode (simplest — access at
http://YOUR-SERVER-IP:PORT) - Review the port assignment and volume paths
- Toggle GPU passthrough if needed
- Choose Bridge mode (simplest — access at
- Click Deploy and watch the live progress log
- When it finishes, click the link to open the app
That's it. The app is running. Its data is stored in /opt/appdata/ by default.
Next Steps¶
Once you've deployed a few apps, here's what to set up next:
-
Monitoring — one-click Grafana + Prometheus stack. See CPU, RAM, disk, and per-container metrics from the dashboard.
-
Traefik & SSL — give your apps real URLs with automatic HTTPS. Required if you want to access apps outside your home.
-
API Keys — generate an API key for scripting against the API, or for the
eosctlcommand-line tool. -
Storage — set up drive pools, parity protection, and SSD caching. Essential if you're running a media server with multiple drives.
-
File Sharing — share folders over SMB/NFS so other machines on your network can access your media, backups, and documents.
-
Networking — understand the deploy network modes and when to use each one.
Tips¶
- Start with Bridge mode. Get apps working first, add Traefik and domains later. You can redeploy in a different mode without losing data.
- Check the Port Manager (header bar) before deploying if you've already got services running on your server. It shows which ports are taken.
- Star your favorite apps by clicking the star icon on any app card. They show up in the starred section for quick access.
- Browse category landing pages — each category (Media, AI, Tools, etc.) has a description and featured apps to help you discover useful software.