How to Set Up a Jellyfin Media Server

Jellyfin is a free, open-source media server with no subscriptions or telemetry. This tutorial gets it running with Docker.

Prerequisites

• A home server with Docker installed
• Your media organised into folders (e.g. /mnt/media/movies, /mnt/media/tv)

Step 1: Create the Compose file

services:
  jellyfin:
    image: jellyfin/jellyfin:latest
    container_name: jellyfin
    ports:
      - "8096:8096"
    volumes:
      - ./config:/config
      - ./cache:/cache
      - /mnt/media:/media:ro
    restart: unless-stopped
    # For Intel/AMD hardware transcoding, expose the GPU:
    # devices:
    #   - /dev/dri:/dev/dri

Step 2: Start Jellyfin

docker compose up -d

Step 3: Run the setup wizard

Open http://your-server-ip:8096 and follow the wizard:

1. Create an admin account.
2. Add your media libraries, pointing them at /media/movies, /media/tv, etc.
3. Let Jellyfin scan and fetch artwork and metadata.

Step 4: Install the apps

Jellyfin has apps for Android, iOS, Android TV, Fire TV, and more. Sign in with your server address and account.

Step 5: Enable hardware transcoding (optional)

If your CPU has an integrated GPU (Intel Quick Sync is excellent), uncomment the devices block above and enable hardware acceleration under Dashboard → Playback. This lets you transcode multiple streams at low power — for free, unlike Plex.

Step 6: Access it remotely and safely

Use a VPN like Tailscale to stream from outside your home without exposing Jellyfin to the internet.

Plex or Jellyfin?

Both are great. See our detailed Plex vs Jellyfin comparison to decide.

Enjoy your own private, ad-free streaming service.