CHANGELOG

Bulk-transfer network load isolated from streaming / realtime apps

Our platform is built on Hetzner auction server nodes, each of which has unlimited bandwidth, but is physically constrained to a 1Gbps NIC. As we've been bringing more subscribers on board, we've started to see occasional poor performance from the streamers (Plex, Jellyfin, Emby), most likely due to congestion on these 1Gbps links.

When you look at the graph below, the problem is immediately apparent (note the change when our maintenance window started):

So, today I added 5 more nodes to the cluster, to address two areas I felt were likely to become resource bottlenecks..

Radarr's at v5 now!

It turned out that due to changes in Radarr v4 compared to v5, our image wasn't passing testing, and so we didn't get the juicy new v5.0.3.8127 release a few weeks ago.

I was under the impression that v5 would support multiple resolutions for content, meaning a separate Radarr4K wouldn't be required anymore, but in the brief testing I've done so far, I've not been able to work out how to do this!

Anybody know how this works?

Notifications enabled on low ElfBuckz balances

A longstanding issue we've been dealing with is that the Wordpress plugin we use to provide ElfBuckz doesn't include the ability to notify users when their balance is running low. So unless you manually keep track of your ElfBuckz balance, you're at risk of having your services stop when your ElfBuckz run out, without notice!

Since we recently fixed the deprovisioning bug, this has become even more important, so today I finally got my hands dirty and modified the plugin myself, adding the ability to notify users when their account balance goes low.

So.. you should now be alerted whenever your ElfBuckz balance drops below $1, which should give you plenty of time to arrange a topup (of course, once you subscribe to a top-up with the appropriate quantity, your ElfBuckz will "refill" every month, and you may never see these notifications)

Custom domains now available

Until today, all your ElfHosted services could only be served on https://<user>-<app>.elfhosted.com. After some development effort, we now have the pieces in place to allow you to access your apps on your own custom domain name, so instead of https://funkypenguin-uptime-kuma.elfhosted.com, you might prefer something like https://status.funkypenguin.co.nz (see how it works?)

The elfhosted.com URL will continue to work, and your dashboard will remain pointing to the ElfHosted link (in case the DNS record goes away again).

How do custom domains work? 🙋‍♂️

How does this work? Like GitHub Pages, if you create a DNS CNAME record on your domain (mattermost.spankypants.com) and point it to your ElfHosted URL (spankypants-mattermost.elfhosted.com), we can request a LetsEncrypt certificate for that domain, validate it, and serve your app on that URL using our Traefik ingress controller.

Which apps can get custom domains?

Custom domains don't make sense for all apps, and I've not tested the impact on SSO (since auth cookies are domain-based), but as I add the option to apps, you'll find custom domains available at https://store.elfhosted.com/product-category/custom-domains/, and instructions added to the docs for the various apps.

For example, here are the instructions for using a custom domain with Uptime Kuma!

Notifiarr notifies again!

Today we found a bug which has existed since our code was originally Seedplicity, which prevented the Notifiarr client UI from properly authenticating you, a necessary step towards configuring notifications for local services such as Radarr, Jellyfin, etc.

If you're unfamiliar with Notifiarr, it's worth a look - check this out:

Exposing Arr/Downloader apps without SSO

Until now, when a user has asked

"how can I access my media apps with NZB360 or Lunasea?"

The answer has been:

"sorry, the SSO which protects the apps relies on a browser cookie, which won't work in a separate app".

From today though, the answer is:

Change your API key / password, subscribe to an "Exposed!" service, and enjoy your exposed access!

Read further for details about how it works, and why..

New basic streaming bundles

As alluded to a few days ago, now that we can sell storage in 1TB "chunks", I've created some discounted bundles in the store for minimal streaming stacks.

For users who just want to get started with the basic toolset for media management, we now have bundles with Jellyfin/Plex/Emby, Radarr, Sonarr, and SABnzbd, with the option for 1TB extra storage bundled in.

The pricing is a bit of an experiment - feel free to send feedback re how you think these stack up :)

ElfStorage refactored, 100GB free, 40% cheaper

ElfStorage is our internal storage platform, providing basic network-attached storage for new users, and users who choose not to BYOS.

Following some recent feedback, we've made the following changes:

1. Initially sized at a puny 10Gb, all users now get 100Gb storage in /storage/elfstorage for FREE with their account.

2. ElfStorage is now a daily subscription (previously monthly), so that it can be added to existing subscriptions and funded with ElfBuckz, rather than being a totally separate, monthly subscription. This also makes it easier to try out with your initial $10 ElfBuckz.

3. ElfStorage's monthly price is now 40% cheaper, at $6/TB, instead of $10/TB ($0.20/day)

Read more for ElfStorage questions, Seafile fixes, and app bundles..

Downloader Dashboard stats

If you're an SABnzbd user, you may have noticed a little error icon over your SABnzbd link on your dashboard. This is where your download stats are supposed to be displayed, but due to the trickery that our SSO plays with CORS, this wasn't happening.

The trickery is now fixed, so enjoy your beautiful dashboard!

Oh, and qBittorrent users, there's a little surprise in there for you too:

(sorry ruTorrent users, no love for you yet, although the Homer dashboard does support ruTorrent, it doesn't send your credentials via cookies, so doesn't work with our SSO)