How to Install Jellyfin on Ubuntu? [SOLVED]

In today's digital era, managing and streaming media content has become an essential aspect of our daily lives. With the advent of open-source media server solutions, setting up a personal media server is easier than ever. In this article, we will guide you through the process of installing Jellyfin on Ubuntu, a powerful and user-friendly media server software. Jellyfin allows you to organize, manage, and stream your multimedia content seamlessly across various devices, all while ensuring your privacy and data ownership. Whether you're an experienced system administrator or a casual user, this step-by-step guide will help you unlock the full potential of your media collection with Jellyfin on your Ubuntu system. So, let's dive into the world of personal media streaming and learn how to install Jellyfin on Ubuntu.

 

Pre-requisites

Before installing Jellyfin on Ubuntu, ensure you have a compatible version of Ubuntu (18.04 or later) and administrative access to the system (using sudo).

Jellyfin requires FFmpeg to function properly. To install FFmpeg, open the terminal and run the following command:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install ffmpeg -y

We will use curl to download the binary so make sure it is installed, you also should have basic knowhow of using curl command:

sudo apt install curl -y

If there is a previously defined Jellyfin repository file in the system, delete it:

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jellyfin.*

To allow access to Jellyfin's web interface, open the required port (default: 8096) in the firewall:

sudo ufw allow 8096/tcp

 

Installing Jellyfin on Ubuntu

We will install from the Jellyfin repository. First, install the curl package:

$ sudo apt install curl -y

If there is a previously defined Jellyfin repository file in the system, delete it:

$ sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jellyfin.*

Then pull install-debuntu.sh and run:

$ curl https://repo.jellyfin.org/install-debuntu.sh | sudo bash
  % Total    % Received % Xferd  Average Speed   Time    Time     Time  Current
                                 Dload  Upload   Total   Spent    Left  Speed
100  9398  100  9398    0     0  11546      0 --:--:-- --:--:-- --:--:-- 11545
> Determining optimal repository settings.

Found the following details from '/etc/os-release':
  Real OS:            ubuntu
  Repository OS:      ubuntu
  Repository Release: jammy
  CPU Architecture:   amd64
If this looks correct, press <Enter> now to continue installing Jellyfin.
...

...
 Waiting 15 seconds for Jellyfin to fully start up.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
● jellyfin.service - Jellyfin Media Server
     Loaded: loaded (/lib/systemd/system/jellyfin.service; enabled; vendor preset: enabled)
    Drop-In: /etc/systemd/system/jellyfin.service.d
             └─jellyfin.service.conf
     Active: active (running) since Tue 2023-04-25 21:54:22 +03; 20s ago
   Main PID: 3232 (jellyfin)
      Tasks: 20 (limit: 4614)
     Memory: 125.6M
        CPU: 2.902s
     CGroup: /system.slice/jellyfin.service
             └─3232 /usr/bin/jellyfin --webdir=/usr/share/jellyfin/web --restar…

Nis 25 21:54:29 ubuntu22desktop jellyfin[3232]: [21:54:29] [INF] ExecuteQueu…sks
Hint: Some lines were ellipsized, use -l to show in full.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You should see the service as 'active (running)' above. If not, use https://jellyfin.org/contact to find us for troubleshooting.

You can access your new instance now at http://:8096 in your web browser to finish setting up Jellyfin.

Thank you for installing Jellyfin, and happy watching!

After this process, the repository file is created under the /etc/apt/sources.list.d directory. The package list is updated, the installation is complete.

 

Accessing Jellyfin Web Interface

Open your web browser and navigate to http://your_server_ip:8096. You will be greeted by Jellyfin's setup wizard. Follow the steps to create an initial user account and configure basic settings.

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Create a user, define a password:

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If you have a media library, add it. You can also do this step later.

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Continue by clicking the Next button:

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Allow remote connections, continue installation:

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Complete the installation with Finish:

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Login with the user and password you created:

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Now your Jellyfin server is ready to use:

 

Troubleshooting Errors (Restart Installation)

If you made a error during installation, you can go back with the following steps. Open the system.xml file with an editor:

$ sudo nano /etc/jellyfin/system.xml

Replace the following in line 4:

<IsStartupWizardCompleted>true</IsStartupWizardCompleted>

To this:

<IsStartupWizardCompleted>false</IsStartupWizardCompleted>

Then restart the Jellyfin service:

$ sudo systemctl restart jellyfin

After this process, visit http://jellyfin_server_ip:8096 with a web browser and restart the installation.

 

Remove Jellyfin Server

The following Jellyfin packages were installed during the installation:

ii  jellyfin-ffmpeg5                           5.0.1-8-jammy                           amd64        Tools for transcoding, streaming and playing of multimedia files
ii  jellyfin-server                            10.8.10-1                               amd64        Jellyfin is the Free Software Media System.
ii  jellyfin-web                               10.8.10-1                               all          Jellyfin is the Free Software Media System.

Type the following command to remove all installed packages:

$ sudo apt purge jellyfin*

You are now ready for a clean install. For installation, review from the beginning of the article and start the installation.

 

Summary

In this article, we explored the process of installing Jellyfin on Ubuntu, an open-source media server that allows you to manage and stream your media content across various devices. We began by discussing the prerequisites, ensuring compatibility with Ubuntu version 18.04 or later and administrative access. Then, we installed the required dependency, FFmpeg, and added the Jellyfin repository to the system. Next, we installed Jellyfin using the command line and configured the firewall to allow access to Jellyfin's web interface.

Once the installation and configuration were complete, we accessed the Jellyfin web interface through a browser and followed the setup wizard to create an initial user account. You can use Jellyfin to manage media libraries. You can also stream media content directly from the Jellyfin web interface or using compatible client apps on various devices, including Android, iOS, and Roku.

Feel free to comment on any problems you encounter.

 

References

jellyfin.org - Jellyfin Installation