Getting Started

Requirements

• Node.js 20.6 or newer for native .env support.
• A Plex Media Server with an admin Plex token, or a Jellyfin/Emby server with an admin API key.
• An SMTP provider if you want automated email notifications.

Install Locally

Clone the repository and install dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/jl94x4/Server-Manager-Portal.git
cd Server-Manager-Portal
npm install

Create a .env file with a signing secret:

printf 'JWT_SECRET=%s\n' "$(node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(48).toString('hex'))")" > .env

Start the app:

npm start

npm start builds Tailwind CSS, bundles the React frontend with esbuild, stamps the version file, and starts the Express server on port 2121.

Open http://localhost:2121 and complete the setup wizard.

First-Time Setup

The setup wizard asks you to choose a media server mode:

Mode	Authentication	Analytics Companion	Branding
Plex	Plex.tv OAuth, Plex token, selected owned server	Tautulli	Plex or custom theme
Jellyfin	Jellyfin username/password or Quick Connect	Jellystat	Jellyfin server assets or custom theme
Emby	Emby-compatible server connection	Optional external analytics/status tools	Emby or custom theme

After setup, use the Settings area to configure the media server, SMTP, temporary access, branding, status services, integrations, home layout, and scheduled tasks.

Runtime Data

Runtime data is written to config/ by default. Docker deployments mount this directory to /app/config.

Important files include:

File	Purpose
config/config.json	Server and portal configuration
config/users.json	Portal user records
config/audit-log.json	System action history
config/trending-cache.json	Cached analytics and trending data
config/analytics-cache.json	Cached dashboard analytics

Older root-level JSON files are migrated into config/ automatically on startup when the destination file does not already exist.