Before you begin

No deep wizardry required, mortal. If you can copy, paste, and edit a text file, you can raise a Haven. This page is the gentle checklist; the Quick start is the actual ritual.

What you need

1. A server (a “host”)

Anywhere you can run Docker works:

• A small VPS (e.g. a €5/month box with 1–2 GB RAM) is plenty to begin.
• A spare PC or home server / NAS works too.
• Even your own laptop, just to try it locally.

You’ll mostly interact with it through a terminal (the black window where you type commands). Don’t be afraid of it — every command you need is written out for you.

Lumi says

If “VPS” means nothing to you, that’s fine. It’s just a computer that’s always on, somewhere on the internet, that you rent. Any provider’s smallest Linux box will do.

2. A TMDB API key (free)

Crimson Haven gets all its posters, titles and episode info from The Movie Database (TMDB). You need a free key:

1. Make an account at themoviedb.org.
2. Go to Settings → API and request an API key (choose “Developer”; any personal/non-commercial reason is fine).
3. Copy the API Read Access Token (the long one). That’s your TMDB_API_KEY.

This is the only key you strictly need to get started.

3. Docker (the easy installer)

Docker lets you run the whole stack without installing Python, databases, or Node by hand. Install Docker Engine + Docker Compose for your system from the official guide. On a fresh Linux VPS:

curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

Confirm it works:

docker --version
docker compose version

4. (Optional, for later) A domain name

To put your Haven on a real address like crimsonhaven.example.com you’ll want a domain and a way to point it at your server. We recommend Cloudflare (free) — the Domains, TLS & Cloudflare page covers it. You can skip this entirely while testing locally.

What you do NOT need yet

• ❌ A streaming-sources repository — you can log in and browse without one. Add it when you’re ready (Adding your own sources).
• ❌ The CORS proxy or the companion extension — both are upgrades you bolt on later.
• ❌ Any paid service. Everything required is free.

A map of where we’re going

1. Quick start — get the backend + database + client running on one host and open the site.
2. First login & admin — create your account, become an admin, and learn the dashboard.
3. From there, branch into the Self-Hosting Guide for each piece in depth, or jump to Deployment for production.

Take a breath. Pour something warm. Let’s begin.