Aniworld/Docs/CONFIGURATION.md

Configuration Reference

Document Purpose

This document provides a comprehensive reference for all configuration options in the Aniworld application.

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1. Configuration Overview

Configuration Sources

Aniworld uses a layered configuration system with explicit precedence rules:

1. Environment Variables (highest priority) - Takes precedence over all other sources
2. .env file in project root - Loaded as environment variables
3. data/config.json file - Persistent file-based configuration
4. Default values (lowest priority) - Built-in fallback values

Precedence Rules

Critical Principle: ENV VARS > config.json > defaults

• Environment variables always win: If a value is set via environment variable, it will NOT be overridden by config.json
• config.json as fallback: If an ENV var is not set (or is empty/default), the value from config.json is used
• Defaults as last resort: Built-in default values are used only if neither ENV var nor config.json provide a value

Loading Mechanism

Configuration is loaded at application startup in src/server/fastapi_app.py:

1. Pydantic Settings loads ENV vars and .env file with defaults
2. config.json is loaded via ConfigService
3. Selective sync: config.json values sync to settings only if ENV var not set
4. Runtime access: Code uses settings object (which has final merged values)

Example:

# If ENV var is set:
ANIME_DIRECTORY=/env/path  # This takes precedence

# config.json has:
{"other": {"anime_directory": "/config/path"}}  # This is ignored

# Result: settings.anime_directory = "/env/path"

Source: src/config/settings.py, src/server/fastapi_app.py

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2. Environment Variables

Authentication Settings

Variable	Type	Default	Description
JWT_SECRET_KEY	string	(random)	Secret key for JWT token signing. Auto-generated if not set.
PASSWORD_SALT	string	"default-salt"	Salt for password hashing.
MASTER_PASSWORD_HASH	string	(none)	Pre-hashed master password. Loaded from config.json if not set.
MASTER_PASSWORD	string	(none)	DEVELOPMENT ONLY - Plaintext password. Never use in production.
SESSION_TIMEOUT_HOURS	int	24	JWT token expiry time in hours.

Source: src/config/settings.py

Server Settings

Variable	Type	Default	Description
ANIME_DIRECTORY	string	""	Path to anime library directory.
LOG_LEVEL	string	"INFO"	Logging level: DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR, CRITICAL.
DATABASE_URL	string	"sqlite:///./data/aniworld.db"	Database connection string.
CORS_ORIGINS	string	"http://localhost:3000"	Comma-separated allowed CORS origins. Use * for localhost defaults.
API_RATE_LIMIT	int	100	Maximum API requests per minute.

Source: src/config/settings.py

Provider Settings

Variable	Type	Default	Description
DEFAULT_PROVIDER	string	"aniworld.to"	Default anime provider.
PROVIDER_TIMEOUT	int	30	HTTP timeout for provider requests (seconds).
RETRY_ATTEMPTS	int	3	Number of retry attempts for failed requests.

Source: src/config/settings.py

NFO Settings

Variable	Type	Default	Description
TMDB_API_KEY	string	""	The Movie Database (TMDB) API key for metadata.
NFO_AUTO_CREATE	bool	true	Automatically create NFO files during downloads.
NFO_UPDATE_ON_SCAN	bool	false	Update existing NFO files when scanning library.
NFO_DOWNLOAD_POSTER	bool	true	Download poster images along with NFO files.
NFO_DOWNLOAD_LOGO	bool	false	Download logo images along with NFO files.
NFO_DOWNLOAD_FANART	bool	false	Download fanart images along with NFO files.
NFO_IMAGE_SIZE	string	"w500"	Image size for TMDB images (w500, w780, original).

Source: src/server/models/config.py

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3. Configuration File (config.json)

Location: data/config.json

File Structure

{
    "name": "Aniworld",
    "data_dir": "data",
    "scheduler": {
        "enabled": true,
        "interval_minutes": 60,
        "schedule_time": "03:00",
        "schedule_days": ["mon", "tue", "wed", "thu", "fri", "sat", "sun"],
        "auto_download_after_rescan": false,
        "folder_scan_enabled": false
    },
    "logging": {
        "level": "INFO",
        "file": null,
        "max_bytes": null,
        "backup_count": 3
    },
    "backup": {
        "enabled": false,
        "path": "data/backups",
        "keep_days": 30
    },
    "nfo": {
        "tmdb_api_key": "",
        "auto_create": true,
        "update_on_scan": false,
        "download_poster": true,
        "download_logo": false,
        "download_fanart": false,
        "image_size": "w500"
    },
    "other": {
        "master_password_hash": "$pbkdf2-sha256$...",
        "anime_directory": "/path/to/anime"
    },
    "version": "1.0.1"
}

Source: data/config.json

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4. Configuration Sections

4.1 General Settings

Field	Type	Default	Description
name	string	"Aniworld"	Application name.
data_dir	string	"data"	Base directory for data files.

Source: src/server/models/config.py

4.2 Scheduler Settings

Controls automatic cron-based library rescanning (powered by APScheduler).

Field	Type	Default	Description
scheduler.enabled	bool	true	Enable/disable automatic scans.
scheduler.interval_minutes	int	60	Legacy field kept for backward compatibility. Minimum: 1.
scheduler.schedule_time	string	"03:00"	Daily run time in 24-h HH:MM format.
scheduler.schedule_days	list[string]	["mon","tue","wed","thu","fri","sat","sun"]	Days of the week to run the scan. Empty list disables the cron job.
scheduler.auto_download_after_rescan	bool	false	Automatically queue missing episodes for download after each rescan.
scheduler.folder_scan_enabled	bool	false	Run folder maintenance (NFO repair, folder renaming, poster checks) during scheduled runs. When enabled, series folders are automatically renamed to match the <title> (<year>) convention derived from their tvshow.nfo files.

Valid day abbreviations: mon, tue, wed, thu, fri, sat, sun.

Source: src/server/models/config.py

4.3 Logging Settings

Field	Type	Default	Description
logging.level	string	"INFO"	Log level: DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR, CRITICAL.
logging.file	string	null	Optional log file path.
logging.max_bytes	int	null	Maximum log file size for rotation.
logging.backup_count	int	3	Number of rotated log files to keep.

Source: src/server/models/config.py

4.4 Backup Settings

Field	Type	Default	Description
backup.enabled	bool	false	Enable automatic config backups.
backup.path	string	"data/backups"	Directory for backup files.
backup.keep_days	int	30	Days to retain backups.

Source: src/server/models/config.py

4.5 NFO Settings

Field	Type	Default	Description
nfo.tmdb_api_key	string	""	The Movie Database (TMDB) API key for fetching metadata.
nfo.auto_create	bool	true	Automatically create NFO files when downloading episodes.
nfo.update_on_scan	bool	false	Update existing NFO files during library scan operations.
nfo.download_poster	bool	true	Download poster images (poster.jpg) along with NFO files.
nfo.download_logo	bool	false	Download logo images (logo.png) along with NFO files.
nfo.download_fanart	bool	false	Download fanart images (fanart.jpg) along with NFO files.
nfo.image_size	string	"w500"	TMDB image size: w500 (recommended), w780, or original.

Notes:

• Obtain a TMDB API key from https://www.themoviedb.org/settings/api
• auto_create creates NFO files during the download process
• update_on_scan refreshes metadata when scanning existing anime
• download_poster also controls whether the scheduled folder scan checks for and re-downloads missing or corrupted poster.jpg files (see NFO_GUIDE.md)
• Image downloads require valid tmdb_api_key
• TMDB_API_KEY environment variable is optional when nfo.tmdb_api_key is configured in data/config.json
• Larger image sizes (w780, original) consume more storage space

Source: src/server/models/config.py

4.6 Other Settings (Dynamic)

The other field stores arbitrary settings.

Key	Type	Description
master_password_hash	string	Hashed master password (pbkdf2-sha256).
anime_directory	string	Path to anime library.
advanced	object	Advanced configuration options.

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5. Configuration Precedence

Settings are resolved in this order (first match wins):

1. Environment variable (e.g., ANIME_DIRECTORY)
2. .env file in project root
3. data/config.json (for dynamic settings)
4. Code defaults in Settings class

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6. Validation Rules

Password Requirements

Master password must meet all criteria:

• Minimum 8 characters
• At least one uppercase letter
• At least one lowercase letter
• At least one digit
• At least one special character

Source: src/server/services/auth_service.py

Logging Level Validation

Must be one of: DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR, CRITICAL

Source: src/server/models/config.py

Backup Path Validation

If backup.enabled is true, backup.path must be set.

Source: src/server/models/config.py

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7. Example Configurations

Minimal Development Setup

.env file:

LOG_LEVEL=DEBUG
ANIME_DIRECTORY=/home/user/anime

Production Setup

.env file:

JWT_SECRET_KEY=your-secure-random-key-here
DATABASE_URL=postgresql+asyncpg://user:pass@localhost/aniworld
LOG_LEVEL=WARNING
CORS_ORIGINS=https://your-domain.com
API_RATE_LIMIT=60

Docker Setup

# docker-compose.yml
environment:
    - JWT_SECRET_KEY=${JWT_SECRET_KEY}
    - DATABASE_URL=sqlite:///./data/aniworld.db
    - ANIME_DIRECTORY=/media/anime
    - LOG_LEVEL=INFO
volumes:
    - ./data:/app/data
    - /media/anime:/media/anime:ro

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8. Configuration Backup Management

Automatic Backups

Backups are created automatically before config changes when backup.enabled is true.

Location: data/config_backups/

Naming: config_backup_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.json

Manual Backup via API

# Create backup
curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/config/backups \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# List backups
curl http://localhost:8000/api/config/backups \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# Restore backup
curl -X POST http://localhost:8000/api/config/backups/config_backup_20251213.json/restore \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Source: src/server/api/config.py

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9. Troubleshooting

Configuration Not Loading

1. Check file permissions on data/config.json
2. Verify JSON syntax with a validator
3. Check logs for Pydantic validation errors

Environment Variable Not Working

1. Ensure variable name matches exactly (case-sensitive)
2. Check .env file location (project root)
3. Restart application after changes

Master Password Issues

1. Password hash is stored in config.json under other.master_password_hash
2. Delete this field to reset (requires re-setup)
3. Check hash format starts with $pbkdf2-sha256$

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10. Related Documentation

• API.md - Configuration API endpoints
• DEVELOPMENT.md - Development environment setup
• ARCHITECTURE.md - Configuration service architecture