10 KiB
NFOGuard
*** Alpha in progress things are volatile use at your own risk ***
NFOGuard is a lightweight webhook service that locks in the true import date of your movies and TV episodes, ensuring that upgrades, renames, or reimports never bubble old media up as “new” in Emby, Jellyfin, or Plex.
It integrates with Sonarr and Radarr, listens for import/rename/upgrade events, and automatically manages .nfo files and filesystem timestamps to keep your library chronology consistent.
✨ Features
-
Import Date Locking
Captures the original date a movie or episode was imported and preserves it across upgrades. -
NFO Management
Creates and updates.nfofiles for movies and TV episodes with consistent<dateadded>fields.
Optionally adds<lockdata>to prevent metadata drift from scrapers. -
Filesystem Time Fixing
Updates file and directory modification times (mtime) to match the preserved import date. -
Batching Support
Groups multiple webhook events (e.g. whole-season downloads) to avoid thrashing. -
Database Backing
Uses SQLite to remember previously-seen imports, so dates persist across restarts. -
Manual Scans
Exposes endpoints to rescan and reconcile TV or movie libraries on demand.
🏗 How It Works
-
Webhooks
- Add NFOGuard as a webhook in Sonarr and Radarr.
- Supported event types:
Download,Upgrade,Rename.
-
Processing
- Maps Sonarr/Radarr paths to container paths.
- Looks up IMDb IDs from folder names or payloads.
- Writes
.nfofiles and updates file/dir mtimes. - Records everything in
media_dates.db.
-
Playback Apps
- Emby/Jellyfin/Plex see consistent
dateaddedvalues. - Upgrades don’t bubble to the top of “Recently Added.”
- Emby/Jellyfin/Plex see consistent
🚀 Quick Start (Docker)
docker run -d \
--name=NFOGuard \
-p 8080:8080 \
-v /mnt/unionfs/Media:/media:rw \
-v /opt/NFOGuard/data:/app/data \
-e TV_PATHS="/media/TV/tv,/media/TV/tv6" \
-e MOVIE_PATHS="/media/Movies/movies,/media/Movies/movies6" \
ghcr.io/your-org/NFOGuard:latest
⚙️ Environment Variables
Variable Default Description
TV_PATHS /media/tv,/media/tv6 Comma-separated list of TV root paths
MOVIE_PATHS /media/movies,/media/movies6 Comma-separated list of Movie root paths
DB_PATH /app/data/media_dates.db Path to SQLite database
MANAGE_NFO true Write/update NFO files
FIX_DIR_MTIMES true Sync directory/file mtimes to import date
LOCK_METADATA true Add <lockdata> in NFOs
BATCH_DELAY 5.0 Delay before processing batched events
DEBUG false Enable verbose logging
🔌 API Endpoints
### Webhook Endpoints
```bash
# Radarr webhook (automatic processing)
POST /webhook/radarr
# Sonarr webhook (automatic processing)
POST /webhook/sonarr
Manual Processing
# Manual scan all media
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/manual/scan?scan_type=both"
# Manual scan TV only
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/manual/scan?scan_type=tv"
# Manual scan movies only
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/manual/scan?scan_type=movies"
# Manual scan specific path
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/manual/scan?path=/media/movies"
# Bulk update all movies from Radarr database
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/bulk/update"
Testing & Validation
# Test database connections
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/test/bulk-update"
# Test movie directory scanning
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/test/movie-scan"
# System health check
curl "http://localhost:8080/health"
# Database statistics
curl "http://localhost:8080/stats"
# Batch processing queue status
curl "http://localhost:8080/batch/status"
Debugging & Analysis
# Debug specific movie import date detection
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt1674782"
# Show complete import history analysis
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt1674782/history"
# Show date priority logic and available sources
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt1674782/priority"
# Debug TMDB API lookup step by step
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/tmdb/tt1674782"
Response Examples
Health Check:
{
"status": "healthy",
"version": "0.5.1",
"database_status": "healthy",
"radarr_database": {"status": "healthy", "movies": 1500}
}
Movie Debug:
{
"detected_import_date": "2025-07-08T03:30:04+00:00",
"import_source": "radarr:history.import",
"movie_title": "Movie Name"
}
Priority Logic Debug:
{
"movie_priority": "import_then_digital",
"release_date_priority": ["digital", "physical", "theatrical"],
"priority_explanation": "1st: Radarr import history, 2nd: Release dates (digital → physical → theatrical), 3rd: file mtime",
"date_sources": {
"radarr_import": {"date": "2025-08-29T12:14:28+00:00", "source": "radarr:db.file.dateAdded"},
"digital_release": {"date": "1996-05-03T00:00:00+00:00", "source": "tmdb:theatrical"}
},
"file_date_detected": true,
"would_prefer_digital": true,
"selected_date": "1996-05-03T00:00:00+00:00",
"selected_source": "tmdb:theatrical (preferred over file date)"
}
🎯 Release Date Priority System
NFOGuard uses a smart fallback system when Radarr has no valid import history:
1. Digital Release (streaming/VOD)
- Netflix, Amazon Prime, iTunes, etc.
- TMDB Source: Release type 4
- Typical: 45-90 days after theatrical
2. Physical Release (DVD/Blu-ray)
- Physical media release dates
- TMDB Source: Release type 5
- Typical: 90-120 days after theatrical
3. Theatrical Release (cinema)
- Original movie theater release
- TMDB Source: Release type 3
- Most Authoritative: Always used when no digital/physical exists
Configuration Examples
For "The Craft (1996)" (predates digital):
- ❌ Digital: Not available (movie too old)
- ❌ Physical: DVD from 2000 (too late)
- ✅ Theatrical: 1996-05-03 ← Selected
For "Top Gun Maverick (2022)" (modern movie):
- ✅ Digital: 2022-08-23 ← Selected (your priority)
- ⏭️ Physical: 2022-10-31 (skipped due to priority)
- ⏭️ Theatrical: 2022-05-27 (skipped due to priority)
🐛 Troubleshooting
Manual Imports Show File Dates Instead of Release Dates
Problem: Movies manually imported show recent file dates like 2025-08-29T12:14:28+00:00
Solution:
-
Enable TMDB integration and configure fallback priority:
# Add to your .env file TMDB_API_KEY=your_tmdb_api_key PREFER_RELEASE_DATES_OVER_FILE_DATES=true RELEASE_DATE_PRIORITY=digital,physical,theatrical -
Test the priority logic:
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt0115963/priority" -
Should show release date selection based on your priority order
"0 Movies Processed" During Manual Scan
Problem: Manual scan reports processing 0 movies
Solution:
-
Test directory scanning:
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/test/movie-scan" -
Verify paths in your
.envfile match your actual structure:# Your structure: /media/Movies/movies/ MOVIE_PATHS=/media/Movies/movies,/media/Movies/movies6 -
Ensure movie directories have IMDb tags:
Movie Name [imdb-tt1234567] (2023)/
Database Connection Issues
Problem: "Radarr database connection failed"
Solution:
-
Test database connectivity:
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/test/bulk-update" -
Verify database credentials in
.env:RADARR_DB_HOST=radarr-postgres RADARR_DB_PASSWORD=your_actual_password
Release Dates Not Found
Problem: "external_apis": {"tmdb_enabled": false} or no release dates detected
Solution:
- Add TMDB API key and configure fallback order:
# Add to your .env TMDB_API_KEY=your_api_key RELEASE_DATE_PRIORITY=digital,physical,theatrical - Restart container:
docker-compose restart - Test all release types:
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/tmdb/tt0115963" - Verify priority logic:
curl "http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt0115963/priority"
Customizing Release Date Priority
Default Order: digital,physical,theatrical (your preference)
Alternative Orders:
# Prefer theatrical dates for older movies
RELEASE_DATE_PRIORITY=theatrical,digital,physical
# Physical media collector preference
RELEASE_DATE_PRIORITY=physical,digital,theatrical
# Digital-first modern preference
RELEASE_DATE_PRIORITY=digital,theatrical,physical
Disabling File Date Fallbacks
Problem: Don't want file modification dates used at all
Solution: Disable file date fallbacks completely
# Add to your .env
ALLOW_FILE_DATE_FALLBACK=false
Result:
- ✅ Movies with release dates get processed normally
- ⚠️ Movies with NO release dates get skipped (no NFO created)
- 🔇 No more "Using file dateAdded as fallback" warnings
📖 Example Workflow
You add The Blacklist in Sonarr.
Sonarr downloads S01E01 → NFOGuard logs the import date in DB and .nfo.
Months later, a better-quality upgrade replaces the file.
NFOGuard updates the .nfo and mtime, but keeps the original import date.
Emby/Jellyfin/Plex see the file as unchanged in chronology.
Result: no more "old shows" showing up in "Recently Added."
🔍 Logging & Debugging
Enable verbose logging
DEBUG=true
Check container logs
docker logs sonarr-nfo-cache
Debug specific movie import detection
curl http://localhost:8080/debug/movie/tt1674782
Manual scan with verbose output
curl -X POST "http://localhost:8080/manual/scan?scan_type=movies"
File logs (inside container)
/app/data/logs/nfoguard.log
⚙️ Environment Variables (v0.2.1+)
Variable Default Description
RADARR_ROOT_FOLDERS (required) What Radarr sees: /mnt/unionfs/Media/Movies/movies
SONARR_ROOT_FOLDERS (required) What Sonarr sees: /mnt/unionfs/Media/TV/tv
DOWNLOAD_PATH_INDICATORS (see example) Paths that indicate downloads vs existing files
MOVIE_PRIORITY import_then_digital Strategy: import_then_digital or digital_then_import
MOVIE_POLL_MODE always When to query APIs: always, if_missing, never
MOVIE_DATE_UPDATE_MODE backfill_only Update behavior: backfill_only or overwrite
📜 License MIT License – do what you want, just don’t blame us if your timestamps go timey-wimey.