Master the *arr Stack: Ultimate Self‑Hosted Media Server Guide (2026)

The Community Spark #

In early July 2026 the r/selfhosted front page lit up with a flurry of posts titled “*arr stack on 2 GB VPS?” and “Why my *arr services keep crashing after a month.” Users were wrestling with three intertwined problems: resource constraints, network‑wide automation, and maintenance fatigue. The core question was simple yet profound: *Can a lean VPS reliably run the full arr suite (Sonarr, Radarr, Lidarr, Readarr) and still deliver 4K streaming without constant babysitting?

Synthesized Community Perspectives #

The debate settled around a hybrid approach: Docker for isolation, a minimal reverse‑proxy for TLS, and selective addition of auxiliary services only when resources permit.

Deep‑Dive Actionable Guide #

Below is a step‑by‑step recipe that reflects the “Performance‑First” consensus while keeping the “Simplicity‑First” spirit.

1. Provision a VPS #

# Example: Hetzner CX11 (2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, 80 GB SSD)
ssh root@<VPS_IP>
apt update && apt upgrade -y

2. Install Docker & Docker‑Compose #

apt install -y ca-certificates curl gnupg
mkdir -p /etc/apt/keyrings
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg \
  | gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg
echo \
  "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg] \
  https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu $(lsb_release -cs) stable" \
  | tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null
apt update
apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-compose-plugin
systemctl enable docker

3. Create a Shared Media Volume #

mkdir -p /mnt/media/{downloads,library}
chown -R 1000:1000 /mnt/media   # Docker's default user

4. Define docker-compose.yml #

version: "3.8"
services:
  sonarr:
    image: ghcr.io/linuxserver/sonarr:latest
    container_name: sonarr
    environment:
      - PUID=1000
      - PGID=1000
      - TZ=America/New_York
    volumes:
      - /mnt/media:/media
      - ./config/sonarr:/config
    ports:
      - "8989:8989"
    restart: unless-stopped
    mem_limit: 256m

  radarr:
    image: ghcr.io/linuxserver/radarr:latest
    container_name: radarr
    environment:
      - PUID=1000
      - PGID=1000
      - TZ=America/New_York
    volumes:
      - /mnt/media:/media
      - ./config/radarr:/config
    ports:
      - "7878:7878"
    restart: unless-stopped
    mem_limit: 256m

  lidarr:
    image: ghcr.io/linuxserver/lidarr:latest
    container_name: lidarr
    environment:
      - PUID=1000
      - PGID=1000
      - TZ=America/New_York
    volumes:
      - /mnt/media:/media
      - ./config/lidarr:/config
    ports:
      - "8686:8686"
    restart: unless-stopped
    mem_limit: 256m

  readarr:
    image: ghcr.io/linuxserver/readarr:latest
    container_name: readarr
    environment:
      - PUID=1000
      - PGID=1000
      - TZ=America/New_York
    volumes:
      - /mnt/media:/media
      - ./config/readarr:/config
    ports:
      - "8787:8787"
    restart: unless-stopped
    mem_limit: 256m

  caddy:
    image: caddy:latest
    container_name: caddy
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
    volumes:
      - ./caddy/Caddyfile:/etc/caddy/Caddyfile
      - caddy_data:/data
      - caddy_config:/config

volumes:
  caddy_data:
  caddy_config:

5. Add a Minimal Caddyfile #

{
    email admin@example.com
    automatic_https {
        on_demand
    }
}

sonarr.example.com {
    reverse_proxy sonarr:8989
}
radarr.example.com {
    reverse_proxy radarr:7878
}
lidarr.example.com {
    reverse_proxy lidarr:8686
}
readarr.example.com {
    reverse_proxy readarr:8787
}

Replace example.com with your domain and point DNS A records to the VPS IP.

6. Launch Everything #

docker compose up -d
docker compose ps   # Verify all containers are healthy

7. Fine‑Tune Indexers & Quality Profiles #

• Inside each *arr UI, import a Prowlarr indexer list (JSON) shared by the r/selfhosted community – it bundles Jackett‑compatible sources that respect 4K limits.
• Set Download Client to qBittorrent running in a separate Docker container, limited to 1 GiB/s to protect the VPS bandwidth.

8. Automate Backups (Weekly) #

0 3 * * 0 tar -czf /backup/arr-config-$(date +%F).tar.gz /path/to/config

Pros & Cons Comparison #

The Verdict / Expert Advice #

• Newbies (≤ 2 GB VPS): Stick to the Docker stack above, omit Bazarr and Prowlarr initially. Add them later once you confirm stable RAM usage.
• Power Users (≥ 4 GB VPS): Deploy the full suite, enable unbound DNS caching, and run qBittorrent in its own container with --net=host for maximum throughput.
• Security‑Conscious: Keep the Caddyfile minimal, enable http3 (supported in Caddy v2.7+), and schedule docker system prune -a weekly to eliminate orphaned layers.

By following this community‑validated blueprint, you’ll achieve a responsive, low‑maintenance *arr stack that survives VPS restarts and scaling bumps—exactly what r/selfhosted members have been shouting about.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) #

*Q1: Can I run the arr stack on a 1 CPU, 2 GB RAM VPS without crashes?
A1: Yes, if you limit each container to ≤ 256 MiB RAM, use Alpine‑based images, and avoid heavy add‑ons like Bazarr. Monitoring with docker stats helps you stay within the quota.

*Q2: Do I need a separate download client, or can the arr apps download directly?
A2: While *arr can invoke aria2c, the community recommends a dedicated torrent client (qBittorrent or Transmission) in its own container for better queue handling and UI separation.

*Q3: How do I secure my arr UI from the public internet?
A3: Caddy automatically provisions TLS. Additionally, enable basic auth in each service’s settings and restrict access to known IPs via a Caddy @allowed_ips matcher.

Q4: What’s the best backup strategy for configuration data?
A4: Bind-mount the /config directories (as shown) and schedule a weekly tar.gz of the ./config folder to an off‑site location (e.g., Backblaze B2 or another VPS). Verify backups by restoring to a test container monthly.