FlareSolverr Integration

​

Overview

• Solves JavaScript challenges that verify browser authenticity
• Handles CAPTCHA challenges (when solvable programmatically)
• Manages cookies to maintain authenticated sessions
• Proxies requests through a headless browser

​

Installation

​

Docker (Recommended)

docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.yml --env-file .env up -d

​

Bare Metal

git clone https://github.com/FlareSolverr/FlareSolverr.git
cd FlareSolverr

pip install -r requirements.txt

python src/flaresolverr.py

​

Configuration

​

Docker Setup

flaresolverr:
  image: ghcr.io/flaresolverr/flaresolverr:latest
  container_name: flaresolverr
  environment:
    - LOG_LEVEL=info
    - TZ=UTC
  ports:
    - 8191:8191
  restart: unless-stopped

​

Manual Prowlarr Setup

​

Automatic Configuration (configure-prowlarr.sh:107-139)

# Automatically runs during container initialization
setup_flaresolverr() {
  # Check if FlareSolverr proxy already exists
  if check_flaresolverr_proxy "$api_key"; then
    return 0
  fi
  
  # Create FlareSolverr proxy via Prowlarr API
  curl -X POST \
    -H "X-Api-Key: ${api_key}" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{"name":"FlareSolverr","implementation":"FlareSolverr","configContract":"FlareSolverrSettings","fields":[{"name":"host","value":"http://flaresolverr:8191"},{"name":"requestTimeout","value":60}],"tags":[]}' \
    "${PROWLARR_URL}/api/v1/indexerproxy"
}

​

How It Works

1. Prowlarr sends the request to FlareSolverr instead of directly to the indexer
2. FlareSolverr launches a headless browser (Chromium)
3. The browser navigates to the indexer URL
4. JavaScript challenges are executed in the real browser environment
5. Cookies are captured after solving challenges
6. FlareSolverr returns the HTML response to Prowlarr
7. Prowlarr parses the results as if it had accessed the site directly

​

Request Flow

Plank → Prowlarr → FlareSolverr → [Chromium Browser] → Indexer (with Cloudflare)
                                       ↓
                              Solve JS Challenge
                                       ↓
                              Return HTML Content
                                       ↓
Plank ← Prowlarr ← FlareSolverr ← [Parsed Results]

​

Testing FlareSolverr

​

Health Check

curl http://localhost:8191/

{
  "msg": "FlareSolverr is ready!",
  "version": "3.x.x",
  "userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0..."
}

​

Test Request (configure-prowlarr.sh:141-157)

test_flaresolverr() {
  response=$(curl -s -X POST \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{"cmd":"request.get","url":"https://httpbin.org/ip","maxTimeout":60000}' \
    "http://flaresolverr:8191/v1")
  
  if echo "$response" | grep -q '"status":"ok"'; then
    echo "FlareSolverr is working correctly"
  fi
}

​

Manual Test

curl -X POST http://localhost:8191/v1 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "cmd": "request.get",
    "url": "https://1337x.to",
    "maxTimeout": 60000
  }'

​

Performance Considerations

​

Resource Usage

• Memory: 200-500 MB per concurrent request
• CPU: Moderate usage during JavaScript execution
• Startup time: 5-15 seconds for first request (browser initialization)
• Request time: 5-30 seconds per Cloudflare-protected page

​

Optimization Tips

1. Only use for protected indexers - Don’t assign FlareSolverr to indexers that don’t need it
2. Increase timeout - Set requestTimeout to 60+ seconds for slow indexers
3. Limit concurrent requests - FlareSolverr handles one request at a time by default
4. Monitor memory - Restart FlareSolverr periodically if memory grows
5. Use dedicated container - Run FlareSolverr in a separate Docker container (already done in Plank’s setup)

​

Troubleshooting

​

FlareSolverr not responding

• Check if FlareSolverr container is running: docker ps | grep flaresolverr
• View logs: docker logs flaresolverr
• Restart the container: docker restart flaresolverr
• Verify port 8191 is not blocked by firewall
• Ensure Chromium/Chrome is installed (bare metal)

​

Cloudflare challenges still blocking

• Some indexers use CAPTCHA challenges that FlareSolverr can’t solve automatically
• Increase requestTimeout in Prowlarr (try 90-120 seconds)
• Check FlareSolverr logs for specific error messages
• Try accessing the indexer directly in a browser to see what challenge appears
• Consider using a different indexer if challenges are unsolvable

​

Browser crashes or timeouts

• Increase Docker container memory limit (try 1GB+)
• Set LOG_LEVEL=debug in FlareSolverr environment to see detailed errors
• Update FlareSolverr to the latest version
• Check if /dev/shm has enough space (browser needs shared memory)
• Restart FlareSolverr to clear stale browser processes

​

Prowlarr can’t connect to FlareSolverr

• Docker: Use http://flaresolverr:8191 (service name, not localhost)
• Bare metal: Use http://localhost:8191
• Verify both services are on the same Docker network
• Check if FlareSolverr is accessible: curl http://flaresolverr:8191/ (from Prowlarr container)
• Review Prowlarr logs for specific connection errors

​

Environment Variables

# Logging level (info, debug, error)
LOG_LEVEL=info

# Timezone for logs
TZ=UTC

# Maximum timeout per request (milliseconds)
MAX_TIMEOUT=60000

# Headless mode (true recommended for servers)
HEADLESS=true

​

Indexers That Need FlareSolverr

• 1337x - Often uses Cloudflare challenges
• The Pirate Bay - Intermittent Cloudflare protection
• TorrentGalaxy - Uses JavaScript challenges
• LimeTorrents - Cloudflare-protected
• RARBG mirrors - Many mirrors use Cloudflare

• YTS - No Cloudflare protection
• EZTV - Direct API access
• Nyaa.si - No anti-bot protection
• AnimeTosho - API-friendly

​

Security Considerations

• Isolate the container - Use Docker for sandboxing
• Don’t expose port 8191 publicly - Only allow access from Prowlarr
• Keep updated - Update FlareSolverr regularly for security patches
• Monitor resource usage - Prevent abuse by monitoring logs and traffic
• Use behind VPN - Route FlareSolverr traffic through a VPN for privacy

​

Learn More

• FlareSolverr GitHub
• FlareSolverr Documentation
• Prowlarr FlareSolverr Integration