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Prowlarr is a torrent indexer manager that aggregates search results from multiple torrent sites. Plank uses Prowlarr to find torrents for movies and TV shows across all your configured indexers.

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Overview

Prowlarr provides:
  • Unified search across multiple torrent indexers
  • Automatic indexer management with health checks
  • Cloudflare bypass via FlareSolverr integration
  • Quality filtering to exclude low-quality releases (CAM, TS, etc.)
  • Release group filtering to prioritize trusted uploaders
Prowlarr is required for Plank’s automatic torrent search features.

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Installation

Prowlarr is automatically included in Plank’s Docker Compose setup: 
docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.yml --env-file .env up -d
This starts:
  • Plank on port 3300
  • Prowlarr on port 9696
  • FlareSolverr on port 8191 (for Cloudflare bypass)

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Bare Metal

For manual installation, follow the official Prowlarr installation guide. After installing:
  1. Start Prowlarr (default port 9696)
  2. Set PROWLARR_URL=http://localhost:9696 in your .env file
  3. Configure indexers through the Prowlarr web interface

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Configuration

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Automatic Setup (Docker)

When running via Docker Compose, Plank automatically:
  1. Waits for Prowlarr to initialize
  2. Extracts the Prowlarr API key from the config file
  3. Configures FlareSolverr as an indexer proxy
  4. Updates Plank’s environment with the API key
No manual configuration required for Docker deployments.

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Manual Setup

1

Get Prowlarr API key

Open Prowlarr at http://localhost:9696Navigate to Settings → GeneralCopy the API Key under the Security section.
2

Configure environment

Add the API key to your .env file:
PROWLARR_URL=http://localhost:9696
PROWLARR_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
PUBLIC_PROWLARR_URL=http://localhost:9696  # Optional: for external access
3

Add indexers

In Prowlarr, go to Indexers → Add IndexerChoose indexers from the list and configure them. See Indexer Packages below for recommendations.
4

Test connection

In Plank’s settings page, verify the Prowlarr connection status.You should see a green indicator if configured correctly.

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Indexer Packages

Plank recommends these indexer packages based on content preferences:

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General Entertainment

Best for: Movies and TV shows
  • YTS - High-quality movies, small file sizes
  • 1337x - Well-established, mixed content
  • The Pirate Bay - Largest library, requires verification

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Anime Fans

Best for: Anime series and movies
  • Nyaa.si - Largest anime torrent repository
  • AnimeTosho - Automated mirroring, high reliability
  • AniDex - Alternative source with good organization

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TV Show Specialists

Best for: TV series and recent episodes
  • EZTV - Specialized in TV series and new episodes
  • TorrentGalaxy - Good TV/movie mix, active community
  • TorLock - Verified torrents, fewer fake files

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Adding Indexers via Plank

Plank provides a UI to add recommended indexers directly from the settings page:
  1. Navigate to Settings → Indexers
  2. Select a package (General, Anime, or TV)
  3. Click Install Package
  4. Plank will configure all indexers in that package automatically

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Search Quality Filters

Prowlarr integration includes intelligent quality filtering:

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Excluded Quality Patterns (prowlarr.ts:44-56)

The following low-quality releases are automatically filtered:
  • CAM / HDCAM - Camera recordings from theaters
  • TS / HDTS / TELESYNC - Recorded from theater with audio jack
  • TC / TELECINE - From film reels before final edit
  • SCR / SCREENER / DVDSCR - Pre-release screeners
  • R5 - Lower quality regional releases

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Quality Scoring (prowlarr.ts:62-68)

Torrents are ranked by quality:
  • 2160p (4K UHD): 110 points
  • 1080p (Full HD): 100 points
  • UHD: 80 points
  • 720p (HD): 60 points
  • 4K: 40 points
Seeder count also factors into scoring (logarithmic scaling to avoid overweighting).

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Best Torrent Selection (prowlarr.ts:158-171)

Plank automatically selects torrents based on:
  1. Quality score (higher resolution preferred)
  2. Seeder count (more seeders = faster downloads)
  3. Trusted release groups (if configured)
  4. Minimum seeder threshold (default: 1)

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TV Season Packs

Prowlarr can search for complete TV season torrents:
  • Automatically filters out single episodes
  • Identifies season packs via patterns (“S01”, “Season 1”, “Complete”)
  • Enforces minimum size requirement (1GB) to avoid fake season packs
  • Falls back to episode torrents if no season pack is available
Season pack search is automatic when adding TV shows to your library.

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Advanced Configuration

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Trusted Release Groups

Configure preferred release groups in settings: 
# Comma-separated list of trusted groups
TRUSTED_GROUPS=RARBG,YTS,EZTV,PSA,FLUX
Torrents from these groups are prioritized in search results.

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Minimum Seeders

Set the minimum number of seeders required: 
MIN_SEEDERS=5
Torrents with fewer seeders are excluded from results (unless no other options exist).

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FlareSolverr Proxy

FlareSolverr bypasses Cloudflare protection on indexers. Configuration is automatic in Docker, or manual via:
  1. Install FlareSolverr: Installation Guide
  2. In Prowlarr, go to Settings → Indexers → Indexer Proxies
  3. Add FlareSolverr with URL http://localhost:8191
  4. Assign the proxy to indexers that require Cloudflare bypass

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Troubleshooting

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No search results

Problem: Prowlarr searches return zero results. Solutions:
  • Verify at least one indexer is configured and enabled in Prowlarr
  • Check indexer health in Prowlarr (Settings → Indexers)
  • Test search directly in Prowlarr’s search interface
  • Ensure TMDB API key is configured (required for search)
  • Check if FlareSolverr is running for Cloudflare-protected indexers

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Connection refused

Problem: Plank can’t connect to Prowlarr. Solutions:
  • Docker: Use PROWLARR_URL=http://prowlarr:9696 (service name)
  • Bare metal: Use PROWLARR_URL=http://localhost:9696
  • Verify Prowlarr is running: curl http://localhost:9696/ping
  • Check firewall rules aren’t blocking port 9696
  • Ensure API key is correctly set in .env file
Problem: Downloads fail with “could not resolve magnet link” error. Solutions:
  • Some indexers return HTTP download URLs instead of magnet links
  • Plank automatically converts these, but network issues may prevent resolution
  • Check that Prowlarr is accessible from Plank’s container/process
  • Verify the indexer is healthy in Prowlarr settings

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Indexer setup fails

Problem: Can’t add indexers through Prowlarr or Plank. Solutions:
  • Check internet connectivity from the Prowlarr container/process
  • Try a different indexer URL (some indexers change domains frequently)
  • Verify FlareSolverr is running if the indexer uses Cloudflare
  • Check Prowlarr logs: docker logs prowlarr (Docker) or Prowlarr UI logs

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Data Privacy

Prowlarr search behavior:
  • Sends search queries to configured indexers
  • Does not transmit your library contents
  • Indexers may log search queries and IP addresses
  • Strongly recommend using a VPN for all torrent activities

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