Self-Hosting Yamtrack with Docker and Caddy#

Prerequisites#

• A Linux server with Docker and Docker Compose installed
• A domain name pointed at your server (this guide uses play.example.com)
• Caddy installed

Step 1 — Create the Docker Compose file#

Create a folder for Yamtrack and open a new compose file:

mkdir docker/yamtrack
cd docker/yamtrack
nano docker-compose.yml

Paste in the following. You will fill in the empty values in later steps.

services:
  yamtrack:
    container_name: yamtrack
    image: ghcr.io/fuzzygrim/yamtrack:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    depends_on:
      - redis
    environment:
      - URLS=https://play.example.com
      - TZ=Asia/Seoul
      - SECRET=
      - REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379
      - TMDB_API=
      - MAL_API=
      - IGDB_ID=
      - IGDB_SECRET=
    volumes:
      - ./db:/yamtrack/db
    ports:
      - "15055:8000"

  redis:
    container_name: yamtrack-redis
    image: redis:8-alpine
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - redis_data:/data

volumes:
  redis_data:

Change TZ=Asia/Seoul to your timezone. A full list of valid timezone names is at php.net/manual/en/timezones.php.

Step 2 — Generate a secret key#

Run this command to generate a random secret:

openssl rand -hex 32

It outputs a 64-character string. Copy it and paste it into the SECRET field in docker-compose.yml:

- SECRET=your64characterstringhere

Step 3 — Set up Caddy#

Open your Caddyfile:

sudo nano /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Add this block, replacing the domain with your own:

play.example.com {
  reverse_proxy localhost:15055
}

Caddy will handle HTTPS automatically. Reload Caddy to apply the change.

Step 4 — Start Yamtrack and create your account#

Start the containers:

docker compose up -d

Go to your domain in a browser and create an account. Once done, open docker-compose.yml and add REGISTRATION=False to disable new signups:

environment:
  - URLS=https://play.example.com
  - REGISTRATION=False

Step 5 — Get API keys#

Yamtrack uses three external APIs to fetch metadata like posters and descriptions. All three are free and do not require a credit card.

- TMDB_API=your_api_key

- MAL_API=your_client_id

- IGDB_ID=your_client_id
- IGDB_SECRET=your_client_secret

Step 6 — Restart to apply changes#

Restart the containers to load all the API keys and updated settings:

cd docker/yamtrack
docker compose up -d

Yamtrack is now running with full metadata support.