Shelfmark is a self-hosted web interface for searching and downloading books and audiobooks from multiple sources, including popular web archives, torrents, Usenet, and IRC. It offers a clean modern UI with real-time download tracking, multi-user support via a built-in request system, and seamless automatic integration with library tools like Calibre, Calibre-Web, and Audiobookshelf, requiring no external dependencies or configuration. In this step by step guide I will show you how to install Shelfmark on your Synology NAS using Docker & Portainer.

💡Note: This guide works perfectly with the latest Shelfmark 1.1.2 release.

• STEP 1

Please Support My work by Making a Donation.

• STEP 2

Install Portainer using my step by step guide. If you already have Portainer installed on your Synology NAS, skip this STEP. Attention: Make sure you have installed the latest Portainer version.

• STEP 3

Go to File Station and open the docker folder. Inside the docker folder, create one new folder and name it shelfmark. Follow the instructions in the image below.
Note: Be careful to enter only lowercase, not uppercase letters.

• STEP 4

Now create two new folders inside the shelfmark folder that you have previously created at STEP 3 and name them books and config. Follow the instructions in the image below.
Note: Be careful to enter only lowercase, not uppercase letters.

• STEP 5

Log into Portainer using your username and password. On the left sidebar in Portainer, click on Home then Live connect. Follow the instructions in the image below.

On the left sidebar in Portainer, click on Stacks then + Add stack. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 6

In the Name field type in shelfmark. Follow the instructions in the image below.

Note: Copy Paste the code below in the Portainer Stacks Web editor.

services:
  shelfmark:
    image: ghcr.io/calibrain/shelfmark:latest
    container_name: Shelfmark
    ports:
      - 8137:8137
    volumes:
      - /volume1/docker/shelfmark/config:/config:rw
      - /volume1/docker/shelfmark/books:/books:rw
    environment:
       PUID: 1026
       PGID: 100
       TZ: Europe/Bucharest
       INGEST_DIR: /books
       FLASK_PORT: 8137
       SEARCH_MODE: direct
       #BOOK_LANGUAGE: en,de,it
       #ONBOARDING: false  #or true to Skip wizard on first startup
    restart: on-failure:5

Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value numbers for PUID and PGID with your own values. (Follow my step by step guide on how to do this.)
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for TZ. (Select your current Time Zone from this list.

• STEP 7

Scroll down on the page until you see a button named Deploy the stack. Click on it. Follow the instructions in the image below. The installation process can take up to a few minutes. It will depend on your Internet speed connection.

• STEP 8

If everything goes right, you will see the following message at the top right of your screen: “Success Stack successfully deployed“.

• STEP 9

🟢Please Support My work by Making a Donation. Almost 99,9% of the people that install something using my guides forget to support my work, or just ignore STEP 1. I’ve been very honest about this aspect of my work since the beginning: I don’t run any ADS, I don’t require subscriptions, paid or otherwise, I don’t collect IPs, emails, and I don’t have any referral links from Amazon or other merchants. I also don’t have any POP-UPs or COOKIES. I have repeatedly been told over the years how much I have contributed to the community. It’s something I love doing and have been honest about my passion since the beginning. But I also Need The Community to Support me Back to be able to continue doing this work.

• STEP 10

The installation process can take up to a few seconds/minutes. It will depend on your Internet speed connection. Now open your browser and type in http://Synology-ip-address:8137 At the top right of the page, click on the 3 horizontal lines then Settings. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 11

Your whole settings page at a glance! On the left sidebar, click General. You can change your current theme from Light to Dark. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 12

Search for a Free Book in the public domain. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 13

Download your Book! Follow the instructions in the image below. Note: your downloaded books will be saved in the books folder that you have previously created at STEP 4.

Enjoy Shelfmark!

🆘TROUBLESHOOTING

If you encounter issues by using this container, make sure to check out the Common Docker issues article.

Note: If you want to run the Shelfmark container over HTTPS, check How to Run Docker Containers Over HTTPS. In order to make Shelfmark work via HTTPS, it’s mandatory to activate WebSocket.

Note: Find out how to update the Shelfmark container with the latest image.
Note: How to Back Up Docker Containers on your Synology NAS.
Note: Can I run Docker on my Synology NAS? See the supported models.
Note: How to Free Disk Space on Your NAS if You Run Docker.
Note: How to Schedule Start & Stop For Docker Containers.
Note: How to Activate Email Notifications.
Note: How to Add Access Control Profile on Your NAS.
Note: How to Change Docker Containers Restart Policy.
Note: How to Use Docker Containers With VPN.
Note: Convert Docker Run Into Docker Compose.
Note: How to Clean Docker.
Note: How to Clean Docker Automatically.
Note: Best Practices When Using Docker and DDNS.
Note: Some Docker Containers Need WebSocket.
Note: Find out the Best NAS Models For Docker.
Note: Activate Gmail SMTP For Docker Containers