Flexget on a Seedbox: RSS Automation Engine

What Flexget Is

Flexget is a Python-based automation engine for RSS feeds. You write a config file describing inputs (RSS feeds, IMDb watchlists, custom searches), apply filters and transforms, and pipe results to outputs (torrent client, NZB client, custom scripts).

It's a power-user tool. Set up well, it does things Sonarr and Radarr can't (custom logic, weird release pickers, integrations with services they don't support). Set up badly, it grabs the wrong things and chews through your storage.

Should You Use Flexget?

Honest take:

• Use Flexget if you've outgrown what Sonarr/Radarr can do, or you have a niche use case (IMDb watchlist auto-grab, custom logic, non-standard sources).
• Use Sonarr/Radarr if you want clean automation that just works and you don't need scripting.

Most people are happier with Sonarr/Radarr. Flexget has a learning curve.

Why Run It on a Seedbox?

Flexget runs on a schedule, watches feeds, and pipes to download clients. A seedbox is the natural home:

• Always on so scheduled jobs run
• One-click install
• Same panel as the download clients it talks to
• 10 Gbit so big back-fills finish quickly
• EU servers in Luxembourg, France, and Netherlands

Installing Flexget

Open the Bytesized Panel, find Flexget in the app catalog, click install. The panel sets up Python, the venv, the daemon, and the URL.

Click "Open" to land on the web UI. The web UI is a thin layer over the underlying YAML config; for serious work you'll edit the YAML directly through the panel's file editor.

First-Run Setup

The Flexget config lives at ~/.flexget/config.yml. The basic shape:

tasks:
  download_movies:
    rss: https://example.com/movies.xml
    accept_all: yes
    quality: 1080p+
    download: ~/files/incoming
schedules:
  - tasks: [download_movies]
    interval:
      minutes: 30

That's a task that polls a feed every 30 minutes and downloads anything in 1080p or better.

Pairing With Your Download Client

Flexget's download plugin saves a torrent file to disk; you'd then watch that folder with qBittorrent or Deluge. Or use the transmission, qbittorrent, deluge, rtorrent plugins for direct hand-off:

qbittorrent:
  host: internal-qbittorrent-url
  port: 8080
  username: ...
  password: ...
  category: flexget

That dumps directly into qBittorrent with the flexget category.

Filter Plugins Worth Knowing

A few that come up a lot:

• if for conditional logic
• set to attach metadata
• regexp for filename pattern matching
• imdb to filter on IMDb rating, genre, year
• series to track TV series episode lists

The full plugin list runs into the dozens. The Flexget docs are the source of truth.

Common Gotchas

Config syntax error. YAML is whitespace-sensitive. Errors are usually indentation. The Flexget CLI will tell you which line failed when run with flexget execute --debug.

Same item downloading repeatedly. Flexget's seen plugin tracks what's been processed; if it's not loading, items reappear. Check the Flexget log.

Quality filter too tight. Flexget's quality requirement is strict. "1080p" matches exactly; "1080p+" matches 1080p and up. Read the docs on quality syntax.

Schedule not firing. The daemon has to be running. Check from the panel; restart if needed.

FAQ

Is Flexget free? Yes. Free and open source.

Should I use Flexget or Sonarr? Sonarr for normal TV automation. Flexget for niche cases or scripting.

Will it work with my torrent client? Yes. qBittorrent, Deluge, rTorrent, Transmission all have native plugins.

Can I run Sonarr and Flexget alongside? Yes. Different categories in the download client; they don't fight.

How long does the learning curve take? A weekend to get a working config. Months to truly master the plugin ecosystem.

Ready to Set It Up?

Browse Appbox plans, install Flexget from the panel, edit ~/.flexget/config.yml, build up incrementally.