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# Configure Homebox
## Env Variables & Configuration
| Variable | Default | Description |
|-----------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| HBOX_MODE | `production` | application mode used for runtime behavior can be one of: `development`, `production` |
| HBOX_WEB_PORT | 7745 | port to run the web server on, if you're using docker do not change this |
| HBOX_WEB_HOST | | host to run the web server on, if you're using docker do not change this. see below for examples |
| HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_REGISTRATION | true | allow users to register themselves |
| HBOX_OPTIONS_AUTO_INCREMENT_ASSET_ID | true | auto-increments the asset_id field for new items |
| HBOX_OPTIONS_CURRENCY_CONFIG | | json configuration file containing additional currencies |
| HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_ANALYTICS | false | Allows the homebox team to view extremely basic information about the system that your running on. This helps make decisions regarding builds and other general decisions. |
| HBOX_WEB_MAX_UPLOAD_SIZE | 10 | maximum file upload size supported in MB |
| HBOX_WEB_READ_TIMEOUT | 10s | Read timeout of HTTP sever |
| HBOX_WEB_WRITE_TIMEOUT | 10s | Write timeout of HTTP server |
| HBOX_WEB_IDLE_TIMEOUT | 30s | Idle timeout of HTTP server |
| HBOX_STORAGE_CONN_STRING | file:///./ | path to the data directory, do not change this if you're using docker |
| HBOX_STORAGE_PREFIX_PATH | .data | prefix path for the storage, if not set the storage will be used as is |
| HBOX_LOG_LEVEL | `info` | log level to use, can be one of `trace`, `debug`, `info`, `warn`, `error`, `critical` |
| HBOX_LOG_FORMAT | `text` | log format to use, can be one of: `text`, `json` |
| HBOX_MAILER_HOST | | email host to use, if not set no email provider will be used |
| HBOX_MAILER_PORT | 587 | email port to use |
| HBOX_MAILER_USERNAME | | email user to use |
| HBOX_MAILER_PASSWORD | | email password to use |
| HBOX_MAILER_FROM | | email from address to use |
| HBOX_DATABASE_DRIVER | sqlite3 | sets the correct database type (`sqlite3` or `postgres`) |
| HBOX_DATABASE_SQLITE_PATH | ./.data/homebox.db?_pragma=busy_timeout=999&_pragma=journal_mode=WAL&_fk=1&_time_format=sqlite | sets the directory path for Sqlite |
| HBOX_DATABASE_HOST | | sets the hostname for a postgres database |
| HBOX_DATABASE_PORT | | sets the port for a postgres database |
| HBOX_DATABASE_USERNAME | | sets the username for a postgres connection (optional if using cert auth) |
| HBOX_DATABASE_PASSWORD | | sets the password for a postgres connection (optional if using cert auth) |
| HBOX_DATABASE_DATABASE | | sets the database for a postgres connection |
| HBOX_DATABASE_SSL_MODE | prefer | sets the sslmode for a postgres connection |
| HBOX_DATABASE_SSL_CERT | | sets the sslcert for a postgres connection (should be a path) |
| HBOX_DATABASE_SSL_KEY | | sets the sslkey for a postgres connection (should be a path) |
| HBOX_DATABASE_SSL_ROOT_CERT | | sets the sslrootcert for a postgres connection (should be a path) |
| HBOX_OPTIONS_GITHUB_RELEASE_CHECK | true | check for new github releases |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_WIDTH | 526 | width for generated labels in pixels |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_HEIGHT | 200 | height for generated labels in pixels |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_PADDING | 32 | space between elements on label |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_FONT_SIZE | 32.0 | font size for label text |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_PRINT_COMMAND | | the command to use for printing labels. if empty, label printing is disabled. `{{.FileName}}` in the command will be replaced with the png filename of the label |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_DYNAMIC_LENGTH | true | allow label generation with open length. `HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_HEIGHT` is still used for layout and minimal height. If not used, long text may be cut off, but all labels have the same size. |
| HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_ADDITIONAL_INFORMATION | | Additional information added to the label like name or phone number |
| HBOX_THUMBNAIL_ENABLED | true | enable thumbnail generation for images, supports PNG, JPEG, AVIF, WEBP, GIF file types |
| HBOX_THUMBNAIL_WIDTH | 500 | width for generated thumbnails in pixels |
| HBOX_THUMBNAIL_HEIGHT | 500 | height for generated thumbnails in pixels |
### HBOX_WEB_HOST examples
| Value | Notes |
|-----------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------|
| 0.0.0.0 | Visible all interfaces (default behaviour) |
| 127.0.0.1 | Only visible on same host |
| 100.64.0.1 | Only visible on a specific interface (e.g., VPN in a VPS). |
| unix?path=/run/homebox.sock | Listen on unix socket at specified path |
| sysd?name=homebox.socket | Listen on systemd socket |
For unix and systemd socket address syntax and available options, see the [anyhttp address-syntax documentation](https://pkg.go.dev/go.balki.me/anyhttp#readme-address-syntax).
#### Private network example
Below example starts homebox in an isolated network. The process cannot make
any external requests (including check for newer release) and thus more secure.
```bash
❯ sudo systemd-run --property=PrivateNetwork=yes --uid $UID --pty --same-dir --wait --collect homebox --web-host "unix?path=/run/user/$UID/homebox.sock"
Running as unit: run-p74482-i74483.service
Press ^] three times within 1s to disconnect TTY.
2025/07/11 22:33:29 goose: no migrations to run. current version: 20250706190000
10:33PM INF ../../../go/src/app/app/api/handlers/v1/v1_ctrl_auth.go:98 > registering auth provider name=local
10:33PM INF ../../../go/src/app/app/api/main.go:275 > Server is running on unix?path=/run/user/1000/homebox.sock
10:33PM ERR ../../../go/src/app/app/api/main.go:403 > failed to get latest github release error="failed to make latest version request: Get \"https://api.github.com/repos/sysadminsmedia/homebox/releases/l
atest\": dial tcp: lookup api.github.com on [::1]:53: read udp [::1]:50951->[::1]:53: read: connection refused"
10:33PM INF ../../../go/src/app/internal/web/mid/logger.go:36 > request received method=GET path=/ rid=hname/PoXyRgt6ol-000001
10:33PM INF ../../../go/src/app/internal/web/mid/logger.go:41 > request finished method=GET path=/ rid=hname/PoXyRgt6ol-000001 status=0
```
#### Systemd socket example
In the example below, Homebox listens on a systemd socket securely so that only
the webserver (Caddy) can access it. Other processes/containers on the host
cannot connect to Homebox directly, bypassing the webserver.
File: homebox.socket
```systemd
# /usr/local/lib/systemd/system/homebox.socket
[Unit]
Description=Homebox socket
[Socket]
ListenStream=/run/homebox.sock
SocketGroup=caddy
SocketMode=0660
[Install]
WantedBy=sockets.target
```
File: homebox.service
```systemd
# /usr/local/lib/systemd/system/homebox.service
[Unit]
Description=Homebox
After=network.target
Documentation=https://homebox.software
[Service]
DynamicUser=yes
StateDirectory=homebox
Environment=HBOX_WEB_HOST=sysd?name=homebox.socket
WorkingDirectory=/var/lib/homebox
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/homebox
NoNewPrivileges=yes
CapabilityBoundingSet=
RestrictNamespaces=true
SystemCallFilter=@system-service
```
Usage:
```bash
systemctl start homebox.socket
```
::: warning Security Considerations
For postgreSQL in production:
- Do not use the default `postgres` user
- Do not use the default `postgres` database
- Always use a strong unique password
- Always use SSL (`sslmode=require` or `sslmode=verify-full`)
- Consider using a connection pooler like `pgbouncer`
For SQLite in production:
- Secure file permissions for the database file (e.g. `chmod 600`)
- Use a secure directory for the database file
- Use a secure backup strategy
- Monitor the file size and consider using a different database for large installations
:::
::: tip CLI Arguments
If you're deploying without docker you can use command line arguments to configure the application. Run `homebox --help`
for more information.
```sh
Usage: api [options] [arguments]
OPTIONS
--mode/$HBOX_MODE (default: development)
--web-port/$HBOX_WEB_PORT (default: 7745)
--web-host/$HBOX_WEB_HOST
--web-max-upload-size/$HBOX_WEB_MAX_UPLOAD_SIZE (default: 10)
--storage-conn-string/$HBOX_STORAGE_CONN_STRING (default: file:///./)
--storage-prefix-path/$HBOX_STORAGE_PREFIX_PATH (default: .data)
--log-level/$HBOX_LOG_LEVEL (default: info)
--log-format/$HBOX_LOG_FORMAT (default: text)
--mailer-host/$HBOX_MAILER_HOST
--mailer-port/$HBOX_MAILER_PORT
--mailer-username/$HBOX_MAILER_USERNAME
--mailer-password/$HBOX_MAILER_PASSWORD
--mailer-from/$HBOX_MAILER_FROM
--demo/$HBOX_DEMO
--debug-enabled/$HBOX_DEBUG_ENABLED (default: false)
--debug-port/$HBOX_DEBUG_PORT (default: 4000)
--database-driver/$HBOX_DATABASE_DRIVER (default: sqlite3)
--database-sqlite-path/$HBOX_DATABASE_SQLITE_PATH (default: ./.data/homebox.db?_pragma=busy_timeout=999&_pragma=journal_mode=WAL&_fk=1&_time_format=sqlite)
--database-host/$HBOX_DATABASE_HOST
--database-port/$HBOX_DATABASE_PORT
--database-username/$HBOX_DATABASE_USERNAME
--database-password/$HBOX_DATABASE_PASSWORD
--database-database/$HBOX_DATABASE_DATABASE
--database-ssl-mode/$HBOX_DATABASE_SSL_MODE (default: prefer)
--options-allow-registration/$HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_REGISTRATION (default: true)
--options-auto-increment-asset-id/$HBOX_OPTIONS_AUTO_INCREMENT_ASSET_ID (default: true)
--options-currency-config/$HBOX_OPTIONS_CURRENCY_CONFIG
--options-github-release-check/$HBOX_OPTIONS_GITHUB_RELEASE_CHECK (default: true)
--options-allow-analytics/$HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_ANALYTICS (default: false)
--label-maker-width/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_WIDTH (default: 526)
--label-maker-height/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_HEIGHT (default: 200)
--label-maker-padding/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_PADDING (default: 32)
--label-maker-margin/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_MARGIN (default: 32)
--label-maker-font-size/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_FONT_SIZE (default: 32.0)
--label-maker-print-command/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_PRINT_COMMAND
--label-maker-dynamic-length/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_DYNAMIC_LENGTH (default: true)
--label-maker-additional-information/$HBOX_LABEL_MAKER_ADDITIONAL_INFORMATION
--thumbnail-enabled/$HBOX_THUMBNAIL_ENABLED (default: true)
--thumbnail-width/$HBOX_THUMBNAIL_WIDTH (default: 500)
--thumbnail-height/$HBOX_THUMBNAIL_HEIGHT (default: 500)
--help/-h display this help message
```
:::