Configuration

Complete configuration reference for Lighthouse.

Configuration File

Lighthouse uses config.yaml in the working directory. A default configuration is created on first run.

Complete Example

server:
  host: "0.0.0.0"
  port: 9999
  api_key: ""  # auto-generated if empty

database:
  path: "./data/lighthouse.db"

nostr:
  identity:
    npub: ""  # your public key
    nsec: ""  # your private key (keep secret!)
  relays:
    - url: "wss://relay.damus.io"
      name: "Damus"
      preset: "public"
      enabled: true

trust:
  depth: 1  # 0=whitelist only, 1=follows, 2=follows of follows

indexer:
  tag_filter: []
  tag_filter_enabled: false

enrichment:
  enabled: true
  tmdb_api_key: ""
  omdb_api_key: ""

Configuration Sections

Server

Option	Type	Default	Description
`host`	string	`"0.0.0.0"`	Listen address
`port`	integer	`9999`	Listen port
`api_key`	string	(generated)	API key for Torznab authentication

Database

Option	Type	Default	Description
`path`	string	`"./data/lighthouse.db"`	SQLite database file path

Nostr Identity

Option	Type	Default	Description
`identity.npub`	string	`""`	Your Nostr public key (npub format)
`identity.nsec`	string	`""`	Your Nostr private key (nsec format)

Security Note: Keep your nsec private! Never share it or commit it to version control.

Nostr Relays

Relays are configured as an array:

nostr:
  relays:
    - url: "wss://relay.example.com"
      name: "My Relay"
      preset: "public"
      enabled: true

Option	Type	Description
`url`	string	WebSocket URL of the relay
`name`	string	Display name
`preset`	string	Category: `public`, `private`, `censorship-resistant`
`enabled`	boolean	Whether to connect to this relay

Trust

Option	Type	Default	Description
`depth`	integer	`1`	Web of Trust depth

Trust depth values:

Depth	Behavior
`0`	Only whitelisted publishers
`1`	Whitelist + people you follow
`2`	Above + friends of friends

Indexer

Option	Type	Default	Description
`tag_filter`	array	`[]`	Tags to filter (include only these)
`tag_filter_enabled`	boolean	`false`	Enable tag filtering

When tag filtering is enabled, only torrents with matching tags are indexed.

Enrichment

Option	Type	Default	Description
`enabled`	boolean	`true`	Enable metadata enrichment
`tmdb_api_key`	string	`""`	The Movie Database API key
`omdb_api_key`	string	`""`	Open Movie Database API key

Environment Variables

Override any configuration option using environment variables with the LIGHTHOUSE_ prefix.

Format

Convert the YAML path to uppercase with underscores:

server.port → LIGHTHOUSE_SERVER_PORT
nostr.identity.npub → LIGHTHOUSE_NOSTR_IDENTITY_NPUB
enrichment.tmdb_api_key → LIGHTHOUSE_ENRICHMENT_TMDB_API_KEY

Examples

# Change port
export LIGHTHOUSE_SERVER_PORT=8080

# Set API keys
export LIGHTHOUSE_ENRICHMENT_TMDB_API_KEY=your_key_here
export LIGHTHOUSE_ENRICHMENT_OMDB_API_KEY=your_key_here

# Set trust depth
export LIGHTHOUSE_TRUST_DEPTH=2

# Run
./lighthouse

Docker Environment

# docker-compose.yml
services:
  lighthouse:
    image: lighthouse
    environment:
      - LIGHTHOUSE_SERVER_PORT=9999
      - LIGHTHOUSE_TRUST_DEPTH=1
      - LIGHTHOUSE_ENRICHMENT_TMDB_API_KEY=your_key

Runtime Configuration

Some settings can be changed at runtime through the web UI:

Settings Page

Identity - View npub/nsec, generate new, import existing
Torznab API - View/copy API key and URL
Enrichment - Configure TMDB/OMDB API keys
Tag Filter - Enable/disable and manage filter tags

Trust Page

Whitelist - Manually trusted publishers
Blacklist - Blocked publishers
Curators - Trusted curators (federated mode)
Aggregation Policy - How to combine curator decisions

Relays Page

Add/remove relays
Enable/disable individual relays
View connection status

Data Directory

The default data directory is ./data/. It contains:

File	Description
`lighthouse.db`	SQLite database with all indexed data

Database Backup

# Stop the service first
sqlite3 ./data/lighthouse.db ".backup ./data/backup.db"

Database Location

Change the database location:

database:
  path: "/var/lib/lighthouse/lighthouse.db"

Security Considerations

API Key

The API key is used for:

Torznab API authentication
Protecting sensitive endpoints

Best practices:

Use a strong, random key (auto-generated by default)
Rotate periodically
Don’t expose in URLs (use headers)

Private Key (nsec)

Your nsec is your Nostr identity. Protect it:

Never share it
Don’t commit to version control
Use environment variables in production
Consider hardware key storage for high-security setups

Network Security

Use HTTPS in production (see Installation)
Firewall the port if not using a reverse proxy
Consider VPN/Tor for privacy

Preset Configurations

Minimal (Personal Use)

server:
  port: 9999
database:
  path: "./data/lighthouse.db"
trust:
  depth: 1

Production

server:
  host: "127.0.0.1"  # Behind reverse proxy
  port: 9999
database:
  path: "/var/lib/lighthouse/lighthouse.db"
trust:
  depth: 1
enrichment:
  enabled: true

Curator Node

server:
  port: 9999
trust:
  depth: 0  # Strict whitelist
indexer:
  tag_filter_enabled: true
  tag_filter:
    - movies
    - tv

Troubleshooting

Configuration Not Applied

Check YAML syntax (indentation matters)
Restart the service
Check for environment variable overrides

Database Errors

# Check database integrity
sqlite3 ./data/lighthouse.db "PRAGMA integrity_check;"

# Vacuum to optimize
sqlite3 ./data/lighthouse.db "VACUUM;"

Permission Issues

# Fix ownership
chown -R lighthouse:lighthouse /opt/lighthouse

# Fix permissions
chmod 600 config.yaml
chmod 700 data/

Next Steps

Architecture - Understand system design
API Reference - API documentation
Web of Trust - Configure trust