calibre-web README

The project's README from github.com/janeczku/calibre-web. As one markdown file: README.md.

Calibre-Web

Calibre-Web is a web app that offers a clean and intuitive interface for browsing, reading, and downloading eBooks using a valid Calibre database.

License Commit Activity All Releases PyPI PyPI - Downloads Discord

Table of Contents (click to expand)
  1. About
  2. Features
  3. Installation
  4. Docker Images
  5. Troubleshooting
  6. Contributor Recognition
  7. Contact
  8. Contributing to Calibre-Web

This software is a fork of library and licensed under the GPL v3 License.

Main screen

Features

Installation

  1. Create a virtual environment: It’s essential to isolate your Calibre-Web installation to avoid dependency conflicts. You can create a virtual environment by running:
    python3 -m venv calibre-web-env
  2. Activate the virtual environment:
    source calibre-web-env/bin/activate
  3. Install Calibre-Web: Use pip to install the application:
    pip install calibreweb
  4. Install optional features: For additional functionality, you may need to install optional features. Refer to this page for details on what can be installed.
  5. Start Calibre-Web: After installation, you can start the application with:
    cps

Note: Users of Raspberry Pi OS may encounter installation issues. If you do, try upgrading pip and/or installing cargo as follows:

./venv/bin/python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip
sudo apt install cargo

Quick Start

  1. Access Calibre-Web: Open your browser and navigate to:
    http://localhost:8083
    or for the OPDS catalog:
    http://localhost:8083/opds
  2. Log in: Use the default admin credentials:
    • Username: admin
    • Password: admin123
  3. Database Setup: If you do not have a Calibre database, download a sample from:
    https://github.com/janeczku/calibre-web/raw/master/library/metadata.db
    Move it out of the Calibre-Web folder to avoid overwriting during updates.
  4. Configure Calibre Database: In the admin interface, set the Location of Calibre database to the path of the folder containing your Calibre library (where metadata.db is located) and click "Save".
  5. Google Drive Integration: For hosting your Calibre library on Google Drive, refer to the Google Drive integration guide.
  6. Admin Configuration: Configure your instance via the admin page, referring to the Basic Configuration and UI Configuration guides.

Requirements

Docker Images

Pre-built Docker images are available:

LinuxServer - x64, aarch64

To include the Calibre ebook-convert binary (x64 only), add the environment variable:

DOCKER_MODS=linuxserver/mods:universal-calibre

in your Docker run/compose file. Omit this variable for a lightweight image.

Troubleshooting

Contributor Recognition

We would like to thank all the contributors and maintainers of Calibre-Web for their valuable input and dedication to the project. Your contributions are greatly appreciated.

Contact

Join us on Discord

For more information, How To's, and FAQs, please visit the Wiki

Contributing to Calibre-Web

To contribute, please check our Contributing Guidelines. We welcome issues, feature requests, and pull requests from the community.

Reporting Bugs

If you encounter bugs or issues, please report them in the issues section of the repository. Be sure to include detailed information about your setup and the problem encountered.

Feature Requests

We welcome suggestions for new features. Please create a new issue in the repository to discuss your ideas.

Additional Resources

Thank you for using Calibre-Web! We hope you enjoy managing your eBook library with our tool.

calibre-web (janeczku/calibre-web)

opds
Searching Database…

18.4K ·GitHub
Calibre-web
What is this?Calibre-Web is a web app you host yourself that gives you a clean interface for browsing, reading, and downloading the eBooks stored in an existing Calibre library.
Is this a replacement for the Calibre desktop app, or something that runs alongside it?It runs alongside Calibre rather than replacing it: the web app serves an existing Calibre database (metadata.db), and the desktop program stays optional for on-the-fly conversion and metadata editing.
How do I get it running?Install it with pip inside a virtual environment and start the app, or run the prebuilt linuxserver/calibre-web Docker image. Then log in with the default admin/admin123 account and point it to the folder containing your metadata.db.
What else do I need installed for everything to work?Python 3.7 or newer, plus ImageMagick for extracting EPUB covers (Windows users may also need Ghostscript for PDF covers). Optional: the Calibre program for conversions and the Kepubify tool for Kobo support.
Can people upload their own books right after install?No — the upload option stays hidden until you enable it under Basic settings. Also, if eBooks fail to load, the first thing to check is that the Calibre database path is set correctly.
Is it built for one person, or can a whole household share a library?It is made for sharing: there is comprehensive user management with fine-grained per-user permissions, content hiding per user, optional public registration, and LDAP, Google/GitHub OAuth or proxy authentication.
Can I run it on something small like a Raspberry Pi?Yes — prebuilt Docker images exist for x64 and aarch64 machines. One quirk: on Raspberry Pi OS the pip install may fail until you upgrade pip or install cargo.
Can I get books onto my e-reader without plugging it in?Yes — you can send eBooks to an e-reader with a single click, sync Kobo devices, use the OPDS feed in reader apps, or log in on the device with a Magic Link.
Does it convert books to other formats?Yes, conversion is delegated to Calibre's binaries: install the Calibre program and set its converter path, or add the optional Calibre layer to the LinuxServer Docker image (x64 only).
Can I fix book metadata from within the web app?Yes — you can edit and delete eBook metadata, and download metadata from various sources, extensible via plugins.
What languages is the interface available in?The UI is multilingual, supporting more than 20 languages out of the box.
What are similar projects?grimmory, readest, koreader, calibre, bookshelf, oryx, Kavita, audiobookshelf
Which topics is it in?ereader, mobi, calibre, kobo, opds, fluent, ebook-reader, reading, pypi, epub, books, ebook
Creator
janeczku
Size
119.9 MB
Stars
18.4K
Updated
CommitSep 20Release0.6.27Aug 08
Age
11y
Commits · 90 Days