rogerfar
Feat Req : Download `.strm` files instead of the full video
there's an old issue re this (https://github.com/rogerfar/rdt-client/issues/76) that's closed, but i think a lot has changed since then, hence writing this.
DMM now has the functionality to download.strm files, so guessing there's an easy way to do it now.
my request is to implement the ability to download physical .strm files (a different internal download client for separation?) insead .mkv / .mp4 files but exactly as any vid file is downloaded. nothing else needs to change from how everything else is handled vs a vid file. like remove torrent from client and provider post download (and sonarr handling the import).
this is far more reliable, stable and better than symlink downloads. the downloads can also be removed from the RD library after download and it eliminates the overhead of managing mounting a rclone share for jellyfin etc.
my current very manual process (for large tv series esp) is to download the files in DMM and download each .strm files individually (thank my lucky stars if a full season pack is available). then copy the .strm file(s) the *arr movie / show directory. *arr detects the .strm files, so the renaming and everything and copying to correct directories etc. after that is essentially the same as it were a .mkv or .mp4 file. last i delete it from my RD library.
My understanding is that .strm files aren’t officially supported by *arrs, but I’d love to be proven wrong!
I also looked into strm files a while back. One advantage I found of symlinks is that when the link dies, the symlink points to a nonexistent file, which is easy to detect. The behaviour might be different on other debrid services (I use AD). But iirc jellyfin gets users to go to the url from the .strm file directly, which was a big bonus.
This would be a reasonably large undertaking, but it’s very doable.
Care will need to be taken; each provider has its quirks, especially around download links.
For TorBox, we should make sure we use the ?redirect=true links.
For AllDebrid, we should make sure we Save the links (see also #336 )
Also, what do you mean by “physical .strm files”?
i've tested support in *arrs, in the manual download scenario i mentioned in my comment. although not official, it does support .strm very well!
having .strm files means the can be renamed and organised like ant other vid file. with players like jellyfin, vidhub and inufse very robustly, i imagined for a second of a entire media library being a few megabytes 🤯
i've only used RD but i can imagine every provider will have its quirks.
was just a tautology 😅
I've given this a first draft in the PR above. I've also released a docker image here if you'd like to test before it's merged. This is an unofficial release, so discuss issue with it either on my fork https://github.com/Cucumberrbob/rdt-client, or in the PR comments
I am using the docker image you provided with the *arrs and Jellyfin and so far I love it. Works for me so far. the .strm files are moved and renamed in my libraries and I don't have to keep them separated. I am using with RD and will try with TB soon.
