Unraid Deployment

Deploy Borg UI on Unraid server

Overview

Borg UI can be easily deployed on Unraid servers using either the Community Applications (CA) plugin or manual Docker setup.

Method 1: Community Applications (Recommended)

1. Install Community Applications

   If not already installed:

   1. Go to Plugins tab
   2. Click Install Plugin
   3. Search for “Community Applications”
   4. Install the plugin
2. Search for Borg UI

   1. Click the Apps tab
   2. Search for “Borg UI” or “borg-web-ui”
   3. Click on the Borg UI application
3. Configure the container

   Review and adjust the default settings if needed. See Configuration section below.

4. Install and start

   1. Click Install
   2. Wait for the container to download and start
   3. Access at http://your-unraid-ip:8081

Method 2: Manual Docker Setup

If Borg UI is not yet available in Community Applications:

1. Go to Docker tab

   Navigate to Docker in the Unraid web interface.

2. Add container

   1. Click Add Container
   2. Set template to Basic View or Advanced View
3. Configure basic settings

   Name: borg-web-ui
   Repository: ainullcode/borg-ui:latest
   Network Type: Bridge
   Privileged: On (required only for remote-to-remote backups via SSHFS)
   
4. Configure port mapping

   Port 8081:
     Container Port: 8081
     Host Port: 8081
     Connection Type: TCP
   
5. Add path mappings

   Click Add another Path, Port, Variable, Label or Device

   Application Data:
     Container Path: /data
     Host Path: /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui
     Access Mode: Read/Write
   
   Borg Cache:
     Container Path: /home/borg/.cache/borg
     Host Path: /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui/cache
     Access Mode: Read/Write
   
   Local Storage:
     Container Path: /local
     Host Path: /mnt/user
     Access Mode: Read/Write
   

   Adjust the Host Path for Local Storage based on what directories you want to backup. Common options:

   • /mnt/user - All user shares
   • /mnt/user/documents - Specific share
   • /mnt/disk1 - Specific disk
6. Add environment variables

   PUID:
     Key: PUID
     Value: 99 (default Unraid nobody user)
   
   PGID:
     Key: PGID
     Value: 100 (default Unraid users group)
   
   TZ:
     Key: TZ
     Value: America/New_York (your timezone)
   
   PORT:
     Key: PORT
     Value: 8081
   
7. Apply and start

   1. Click Apply
   2. Container will download and start automatically
   3. Access at http://your-unraid-ip:8081

Configuration

Port Mapping

Container Port	Host Port	Protocol	Description
8081	8081	TCP	Web interface

You can change the Host Port to any available port on your Unraid server if 8081 is already in use.

Path Mappings

Application Data

Container Path: /data
Host Path: /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui
Access Mode: Read/Write

Stores database, SSH keys, configuration files, and logs.

Borg Cache

Container Path: /home/borg/.cache/borg
Host Path: /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui/cache
Access Mode: Read/Write

Improves backup performance by caching repository metadata.

Backup Sources

All user shares

Container Path: /local
Host Path: /mnt/user
Access Mode: Read/Write

Container Path: /documents
Host Path: /mnt/user/documents
Access Mode: Read/Write

# First share
Container Path: /documents
Host Path: /mnt/user/documents
Access Mode: Read/Write

# Second share
Container Path: /media
Host Path: /mnt/user/media
Access Mode: Read/Write

# Add LOCAL_MOUNT_POINTS variable:
Key: LOCAL_MOUNT_POINTS
Value: /documents,/media

Container Path: /disk1
Host Path: /mnt/disk1
Access Mode: Read/Write

Use Read/Write access mode only for directories you want to backup or restore to. Use Read Only for source-only directories.

Environment Variables

Required

Variable	Value	Description
PUID	99	User ID (99 = nobody on Unraid)
PGID	100	Group ID (100 = users on Unraid)
TZ	America/New_York	Your timezone

To find your timezone: List of tz database time zones

Optional

Variable	Default	Description
PORT	8081	Web interface port
LOG_LEVEL	INFO	Logging level (DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR)
INITIAL_ADMIN_PASSWORD	admin123	Initial admin password
ENVIRONMENT	production	Application environment
LOCAL_MOUNT_POINTS	/local	Comma-separated list of mount points

Borg Timeouts (for large repositories)

Variable	Default	Description
BORG_INFO_TIMEOUT	600	borg info operations (seconds)
BORG_LIST_TIMEOUT	600	borg list operations (seconds)
BORG_INIT_TIMEOUT	300	borg init operations (seconds)
BORG_EXTRACT_TIMEOUT	3600	borg extract operations (seconds)
SCRIPT_TIMEOUT	120	Pre/post backup scripts (seconds)

Docker Socket (Optional)

To enable stopping/starting other Docker containers during backups:

Container Path: /var/run/docker.sock
Host Path: /var/run/docker.sock
Access Mode: Read/Write

This gives the container access to the Docker daemon. Only enable if you need to manage other containers during backups.

Adding Redis for Faster Archive Browsing

For 600x faster archive browsing, add a Redis container:

1. Add Redis container

   1. Go to Docker tab
   2. Click Add Container
   3. Configure:
      Name: borg-redis
      Repository: redis:7-alpine
      Network Type: Bridge
      
2. Add port mapping

   Port 6379:
     Container Port: 6379
     Host Port: 6379
     Connection Type: TCP
   
3. Add custom arguments

   In Extra Parameters field:

   --maxmemory 2gb --maxmemory-policy allkeys-lru --save "" --appendonly no
   
4. Apply and start Redis

   Click Apply and start the Redis container.

5. Update Borg UI container

   Add these environment variables to the Borg UI container:

   REDIS_HOST:
     Key: REDIS_HOST
     Value: [Unraid IP address]
   
   REDIS_PORT:
     Key: REDIS_PORT
     Value: 6379
   
   REDIS_DB:
     Key: REDIS_DB
     Value: 0
   
   CACHE_TTL_SECONDS:
     Key: CACHE_TTL_SECONDS
     Value: 7200
   
   CACHE_MAX_SIZE_MB:
     Key: CACHE_MAX_SIZE_MB
     Value: 2048
   
6. Restart Borg UI

   Restart the borg-web-ui container to apply changes.

Unraid-Specific Features

Backing Up Array Data

Borg UI can backup your Unraid array data:

1. Mount user shares: /mnt/user → /local
2. Create repository pointing to local path or remote SSH server
3. Configure source directories:
   • /local/appdata - Docker persistent data
   • /local/documents - User files
   • /local/media - Media files

Backing Up Specific Disks

To backup individual disks:

1. Add path mapping for each disk:

   Container Path: /disk1
   Host Path: /mnt/disk1
   

2. Create repository with source: /disk1

VM/Docker Integration

Stop containers/VMs before backup using pre-backup scripts:

1. Mount Docker socket (see Docker Socket)

2. Create pre-backup script:

   #!/bin/bash
   docker stop plex
   docker stop nextcloud
   

3. Create post-backup script:

   #!/bin/bash
   docker start plex
   docker start nextcloud
   

Accessing the Interface

Local Access

http://your-unraid-ip:8081

Default credentials:

• Username: admin
• Password: admin123

Change the admin password immediately after first login.

Via Unraid WebUI

The container icon in the Docker tab will link directly to the web interface.

Reverse Proxy via Nginx Proxy Manager

Many Unraid users run Nginx Proxy Manager. See the Reverse Proxy guide for configuration.

Managing the Container

View Logs

1. Go to Docker tab
2. Click on borg-web-ui container
3. Select Logs

Update Container

1. Stop container

   Click the container icon and select Stop.

2. Remove container

   Click Remove (your data is safe in /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui).

3. Reinstall

   If using CA, reinstall from Apps tab. Otherwise, create the container again with the same settings. It will pull the latest image.

Auto-Update

Consider using the Docker Auto Update plugin:

1. Install from CA: “Docker Auto Update”
2. Configure to auto-update borg-web-ui
3. Set update schedule (e.g., weekly)

Backup Best Practices

What to Backup

Critical data

• /mnt/user/appdata - Docker configurations
• User share data (documents, photos, etc.)
• VM images (if not too large)

What NOT to backup

• /mnt/cache - Temporary files
• Downloaded media being processed
• System files (Unraid itself)

Remote Backup Targets

Recommended remote backup destinations:

1. Another local server via SSH
2. Cloud storage - Hetzner Storage Box, BorgBase
3. External drive mounted via Unassigned Devices plugin

Scheduling

Recommended schedule:

• AppData: Daily at 2 AM
• User files: Daily at 3 AM
• Media: Weekly on Sunday at 4 AM

Troubleshooting

Container won’t start

1. Check logs in Docker tab
2. Verify port 8081 is not in use:
   netstat -tulpn | grep 8081
   
3. Try different host port

Permission errors

1. Verify PUID=99 and PGID=100
2. Check ownership of appdata:
   ls -la /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui
   
3. Fix if needed:
   chown -R 99:100 /mnt/user/appdata/borg-ui
   

Cannot access files

1. Verify path mappings are correct
2. Check host path exists:
   ls -la /mnt/user
   
3. Ensure Access Mode is Read/Write

Backups failing

1. Check repository is accessible
2. Verify source paths are mounted correctly
3. Check available disk space
4. Review logs in Borg UI interface

Next Steps

Reverse Proxy

Set up SSL with Nginx Proxy Manager

Docker Compose

Alternative deployment method