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Search Configuration

Configure automated search and request integration for qBitrr.

Overview

qBitrr can automatically trigger searches in your Arr instances for:

  • Missing media
  • Quality upgrades
  • User requests from Overseerr/Ombi
  • Failed downloads (re-search after blacklisting)

Configure qBitrr to periodically search for missing content:

[[Radarr]]
Name = "Radarr-Main"
SearchMissing = true
SearchPeriodDays = 7  # Search every 7 days

This will automatically search for:

  • Movies marked as "Wanted" in Radarr
  • TV episodes marked as "Monitored" in Sonarr
  • Albums marked as "Monitored" in Lidarr

Search Intervals

Control how often qBitrr searches:

[[Radarr]]
SearchPeriodDays = 1   # Daily (aggressive)
SearchPeriodDays = 7   # Weekly (recommended)
SearchPeriodDays = 30  # Monthly (conservative)

Recommendations: - Daily - For new/popular content - Weekly - Balanced approach - Monthly - For established libraries

Request Integration

Overseerr

Integrate qBitrr with Overseerr for request-driven automation:

[Settings.Overseerr]
Enabled = true
URI = "http://localhost:5055"
APIKey = "your-overseerr-api-key"
CheckInterval = 300  # Check every 5 minutes

Features: - Monitor new requests - Trigger immediate searches - Priority handling for user requests - Status updates back to Overseerr

Ombi

Configure Ombi integration similarly:

[Settings.Ombi]
Enabled = true
URI = "http://localhost:3579"
APIKey = "your-ombi-api-key"
CheckInterval = 300

Request Priority

Prioritize searches for user requests:

[[Radarr]]
PrioritizeRequests = true  # Search requests first
RequestSearchDelay = 60    # Wait 1 minute after request

Quality Upgrades

Enable Upgrade Searches

Search for better quality releases:

[[Radarr]]
SearchUpgrades = true
UpgradePeriodDays = 14  # Search for upgrades every 2 weeks

Upgrade Criteria

Configure what qualifies as an upgrade:

[[Radarr]]
# Only upgrade if:
MinimumQualityGain = "1080p"  # At least 1080p
CustomFormatScore = 100        # CF score improvement

When a download fails, automatically search again:

[[Radarr]]
AutoResearchFailed = true
ResearchDelay = 300        # Wait 5 minutes before re-searching
MaxResearchAttempts = 3    # Try up to 3 times

Blacklist Behavior

Configure blacklisting of failed releases:

[[Radarr]]
BlacklistFailed = true      # Blacklist failed torrents
BlacklistMinSize = 104857600  # Only blacklist if > 100MB

Search Limits

Rate Limiting

Prevent overwhelming your indexers:

[Settings]
MaxSearchesPerHour = 60    # Limit to 60 searches/hour
SearchDelaySeconds = 10    # Wait 10s between searches

Concurrent Searches

Limit parallel searches:

[Settings]
MaxConcurrentSearches = 5  # Max 5 simultaneous searches

Search Modes

Radarr Search Modes

  • Standard - Normal movie search
  • Interactive - Allow manual selection
  • RSS - Grab from RSS feeds
[[Radarr]]
SearchMode = "Standard"  # or "Interactive" or "RSS"

Sonarr Search Modes

  • Series - Search entire series
  • Season - Search specific season
  • Episode - Search individual episodes
[[Sonarr]]
DefaultSearchMode = "Episode"  # More targeted

Advanced Search Options

Custom Format Requirements

Only search if custom format requirements can be met:

[[Radarr]]
RequireCustomFormat = true
MinimumCustomFormatScore = 100

Release Restrictions

Filter searches by release properties:

[[Radarr]]
PreferredWords = ["PROPER", "REPACK"]
ForbiddenWords = ["CAM", "TS"]
MinSeeders = 5  # Require at least 5 seeders

Search Triggers

qBitrr triggers searches in these scenarios:

  1. Scheduled - Based on SearchPeriodDays
  2. On Request - When new Overseerr/Ombi request
  3. On Failure - After torrent fails/is blacklisted
  4. Manual - Via WebUI or API
  5. On Import - If configured to search for upgrades

Monitoring Searches

Search Logs

Monitor search activity in logs:

# Check search activity
grep "search" ~/config/logs/Radarr-Main.log

Search History

qBitrr tracks search history in the database:

SELECT * FROM searches ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 10;

Troubleshooting

Too Many Searches

Problem: qBitrr is searching too frequently

Solutions: 

# Increase search interval
SearchPeriodDays = 14

# Reduce concurrent searches
MaxConcurrentSearches = 2

# Add delay between searches
SearchDelaySeconds = 30

No Search Results

Problem: Searches return no results

Solutions: - Check indexer configuration in Arr instance - Verify indexers are accessible - Review search criteria (too restrictive?) - Check Arr logs for errors

Request Integration Not Working

Problem: Overseerr/Ombi requests not triggering searches

Solutions: - Verify API key is correct - Check Overseerr/Ombi is accessible - Ensure CheckInterval is reasonable - Review logs for connection errors

Best Practices

Search Frequency

  • New Libraries - Search more frequently (daily)
  • Established Libraries - Search less often (weekly/monthly)
  • Request-Driven - Enable Overseerr/Ombi integration

Resource Management

  • Limit concurrent searches to avoid overload
  • Add delays between searches
  • Use reasonable check intervals
  • Monitor indexer hit limits

Quality Over Quantity

  • Set minimum quality requirements
  • Use custom format scoring
  • Blacklist problematic releases
  • Prioritize quality upgrades

Configuration Examples

Aggressive Search (New Library)

[[Radarr]]
Name = "Radarr-New"
SearchMissing = true
SearchPeriodDays = 1        # Daily
SearchUpgrades = true
UpgradePeriodDays = 3       # Upgrade search every 3 days
PrioritizeRequests = true

Conservative Search (Established Library)

[[Radarr]]
Name = "Radarr-Established"
SearchMissing = true
SearchPeriodDays = 30       # Monthly
SearchUpgrades = false      # No automatic upgrades
MaxSearchesPerHour = 10     # Limited searches

Request-Focused Configuration

[Settings.Overseerr]
Enabled = true
URI = "http://overseerr:5055"
APIKey = "overseerr-api-key"
CheckInterval = 180  # Check every 3 minutes

[[Radarr]]
PrioritizeRequests = true
RequestSearchDelay = 30     # Quick response
SearchMissing = false       # Only search requests

Future Features

Planned enhancements for search configuration:

  • Webhook support for custom triggers
  • Advanced scheduling (cron-like)
  • Search quota management
  • A/B testing for search strategies
  • Machine learning-based search optimization

Note: Overseerr and Ombi integration are planned features. Check the latest release notes for availability.