rclone

rclone is a command-line tool used in DMB to mount cloud storage—specifically Debrid services like Real-Debrid—into the container as a local file system. It works in tandem with Zurg and is configured automatically during container startup.

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⚙️ Configuration Settings in dmb_config.json

Each rclone instance is defined under the rclone.instances section in dmb_config.json. Example:

"rclone": {
  "instances": {
    "RealDebrid": {
      "enabled": true,
      "process_name": "rclone w/ RealDebrid",
      "suppress_logging": false,
      "log_level": "INFO",
      "key_type": "RealDebrid",
      "zurg_enabled": true,
      "mount_dir": "/data",
      "mount_name": "rclone_RD",
      "cache_dir": "/cache",
      "config_dir": "/config",
      "config_file": "/config/rclone.config",
      "zurg_config_file": "/zurg/RD/config.yml",
      "command": [],
      "api_key": ""
    }
  }
},

🔍 Configuration Key Descriptions

• enabled: Whether this rclone instance should be started.
• process_name: The label used in logs and process tracking.
• suppress_logging: If true, disables log output for this service.
• log_level: Logging verbosity level (e.g., DEBUG, INFO).
• key_type: The debrid service to use (RealDebrid, AllDebrid, etc.).
• zurg_enabled: Whether Zurg is linked to this rclone mount.
• mount_dir: The container path where the remote drive is to be mounted.
• mount_name: The rclone remote name.
• cache_dir: Directory used by rclone for VFS caching, when enabled.
• config_dir: Directory where the rclone config file is stored.
• config_file: Full path to the rclone configuration file.
• zurg_config_file: Full path to the Zurg config file for this instance.
• command: Custom CLI arguments to be appended to rclone at runtime.
• api_key: (Optional) Debrid API key, used if Zurg is not linked.

🔁 API Key Behavior

• If zurg_enabled & zurg_config_file are set: DMB will configure rclone to use Zurg's WebDAV endpoint. The API key should be defined in the Zurg instance, not the rclone one.
• If zurg_enabled & zurg_config_file are unset or blank: (Future release) DMB will configure rclone to directly connect to the debrid service, and the API key must be set in the rclone instance.

➕ Adding More Instances

Users can define additional rclone instances by duplicating the structure and ensuring:

• Each instance name is unique
• Each process_name is unique
• The key_type must match the type of Debrid service used (e.g., RealDebrid, AllDebrid, TorBox, Premiumize)

Example:

"rclone": {
  "instances": {
    "RealDebrid": {
      "enabled": true,
      "process_name": "rclone w/ RealDebrid",
      "suppress_logging": false,
      "log_level": "INFO",
      "key_type": "RealDebrid",
      "zurg_enabled": true,
      "mount_dir": "/data",
      "mount_name": "rclone_RD",
      "cache_dir": "/cache",
      "config_dir": "/config",
      "config_file": "/config/rclone.config",
      "zurg_config_file": "/zurg/RD/config.yml",
      "command": [],
      "api_key": ""
    },    
    "AllDebrid": {
      "enabled": false,
      "process_name": "rclone w/ AllDebrid",
      "suppress_logging": false,
      "log_level": "INFO",
      "key_type": "AllDebrid",
      "zurg_enabled": false,
      "mount_dir": "/data",
      "mount_name": "rclone_AD",
      "cache_dir": "/cache",
      "config_dir": "/config",
      "config_file": "/config/rclone.config",
      "zurg_config_file": "",
      "command": [],
      "api_key": ""
    }
  }
}

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🧠 Features Enabled by DMB

🔄 Auto-Generated rclone.config

DMB generates the required rclone.config file at runtime. This includes:

[rclone_RD]
type = webdav
url = http://localhost:9999/dav
vendor = other
pacer_min_sleep = 0

This eliminates the need for any manual setup.

🔒 Debrid API Integration

DMB supports multiple Debrid configurations (Future release) using a combination of rclone and zurg instances.

🧲 Works With Zurg

Zurg exposes a WebDAV server which rclone mounts using the configuration above.

🔧 rclone Flags via Environment Variables

All --flag=value options in rclone can be passed as environment variables. Format:

RCLONE_<OPTION_NAME_UPPERCASE>=<value>

Example:

RCLONE_VFS_CACHE_MODE=full
RCLONE_BUFFER_SIZE=64M
RCLONE_ATTR_TIMEOUT=30s

This enables advanced control without modifying CLI or config files.

For more info, see rclone docs.

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📚 Optimizing rclone for Media Server Usage

To improve streaming performance and reduce excessive bandwidth usage when using rclone with media servers (e.g., Plex, Jellyfin, Emby), consider tuning the mount behavior using additional flags.

VFS cache will use hard drive space, so ensure you set an appropriate max size for your system

You can apply these flags in three ways:

1. As environment variables in Docker Compose or .env (Recommended):

   Note

   Applying the below will make these settings applicable to all rclone instances.

   If you prefer to apply settings per-instance, then see option 2 or 3.

   RCLONE_VFS_CACHE_MODE=full
   RCLONE_VFS_READ_CHUNK_SIZE=1M
   RCLONE_VFS_READ_CHUNK_SIZE_LIMIT=32M
   RCLONE_BUFFER_SIZE=64M
   RCLONE_DIR_CACHE_TIME=10s
   RCLONE_VFS_CACHE_MAX_AGE=6h
   RCLONE_VFS_CACHE_MAX_SIZE=100G
   RCLONE_ATTR_TIMEOUT=1s
   RCLONE_TPSLIMIT=10
   RCLONE_TPSLIMIT_BURST=10
   

2. By modifying the command list in the dmb_config.json rclone instance:

   Note

   The command field is empty by default ("command": []) because DMB generates the rclone command dynamically during setup and applies it in memory.

   If you add custom arguments to the command list, it will override the auto-generated defaults.

   You will be responsible for maintaining all required options, such as --mount-name and --mount-dir.

   To revert to default behavior, simply clear the field again by setting "command": [].

   Example default command DMB generates:

   "command": [
     "rclone",
     "mount",
     "rclone_RD:",
     "/data/rclone_RD",
     "--config", "/config/rclone.config",
     "--uid=1000",
     "--gid=1000",
     "--allow-other",
     "--poll-interval=0",
     "--dir-cache-time=10s",
     "--allow-non-empty"
   ]
   

   To apply performance optimizations:

   "command": [
     "rclone",
     "mount",
     "rclone_RD:",
     "/data/rclone_RD",
     "--config", "/config/rclone.config",
     "--uid=1000",
     "--gid=1000",
     "--allow-other",
     "--poll-interval=0",
     "--dir-cache-time=10s",
     "--allow-non-empty",
     "--vfs-cache-mode=full",
     "--vfs-read-chunk-size=1M",
     "--vfs-read-chunk-size-limit=32M",
     "--buffer-size=64M",
     "--vfs-cache-max-age=6h",
     "--vfs-cache-max-size=100G",
     "--attr-timeout=1s",
     "--tpslimit=10",
     "--tpslimit-burst=10"
   ]
   

3. Using the DMB Frontend to edit the instance config and add these options under command.

   • Use the "Apply in Memory" button to test changes without saving. This temporarily updates the in-memory config.
   • Use the "Save to File" button to persist changes to dmb_config.json.
   • After either action, press the "Restart" button for the changes to take effect.

🌐 Settings Description

Setting	Value	Description
--config	/config/rclone.config	Path to the rclone config file generated by DMB.
--uid	1000	UID to mount as (Linked to PUID).
--gid	1000	GID to mount as (Linked to PGID).
--allow-other	(enabled)	Allows other processes (like Plex) to access the mount.
--poll-interval	0	Disables polling for changes (not supported by debrid remotes).
--dir-cache-time	10s	Cache directory structure for 10 seconds.
--allow-non-empty	(enabled)	Allows mounting to non-empty directories.
--vfs-cache-mode	full	Allows writing & deletion, necessary for media server interaction.
--vfs-read-chunk-size	1M	Minimizes initial bandwidth usage per file during scans.
--vfs-read-chunk-size-limit	32M	Allows efficient chunking during actual playback.
--buffer-size	64M	Buffers streaming into RAM per open file (adjust to your available RAM).
--vfs-cache-max-age	6h	Removes old cache files to preserve space.
--vfs-cache-max-size	100G	Limits total disk cache size.
--attr-timeout	1s	Prevents stale attribute caching.
--tpslimit / --tpslimit-burst	10	Prevents overwhelming debrid APIs with too many requests.

⚡ Buffer Size Tips

Adjust --buffer-size based on the system RAM:

System RAM	Recommended --buffer-size
< 4 GB	16M
4–8 GB	32M–64M
8–16 GB	128M–256M
> 16 GB	256M–512M+

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💻 Accessing rclone Inside the Container

To run rclone commands manually:

docker exec -it DMB /bin/bash
rclone listremotes
rclone mount rclone_RD: /mnt/test

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🧠 Tips

• Mounts are bind-mounted into the container by default.
• If you mount /data to the host, you will see all Zurg-fetched content.
• Use the RCLONE_LOG_LEVEL env var to control verbosity.

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📚 Resources

• rclone Documentation
• WebDAV Docs
• rclone Environment Variables