Jellyfin runs on my mini pc single Debian VM. Until recently, I was putting that VM under more tasks than it should be able to handle. On a Proxmox-based mini PC, Jellyfin ran movies and shows. Caliber-web took care of my e-books. Come on directed all the comics. Audio bookshelf organized all audiobooks. Four separate services, four separate entrances. All for the same broad task: to show me media library.
Jellyfin 12 changed all that and gave me a real reason to stop running three of those four apps and finally rely on Jellyfin’s book support.
Jellyfin was for videos and three was for everything
From the beginning, Jellyfin was never a problem. It’s been my go-to local media server for movies and shows ever since Disconnect from Plex. But gradually I realized the limitations of Jellyfin as a media server. Everything but movies and shows was an afterthought.
So I ran Caliber-web only for ebooks, which made them searchable and readable even in a web browser. Komga stepped in when I wanted to read digital copies of comics and manga while keeping up with the advances in reading. For audiobooks, I used Audiobookshelf as my collection continued to grow beyond a few MP3 files. I wanted a chapter-aware listening experience and a way to track my listening progress.
Each program had a specific job and each one was good at it. I didn’t port any of these libraries to Jellyfin to avoid duplication or metadata confusion. So none of the apps talked to Jellyfin and vice versa.
Scans finally keep up with the library
Jellyfin has always supported books in its media library, but it still felt secondary to video. However, he was not native. It’s gone through the community-driven Bookshelf plugin to manage ebooks, comics, and audiobooks under a single folder structure. When I first installed Jellyfin years ago, I added the folders to the books library. But the absence proper metadata support books made me stick with Jellyfin as a video streaming server.
Jellyfin 12 is the release that made me reconsider this approach. The Bookshelf plugin has been rebuilt on a more solid foundation. It is described as a significant expansion of the possibilities of working with books and audiobooks. For starters, file identification and metadata extraction are noticeably improved. Author pages display relevant information from other pages instead of remaining blank. Library scans are faster and more predictable between folders.
It took one plugin to get there, not the three separate programs I was used to. The Bookshelf plugin does not ship with a fresh Jellyfin 12 installation. I had to add the books library option before it appeared. Once logged in, the folder structure and format support just worked.
Moving three libraries took an afternoon instead of a weekend
The same files and folders work without special programs
The actual migration of the libraries was simpler than I expected. In Jellyfin’s books library, I added three separate folders for books, audiobooks, and comics. I already had sync with Komga, Audiobookshelf and Calibre-web media folders. So I just pointed Jellyfin’s library of books into the appropriate folders.
Jellyfin 12 also brings wider book format support natively with CBZ, CBR, CBT, CB7, EPUB, MOBI, AZW, AZW3, ZIP, RAR, 7Z and PDF. It also supports popular audiobook formats such as MP3 and M4B. So I didn’t have to convert a file.
After the first sync, I noticed that metadata for authors needed some attention. Except for EPUB files, which carry their own internal metadata, I added the metadata provider plugins from the Jellyfin plugin directory:
These plugins make it easy to get metadata for books and comics from relevant sources. To forcefully identify a book, you must use the Google Book ID (URL) or ISBN. The Comic Vine plugin made it easy to draw covers for comics. Only audiobooks in MP3 format inside the folders caused the plugin problem. No matter how hard I tried, the Bookshelf plugin didn’t get the metadata for them. Next, I hope the SmartCovers plugin will be updated to support Jellyfin 12. So far I haven’t uninstalled Audiobookshelf, Komga or Caliber-web. I can start them anytime.
Reading continues with a mobile catch for audiobooks
The moment I lock my phone screen, the sound dies
Jellyfin’s book libraries maintain themselves well and even work in a web interface. Chapter navigation and user progress are tracked in Jellyfin, just like in Audiobookshelf. If there is a list of chapters embedded in the M4B file, all these chapters appear in a special audiobook client that supports the Jellyfin media server. The official Jellyfin client for audiobooks syncs progress with the server so I can continue listening on desktop or in a web browser.
One quirk I’ve noticed with the Jellyfin app (iPhone) is that when I lock the phone screen, the book mutes. This happened to me twice and I assumed the playback had stopped. If you tend to keep your phone in your pocket and turn off the screen, try another audiobook client Plap On iOS or He listened on Android.
Jellyfin has become not just a player, but a real media library
The VM has noticeably more RAM and CPU free space so I’ve reduced its allocation by a few gigs. To be clear, I have not removed Calibre-web, Audiobookshelf, or Komga. They are just asleep. If the Bookshelf plugin in Jellyfin 12 is still having trouble covering all the media I’ve placed, I can always restart the disabled services.
Would I ever return them? Maybe. If the lock screen playback problem continues to bother me more than it already has. But for now, the plugin does what I assigned to three separate programs. I didn’t use separate programs for certain types of media. I thought I needed four separate logins to use them all.
- Compatible with iOS
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Yes
- Compatible with Android
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Yes
- Desktop compatible
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Yes
Jellyfin is one of the best Plex alternatives you can get, thanks to its open source nature and powerful feature set. There are apps for basically every platform, and running your own server is completely free.
