*arr apps rely on outside metadata servers for searches and imports
Sonarr, Radarr, and Lidarr—the group often called *arr apps—send search and add requests to metadata services run by their project teams. In a firsthand Lidarr test, importing music from Spotify failed because a lookup request to api.lidarr.audio returned .
Connection details showed that the service sat behind and included cache and network-error reporting information. This means that even when the app runs on a , related searches and additions still pass through outside , with no opt-out found.
If that metadata service is down, the local app cannot complete the task, making it a that the server owner cannot repair. Movies, shows, and songs could instead be looked up directly from other data sources; using the middle service can also prevent adding unknown artists or material from sources the owner already has when its catalog lacks that information.
Key points
- Sonarr, Radarr, and Lidarr depend on project-run metadata servers for searching and adding media.
- A Lidarr Spotify lookup failed at api.lidarr.audio with a error.
- The service was behind and returned cache and network-error reporting information.
- The local app may be unable to finish a search or addition when the middle service is down or lacks the requested media.
- No option to disable the outside connection was found.