Emby MDBList Collection Creator — Home Assistant Add-on

A Home Assistant add-on that syncs MDBList.com lists to Emby collections, with a built-in Web UI for configuration and monitoring.

Based on Emby-MDBList-Collection-Creator by jonjonsson. The core sync engine (MDBList API, Emby API, item sorting, metadata refresh, seasonal collections) is entirely his work. This fork adds a Web UI, Home Assistant add-on packaging, and Docker/ingress support. Please consider supporting the original author on Patreon.

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What This Fork Adds

Feature	Details
Web UI	Flask-based dashboard with pages for Settings, Collections, and Logs — no more editing config.cfg by hand
Home Assistant Add-on	One-click install via HACS, with ingress support (runs inside the HA sidebar)
Docker image	Standalone Docker image published to ghcr.io/lymestone/embymdblist-ha
Live sync controls	Dashboard shows sync status, last/next sync time, and a "Sync Now" button
Background sync	Daemon thread runs sync cycles automatically; config changes via the Web UI are picked up each cycle

Everything else — the sync logic, MDBList integration, Emby API calls, seasonal collections, sort-name tricks, metadata refresh — comes from the original project.

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Installation

Home Assistant (HACS)

1. In Home Assistant, go to HACS > 3-dot menu > Custom repositories
2. Add this repository URL: https://github.com/Lymestone/EmbyMBDList-HA
3. Category: Add-on
4. Install Emby MDBList Collection Creator from the add-on store
5. Start the add-on and open the Web UI from the sidebar or add-on page

Docker (standalone)

docker run -d \
  -v /path/to/config.cfg:/data/config.cfg \
  -p 5000:5000 \
  ghcr.io/lymestone/embymdblist-ha:latest

Or with Docker Compose:

services:
  emby-mdblist:
    image: ghcr.io/lymestone/embymdblist-ha:latest
    ports:
      - "5000:5000"
    volumes:
      - ./config.cfg:/data/config.cfg

Then open http://localhost:5000 in your browser.

Manual (Python)

pip install -r requirements.txt
python run.py

This starts the Web UI on port 5000 and the sync loop in the background.

To run just the sync script without the Web UI (original behavior):

python app.py

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Web UI

The Web UI provides four pages:

• Dashboard — sync status, last/next sync time, configured collections overview, and a manual "Sync Now" button
• Settings — configure Emby server URL, API keys, MDBList API key, sync interval, and all toggle options
• Collections — add, edit, and remove collections with their MDBList source URLs and per-collection settings
• Logs — live view of sync output

Screenshots coming soon — contributions welcome!

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Configuration

All original config.cfg options are supported. The Web UI reads and writes the same config file. See the original project's documentation for full details on:

• Collection setup (MDBList URLs, list IDs, user/list names)
• Sorting items by date added
• Metadata refresh for newly released content
• Seasonal/temporary collections
• Collection posters
• Backup & restore of watch history

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Original Features (from upstream)

All features from jonjonsson's v1.84 are included:

• List Conversion: Transform MDBList lists into Emby collections
• Metadata Refresh: Keep ratings up-to-date for newly released content
• Collection Images: Upload local or remote images for collection posters
• Seasonal Collections: Specify when a collection should be visible
• Collection Ordering: Show collections in order of last update
• Collection Descriptions: From MDBList or custom
• Backup & Restore: Utilities for watch history and favorites (app_backup.py, app_restore_backup.py)

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Credits

• Original project: Emby-MDBList-Collection-Creator by jonjonsson
• Plugin alternative: ACdb.tv Automated Collections — if you prefer an Emby plugin over a standalone script
• This fork: Web UI, Home Assistant add-on packaging, and Docker support by Lymestone

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License

The original project does not include a license file. This fork adds a Web UI and Home Assistant integration on top of that work. Please refer to the original repository for licensing questions.