The browser version of IPTVnator ships as one Docker image: the web app plus the backend that fetches playlists and talks to portals. Run it on a home server, open it from any device on your network, and keep the desktop app for the features a browser cannot offer.
The compose file in the repository is ready to use. The snippet below is the same thing without the build stage, for hosts that only pull images.
On the host
Install Docker and Docker Compose on the machine that will host IPTVnator. A home server, a NAS or a spare computer all work; the image is published for amd64 and arm64.
Save the compose file from the repository, or copy the command below into a directory of your choice.
Start the container. On the first run Docker pulls the image; later runs start in seconds.
Open the address in any browser on the same device and add your first source: an M3U playlist, an Xtream Codes login or a Stalker portal.
docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.yml up --build -dservices:
iptvnator:
image: 4gray/iptvnator:latest
restart: unless-stopped
ports:
- "4333:80"
environment:
CLIENT_URL: http://localhost:4333docker compose up -dThe app answers on http://localhost:4333. The full compose file with health check and all variables is in the repository.
Everything the browser needs to run IPTVnator on its own, and nothing that needs a desktop.
The same interface as the desktop app: sources, dashboard, live TV, movies and series with details, favorites, history and search across sources.
Browsers block cross-origin requests, so the container ships an Express backend that fetches playlists and proxies Xtream and Stalker calls under /api. No second container.
Xtream and Stalker sources publish their own schedule, and it shows in the channel list and under the player in the browser too.
Run it once on the server and open it from any laptop, tablet or phone on your network. Each browser keeps its own sources and history.
The backend accepts only http and https provider URLs, rejects credentials in URLs, and refuses private and loopback targets unless you opt in, so a public instance cannot be turned into a scanner of your network.
The entrypoint starts the backend, waits for its health endpoint, then starts nginx; if either exits, the container exits and Compose restarts it.
A browser tab cannot launch other programs, write files where it likes or keep a database the size of a TV guide. So the browser version has no MPV or VLC handoff, no embedded MPV engine, no downloads or recordings, no XMLTV guide and no manual channel mapping, no search across every source, and no phone remote. Xtream and Stalker schedules still show, because they come from the provider on demand.
The full side-by-side table is on the desktop vs browser comparison.
Data lives in the browser
Sources, favorites and history are stored by the browser you use, not by the container. A second device starts empty, and clearing site data removes them. Replacing the container loses nothing, since it keeps no state of its own.
Defaults are safe for a local install. Change them when the app is reachable under another address or sits behind a reverse proxy.
Behind a reverse proxy
Set CLIENT_URL to the public origin, for example https://tv.example.home, or the backend rejects the browser's requests as cross-origin. Keep the /api path, and put your own authentication or a VPN in front: the app has no accounts, and whoever reaches it can use your providers.
Yes, built from the same code. What it lacks is everything that needs to reach outside a browser tab: launching MPV or VLC, the embedded MPV engine, downloading files, storing an XMLTV guide, mapping EPG channels by hand, search across every source and the phone remote. Portal schedules from Xtream and Stalker sources still work.
No. The image contains nginx for the web app and the backend that fetches playlists and proxies portal requests, wired together under one origin. The older standalone backend image is not needed.
Yes. Point your proxy at the container port and set CLIENT_URL to the public https origin so the backend accepts requests from it. Keep the /api path intact, since the app expects the backend there.
Treat it as a private service. The app has no user accounts, and the backend proxies requests to your providers on behalf of whoever can reach it. Put it behind your own authenticating proxy or a VPN, and leave the private-network proxy switch off.
In the browser you use, not in the container: playlist metadata in IndexedDB and portal user data in local storage. Another browser or device starts empty, and clearing site data removes the sources. The container itself keeps no state, so replacing it loses nothing.
Browser engines cannot decode every codec, and there is no external player to hand the stream to. Use the copy-URL action on the stream and open it in MPV, VLC or IINA yourself, or use the desktop app, which automates that step.
Usually a dual-stack host behind an IPv4-only VPN or Docker network. The backend already gives the IPv6-to-IPv4 fallback 2.5 seconds instead of Node's default; check the container logs for the hostname and error code, and the docker README describes the last-resort option that disables the racing entirely.
This page covers the decisions. The docker README covers every variable, the IPv6 fallback, private certificate authorities and how the image is built.
Runtime configuration, image tags, IPv6 and VPN notes, local validation.
The full capability table for the two editions.
Windows, macOS and Linux builds with every desktop feature.
Import an M3U or M3U8 playlist into IPTVnator from a URL, a file or pasted text, keep it updated, and attach an XMLTV program guide. Covers channel groups, catch-up attributes, EPG matching by tvg-id, and the usual reasons a playlist or guide does not load.
Read more
Connect an Xtream Codes API provider to IPTVnator step by step. What the server URL, username and password are, how to test the login, how to paste the message from your provider, and what to do when the portal refuses to connect.
Read more
Add a Stalker portal to IPTVnator step by step. Which URL shapes work, how the MAC address is normalized, what device IDs and serial numbers are for, how IPTVnator detects the portal type, and what the usual refusals mean.
Read moreOfficial downloads only
IPTVnator is a player, not a TV service. It is distributed exclusively through GitHub releases and the package managers listed on this page. Websites that sell "IPTVnator subscriptions", channel packages or "activated" copies are not affiliated with the project. How to recognize unofficial sites.