Photo library: /opt/immich/library (or wherever UPLOAD_LOCATION points) Database: PostgreSQL database containing metadata, albums, faces Model cache: Optional (can be re-downloaded)

How to Self-Host Immich in 2026: Complete Setup Guide

What You're Setting Up

Immich (90K+ GitHub stars) replicates the Google Photos experience on your own server:

Automatic backup from iOS and Android (native apps)
AI-powered search ("find all photos of dogs at the beach")
Face recognition with named people
Timeline view, memories, shared albums
Video support with transcoding

This guide takes you from zero to a production-ready Immich installation with mobile backup configured and AI features working.

Server Requirements

Minimum (Small Library, CPU Only)

2 CPU cores
4GB RAM
Storage: enough for your photo library + 20% overhead for thumbnails and ML models

Recommended (Full AI Features)

4+ CPU cores
8GB RAM
Storage: library + thumbnails (plan for 2-5x raw storage)

With GPU Acceleration

NVIDIA GPU (compute capability 5.2+, driver 545+)
4GB VRAM minimum
GPU dramatically speeds AI indexing (hours → minutes for large libraries)

Recommended Servers (Hetzner)

Use Case	Server	Monthly
Personal (no GPU)	CAX21 (4GB ARM)	$6
Family/team (no GPU)	CPX31 (8GB)	$10
Fast AI indexing	CCX33 (16GB dedicated)	$35

Storage: Photo libraries grow. Use Hetzner Volumes ($0.044/GB/month) attached to your server rather than local SSD, or Hetzner Storage Box for S3-compatible storage.

Step 1: Prepare Your Server

# Update system
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

# Install Docker and Docker Compose
curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
# Log out and back in for group change to take effect

# Verify
docker --version
docker compose version

Create Directory Structure

sudo mkdir -p /opt/immich
sudo chown $USER:$USER /opt/immich
mkdir -p /opt/immich/library

The /opt/immich/library directory stores your actual photos. If you're using a separate volume for storage, mount it to this path.

Step 2: Configure Immich

Download Configuration Files

cd /opt/immich
wget https://github.com/immich-app/immich/releases/latest/download/docker-compose.yml
wget -O .env https://github.com/immich-app/immich/releases/latest/download/example.env

Edit the .env File

nano .env

Set these critical values:

# Strong password - letters and numbers only (no special characters)
DB_PASSWORD=YourStrongPassword123

# Where your photos are stored
UPLOAD_LOCATION=/opt/immich/library

# Immich version (use "release" for latest stable)
IMMICH_VERSION=release

# Your timezone
TZ=America/New_York

# Postgres settings
DB_USERNAME=postgres
DB_DATABASE_NAME=immich

Review the Docker Compose File

The default docker-compose.yml includes:

immich-server: Main application and API
immich-microservices: Background job processing
immich-machine-learning: AI/ML container for smart search and face recognition
redis: Job queue
database: PostgreSQL with pgvector extension

For basic setups, the default file works without modification.

Step 3: Start Immich

cd /opt/immich
docker compose up -d

Initial startup takes 2-5 minutes as the database initializes. Monitor progress:

docker compose logs -f immich-server

Wait until you see messages about the server starting successfully.

Verify Running Containers

docker compose ps

All containers should show "running" status. If any are restarting, check logs:

docker compose logs [service-name]

Step 4: Initial Configuration

Access Immich at http://your-server-ip:2283

Create Admin Account

The first user to register automatically becomes the admin. Register with your email and password.

After registering:

Go to Administration → Server Settings
Set your server's external URL (important for mobile app connection)

Import Existing Photos (Optional)

If you have an existing photo library to import:

# Install Immich CLI
npm install -g @immich/cli

# Authenticate
immich login https://your-server-ip:2283 your@email.com

# Import directory (preserves original dates from EXIF)
immich upload --recursive /path/to/your/photos/

# Import Google Takeout export
immich upload --recursive /path/to/takeout/Google\ Photos/

The CLI processes photos in batches and shows progress. For large libraries (100GB+), run in a screen session:

screen -S immich-import
immich upload --recursive /path/to/photos/
# Detach: Ctrl+A, D
# Reattach: screen -r immich-import

Step 5: Set Up the Mobile App

This is Immich's killer feature — automatic phone backup.

Install the App

iOS: App Store → search "Immich"
Android: Google Play or F-Droid → search "Immich"

Connect to Your Server

Open the Immich app
Enter your server URL: http://your-server-ip:2283 or https://your-domain.com
Log in with your Immich credentials

If using IP address: You need to be on the same network, or use a VPN (Tailscale, WireGuard) to access your home/server network remotely.

If using a domain with HTTPS: You can connect from anywhere without a VPN. Set up a reverse proxy (step 7) first.

Configure Backup

Tap the cloud icon (top right)
Toggle "Backup" to On
Select which albums to back up (default: all camera roll photos)
Configure:
- Background backup: On (backs up even when app is closed)
- Require charging: Recommended for large initial backups
- WiFi only: Recommended to avoid cellular data charges

Android-Specific: Battery Optimization

Android aggressively kills background apps. Disable battery optimization for Immich:

Settings → Apps → Immich → Battery
Select "Unrestricted" or "Don't optimize"

Without this, background backup may not trigger reliably.

iOS-Specific: Background App Refresh

Settings → General → Background App Refresh
Enable for Immich

Verify Backup

Back in the app, the backup status should show photos uploading. For large libraries, initial backup takes hours to days depending on library size and connection speed.

Check Immich web UI: Photos should appear as they upload. They'll be AI-indexed in the background after upload.

Step 6: Configure AI Features

Immich's machine learning container handles:

Smart Search: Search photos by content ("beach", "birthday cake", "dog")
Facial Recognition: Detect and group faces, assign names

Verify ML Container is Running

docker compose logs immich-machine-learning

You should see messages about model loading. On first run, Immich downloads AI models (~1-2GB). This takes 5-15 minutes.

Monitor Indexing Progress

In Immich web UI:

Administration → Jobs
Look for "Smart Search" and "Face Detection" jobs
These run automatically after photo upload

Initial indexing of a large library (10,000+ photos) takes hours on CPU, minutes with GPU acceleration.

Enable GPU Acceleration (NVIDIA)

If your server has an NVIDIA GPU with compute capability 5.2+:

Install NVIDIA Container Toolkit:

# Add NVIDIA repository
curl -fsSL https://nvidia.github.io/libnvidia-container/gpgkey | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-container-toolkit-keyring.gpg
curl -s -L https://nvidia.github.io/libnvidia-container/stable/deb/nvidia-container-toolkit.list | sed 's#deb https://#deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-container-toolkit-keyring.gpg] https://#g' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-container-toolkit.list
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y nvidia-container-toolkit
sudo nvidia-ctk runtime configure --runtime=docker
sudo systemctl restart docker

Edit docker-compose.yml — replace the immich-machine-learning service:

immich-machine-learning:
  container_name: immich_machine_learning
  image: ghcr.io/immich-app/immich-machine-learning:${IMMICH_VERSION:-release}-cuda
  runtime: nvidia
  deploy:
    resources:
      reservations:
        devices:
          - driver: nvidia
            count: 1
            capabilities:
              - gpu
  volumes:
    - model-cache:/cache
  env_file:
    - .env
  restart: always

Restart Immich:

docker compose up -d immich-machine-learning

GPU acceleration reduces AI indexing time by 5-20x depending on GPU model.

Step 7: Set Up HTTPS with Reverse Proxy

For remote access without VPN and for the mobile app to work from anywhere.

Option A: Caddy (Simplest)

Install Caddy:

sudo apt install -y debian-keyring debian-archive-keyring apt-transport-https curl
curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/gpg.key' | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/caddy-stable-archive-keyring.gpg
curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/debian.deb.txt' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/caddy-stable.list
sudo apt update && sudo apt install caddy

Configure /etc/caddy/Caddyfile:

photos.yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy localhost:2283
}

sudo systemctl restart caddy

Caddy automatically obtains and renews SSL certificates via Let's Encrypt.

Option B: Nginx with Certbot

sudo apt install -y nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Create /etc/nginx/sites-available/immich:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name photos.yourdomain.com;

    client_max_body_size 50000M;
    proxy_read_timeout 600s;
    proxy_send_timeout 600s;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:2283;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/immich /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d photos.yourdomain.com

Important: Set client_max_body_size 50000M (or higher) to allow large video uploads.

Update Server URL in Mobile App

After setting up HTTPS, update the mobile app's server URL from http://IP:2283 to https://photos.yourdomain.com.

Step 8: Backup Strategy

Immich stores your photos — losing this data would be catastrophic.

What to Back Up

Photo library: /opt/immich/library (or wherever UPLOAD_LOCATION points)
Database: PostgreSQL database containing metadata, albums, faces
Model cache: Optional (can be re-downloaded)

Database Backup

# Manual backup
docker exec -t immich_postgres pg_dumpall -c -U postgres | gzip > /opt/backups/immich-db-$(date +%Y%m%d).sql.gz

# Automated backup script (add to crontab)
#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/opt/backups/immich"
mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
docker exec -t immich_postgres pg_dumpall -c -U postgres | gzip > "$BACKUP_DIR/db-$(date +%Y%m%d).sql.gz"
# Keep last 7 days
find "$BACKUP_DIR" -name "db-*.sql.gz" -mtime +7 -delete

Add to crontab (crontab -e):

0 2 * * * /opt/immich/backup.sh

Library Backup

For the photo library, use:

Rclone to sync to Backblaze B2 or AWS S3
rsync to a secondary server
Hetzner Storage Box as a backup destination

# Rclone to Backblaze B2 (configure rclone first)
rclone sync /opt/immich/library b2:your-bucket-name/immich-library --progress

3-2-1 Rule for Photos

3 copies of your photos
2 different storage media
1 offsite copy

Immich server + cloud backup + original device = 3 copies, 2 media, 1 offsite. This protects against hardware failure, accidental deletion, and site disasters.

Step 9: User Management

Add Additional Users

Administration → Users → Create User
Set email, password, name
Configure storage quota (optional): limit how much each user can upload

Open any album → Share
Invite other Immich users by email
Or create a public share link (link sharing)

Shared albums allow family members or colleagues to contribute photos to a common collection.

Updating Immich

Immich releases frequently. Update process:

cd /opt/immich
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

Check release notes at github.com/immich-app/immich/releases before updating major versions.

Cost Comparison

Setup	Monthly	Annual
Google Photos 2TB	$9.99	$120
iCloud 2TB	$9.99	$120
Immich (Hetzner CAX21 + 2TB volume)	$4 + $8.80	$153
Immich (Hetzner CAX11 + Storage Box 2TB)	$4 + $4.36	$100

At 2TB, self-hosting is roughly cost-neutral but with unlimited family members and no per-account fees. At 5TB+, self-hosting saves substantially.

The real value: full data ownership, no subscription cancellation risk, and AI search features that work privately on your own hardware.

Find More Photo Management Tools

Browse all Google Photos alternatives on OSSAlt — compare Immich, PhotoPrism, LibrePhotos, and every other open source photo management platform with deployment guides.

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