Official Docker image for RoonServer.
ghcr.io/roonlabs/roonserver
Note: This image is amd64 (x86_64) only. ARM-based devices (Raspberry Pi, ARM NAS models like Synology J-series) are not supported.
Use the Docker Setup Guide to generate a docker run or docker compose command tailored to your system.
On first start, the container downloads and installs RoonServer automatically. Subsequent starts skip the download and launch immediately.
- Linux host (amd64 / x86_64). Common NAS solutions (Unraid, TrueNAS, Synology, QNAP) often fall into this category, but check with your NAS's technical information to confirm.
- Host networking (
--net=host) — required for Roon's multicast device discovery - Restart policy (
--restart unless-stopped) — ensures the container restarts after unexpected exits
Docker for macOS and Windows will not work.
Host networking (--net=host) is required. bridge networking faces significant limitations for discovery outside the host. No port mapping (-p) is needed.
Set the TZ environment variable to your timezone. This ensures correct timestamps in Roon logs, last.fm scrobbles, and backup schedules. For example, -e TZ=America/New_York or -e TZ=Europe/London. The default is UTC.
| Mount | Purpose |
|---|---|
/Roon |
RoonServer state — database, settings, identity, and application binaries. Must be writable and persistent. |
/Music |
Your primary music library — treat this like your user's Music folder on Linux, macOS, or Windows. It's the "default music folder." Music that you import into Roon with the drag-and-drop feature will land here. |
/RoonBackups |
Roon backup destination (optional). Configure in Settings > Backups. |
The /Roon volume is critical. If this volume is not mounted:
- Your Roon data and settings will not persist across container restarts
- Your Roon install must be re-authorized on each start
⚠ NAS warning — host paths outside your platform's persistent prefix can silently be tmpfs. Several NAS OSes run the host root filesystem in RAM and only expose persistent storage under a specific prefix — typically
/share/...on QNAP,/volume1/...on Synology,/mnt/user/...on Unraid,/mnt/<pool>/...on TrueNAS SCALE. Binding a host path outside that prefix (e.g./opt/roonon QNAP) will appear to work: Docker creates the missing directory, the container starts, Roon imports a library — and then a reboot wipes it because the directory only ever lived in RAM. Always mount under your platform's persistent prefix. The setup generator flags paths that don't match the selected platform's prefix.
Mount your primary music location directly at /Music (e.g. -v /path/to/music:/Music). This folder will be treated as the Default Music Folder by Roon. All drag-and-drop content will be added there.
If your music is spread across multiple locations on the host, mount each additional location at a named subpath under /Music, for example:
-v /path/to/primary-music:/Music
-v /mnt/usb1:/Music/usb1
-v /mnt/nas/flac:/Music/nas-flac
A few things to know about this layout:
- Each extra mount appears as its own named subfolder inside
/Music. The mount point (e.g.usb1) is created on the primary host folder at container start if it doesn't already exist — that's normally just an empty directory and harmless. - If the primary folder already contains a real subfolder with the same name as a mount point, the mount will hide it for as long as the container runs. Pick mount names that don't collide with existing folders in your primary library.
- Additional mounts below
/Musicare read/write inside the container just like/Musicitself.
To use Roon's database backup feature, mount a volume at /RoonBackups and point Roon's backup location to that directory. Example: -v /mnt/usb1/backups:/RoonBackups and then enable backups via Settings > Backups in Roon.
All RoonServer state and binaries are persisted to the /Roon volume. Recreating the container (docker rm + docker run) does not trigger a re-download if you mount the same folder to the /Roon volume.
To update on demand:
docker pull ghcr.io/roonlabs/roonserver:latest
docker rm -f roonserver
# re-run your docker run command or: docker compose up -d
RoonServer has two release branches:
| Branch | ROON_INSTALL_BRANCH |
Community |
|---|---|---|
| Production | production (default) |
Roon |
| Early Access | earlyaccess |
Early Access |
Set the ROON_INSTALL_BRANCH environment variable to change the branch. The branch determines which version of RoonServer is downloaded on first start, and Roon's self-updater continues on the same branch automatically.
Warning: Early Access builds may include database changes incompatible with Production, usually noted in the release notes. Please create a fresh backup before switching branches. Be especially careful if switching from Early Access to Production, as the Production branch may not be able to read an Early Access database.
Container exits immediately — check /Roon is mounted and writable.
Remotes can't find the server — verify --net=host is set. Bridge networking doesn't support multicast discovery.
High CPU after first start — background audio analysis runs after importing a library, it will stop after it's done, and it might take a while if you have a large library.
First start is slow — RoonServer is downloaded on first run. Subsequent starts should be quick, if you use the same /Roon volume.
Logs — docker logs roonserver will give you the output of the RoonServer
process on the console. It will not give you RoonServer logs. Those are located on the mounted volume at /Roon/database/RoonServer/Logs/.
Copyright Roon Labs LLC. All rights reserved.