Community App Tutorial Template
17 minute read.
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Click Edit Page above or locate the Markdown file at /Contributing/Applications/AppArticleTemplate.md on the documentation Github Repository.
Copy the template content to an existing Community Apps placeholder article (or create a new one if needed for this app) to begin writing.
Detailed template instructions are commented out of the rendered copy of this template but show in the Markdown file.
Documentation for applications within the Community train is created and maintained by members of the TrueNAS community. The TrueNAS Documentation Hub hosts but does not validate or maintain articles within this section.
Community contributions are highly encouraged! Please see Contributing to TrueNAS Application Documentation to learn how you can assist.
AppName is a community-maintained application.
Prepare TrueNAS before installing the app by:
Set a pool for applications to use if not already assigned.
You can use either an existing pool or create a new one. TrueNAS creates the ix-apps (hidden) dataset in the pool set as the application pool. This dataset is internally managed, so you cannot use this as the parent when you create required application datasets.
After setting the pool, the Installed Applications screen displays Apps Service Running on the top screen banner.
Locate the run-as user for the app.
Take note of the run-as user for the app, shown on the app information screen in the Run As Context widget and in the Application Metadata widget on the Installed applications screen after the app fully deploys. The run-as user(s) get added to the ACL permissions for each dataset used as a host path storage volume.
(Optional) Create datasets for the storage volumes for the app.
Do not create encrypted datasets for apps if not required! Using an encrypted dataset can result in undesired behaviors after upgrading TrueNAS when pools and datasets are locked. When datasets for the containers are locked, the container does not mount, and the apps do not start. To resolve issues, unlock the dataset(s) by entering the passphrase/key to allow datasets to mount and apps to start.You can create required datasets before or after launching the installation wizard. The install wizard includes the Create Dataset option for host path storage volumes, but if you are organizing required datasets under a parent you must create that dataset before launching the app installation wizard.
Go to Datasets and select the pool or dataset where you want to place the dataset(s) for the app. For example, /tank/apps/appName.
Create a parent dataset, such as appName, and then the storage datasets (config and data) under it. Select apps as the Dataset Preset for these datasets. You can modify the dataset ACLs at the time of creation, or modify them later when adding them in the app.
Create a self-signed certificate for the app (if required).
Adding a certificate is optional but if you want to use a certificate for this application, either create a new self-signed CA and certificate or import an existing CA and create the certificate for Nextcloud. A certificate is not required to deploy the application.
(Optional) Create a new TrueNAS user account to manage this application. When creating a new user account to manage this application or using an existing TrueNAS administrator account, enable sudo permissions for that TrueNAS user account, select Create New Primary Group, and add the appropriate group in the Auxiliary Group for the type of user you want to create. Make note of the UID for the new user to add in the installation wizard.
Add the user ID to the dataset ACL permissions when setting up app storage volumes in the Install app wizard.
This basic procedure covers the required appName app settings. For optional settings, see Understanding App Installation Wizard Settings.
You can have multiple deployments of the same app (for example, two or more from the stable or enterprise trains, or a combination of the stable and enterprise trains).
Go to Apps, click on Discover Apps, and locate the app widget by either scrolling down to it or begin typing the name into the search field. For example, to locate the MinIO app widget, begin typing minIO into the search field to show app widgets matching the search input.
If this is the first application installed, TrueNAS displays a dialog about configuring apps.
If not the first time installing apps the dialog does not show, click on the widget to open the app information screen.
Click Install to open the app installation wizard.
Application configuration settings are grouped into several sections, each explained below in Understanding App Installation Wizard Settings. To find specific fields begin typing in the Search Input Fields search field to show the section or field, scroll down to a particular section, or click on the section heading in the list of sections on the upper-right of the wizard screen.
Accept the default value or enter a name in Application Name field. In most cases use the default name, but if adding a second deployment of the application you must change this name.
Accept the default version number in Version. When a new version becomes available, the application shows an update badge and the Application Info widget on the Installed applications screen shows the Update button.
Enter the App Configuration settings.
The TrueNAS app is configured with all the required environment variables, but if you want to further customize the container, click Add to the right of Additional Environment Variables for each to enter the variable(s) and values(s).
Add your Storage Configuration settings.
Set Type to Host Path (Path that already exists on the system) for Data Storage. Select Enable ACL, and then enter or browse to select the data dataset to populate the Host Path field.
Click Add to the right of ACL Entries for each user or group entry you want to add. Set ID Type to Entry is for a USER, enter the 0 in ID, and give it full control permissions. For example, add the 0 user, and give each FULL_CONTROL Access.
The following section provides more detailed explanations of the settings in each section of the Install Appname installation wizard.
Accept the default value or enter a name in Application Name field. In most cases use the default name, but if adding a second deployment of the application you must change this name.
Accept the default version number in Version. When a new version becomes available, the application shows an update badge and the Application Info widget on the Installed applications screen shows the Update button.
AppName configuration settings include setting up credentials, APT packages (previously referred to as the commands), the host IP and port, data directory path, upload limits, execution times, memory limits and cache memory consumption, adding a cron job with schedule, and adding additional environment variables.
If you have an existing AppName account, add the credentials for that account in the Admin User and Admin Password fields. If you do not have an existing account, enter the name and password you want to use to create the AppName login credentials.
The app wizard is configured with all settings required to deploy the container, but you can add additional settings if you want to further customize the app in TrueNAS.
Click Add to the right of Environmental Variables to show a set of fields to configure the application with additional variables.
You can add environment variables to the app configuration after deploying it. Click Edit on the Application Info widget for the app found on the Installed Application screen to open the edit screen.
Some TrueNAS apps have predefined run-as user and group IDs. These assignments vary based on the app train and other variables such as installing but not running as the root user.
Default user and group IDs are:
- 473 for the MinIO stable train app.
- 568 (apps user), used in some community apps and all apps in the enterprise train
- 999 (netdata user), used for all postgres storage volumes
- 0 (root user).
Accept the default user and group ID in the User and Group Configuration section or enter the user ID for a new TrueNAS user created to serve as the administrator for this app.
Create any app administrator user before installing the application, and take note of the UID. Enter this user ID when configuring the user for the app and as the user when setting up storage volume permissions.
The default web port for AppName is 30027.
We do not recommend selecting Host Network unless required for the specific application or workload. When required or strongly recommended for an application, TrueNAS typically enables host networking by default.
When host networking is disabled, specific ports from the container are exposed on the local network and mapped to a host port. This is the default Docker networking behavior. This approach provides better isolation, flexibility in port assignments, and improved security compared to enabling host networking.
Select Host Network to bypass port mapping, granting the container direct access network interfaces on the host. This can improve performance, especially in deployments with many users, and simplify network configuration, but compromises isolation and introduces the risk of port conflicts, limiting the ability to run multiple instances of the same app. For most deployments, default port mapping is more secure and versatile.
All TrueNAS apps are assigned default port numbers. Accept the default port numbers, but if changing port number assignments, enter a number within the range 1-65535, however, 0-1024 might require the application to have elevated privileges. Before changing default ports, refer to the TrueNAS default port list for a list of assigned and available port numbers.
The app does not require configuring advanced DNS options. Accept the default settings or click Add to the right of DNS Options to enter the option name and value.
To use a certificate, best practice is to create the self-signed certificate before you begin using the app installation wizard. If you did not create a certificate before starting the installation wizard you can select the default TrueNAS certificate and edit the app to change the certificate after deploying the application.
Select the certificate created in TrueNAS for the app from the Certificate dropdown list.
TrueNAS provides two options for storage volumes: ixVolumes and host paths.
You can add extra storage volumes at the time of installation or edit the application after it deploys. Stop the app before editing settings.
You can configure ACL permissions for the required dataset in the Install App wizard, or from the Datasets screen any time after adding the datasets.
Select Enable ACL to show the ACL and ACE Entries options for host path volumes except for postgres storage volumes. Configure ACE entries for each UID and/or GID you recorded from the Run As Context widget in Before You Begin.
Configuring ACE Entries
Enter or browse to select the dataset and populate Host Path.
Next, click Add to the right of ACL Entries to show the permissions settings. Set ID Type to Entry is for a USER or Entry is for a GROUP. If you configured a group in TrueNAS that you want to give access to instead of a single user, set the ID to the group option and enter the GID for that group.
Enter the UID and/or GID for the run as users. The run-as user(s) show on the app details screen in the Run As Content widget, and on the Installed application screen after the app deploys.
If the app shows User and Group Configuration settings, the default UID shows on the screen. If not, choose the run-as user ID found in the Run As Content widget.
Postgres storage volumes have 999 as the default user ID and run-as user.
If you created a new TrueNAS user to serve as the app administration user, add an entry record and enter the UID for this user in addition to the run-as user ID.
When adding the ACL entry for the run-as user, default user, and/or optional TrueNAS app administrator user, set the Access permissions level to FULL CONTROL.
Do not use the Edit ACL option for postgres storage volumes. Select the Automatic Permissions option, which correctly sets permissions for the postgres and parent dataset (if used).
Select Force Flag to apply the ACL even if the path has existing data. This allows you to update the app when an update is available.
TrueNAS Additional Storage options include the ability to mount an SMB share inside the container pod.
Set Type an SMB/CIFS Share (Mounts a volume to a SMB share) to add an SMB share storage volume.
Select Read Only to make the storage volume read only.
Enter the path inside the container to mount the storage for the share volume in Mount Path.
Enter the server address for the SMB share in Server, the path to mount the SMB share in Path, and the share authentication user credentials in User and Password. (Optional) enter the share domain name in domain.
Permissions are currently limited to the permissions of the user that mounted the share.
Use the SMB option for data synchronization between a share and the app if the option shows on the screen. A present, only the Syncthing app includes this option.
The Labels Configuration settings allow users to configure Docker object labels to add metadata to containers. Docker object labels attach key-value metadata to various Docker objects, such as containers, images, volumes, and networks. Labels are useful for organization, automation, and providing additional context for Docker resources. They can store information such as environment details, ownership, service role, or custom tags for automation tools.
Click Add to display a set of label configuration fields.
Use Key to define the identifier that categorizes and filters resources, for example com.example.owner. Use Value to enter the associated data for the container, for example team-a.
Select the target container from the Containers dropdown list to apply the label(s). Apps with multiple containers list each container as an option on the dropdown.
Click Add again to configure additional labels.
Tips for Labels:
- Docker recommends using reverse-DNS notation to prevent conflicts with other objects.
- Use a consistent naming convention for labels applied across all containers, for example, com.example.owner=team-a, com.example.owner=team-b, com.example.env=production, com.example.env=testing.
- Use in groupings, for example, when applying configuration changes where labels define or group related database resources (com.example.role=db).
- Use reverse-DNS notation to prevent conflicts with other objects, as recommended by Docker.
- Use a consistent naming convention for labels applied across all containers, for example, com.example.owner=team-a, com.example.owner=team-b, com.example.env=production, com.example.env=testing.
- Use in groupings, for example, when applying configuration changes where labels define or group related database resources (com.example.role=db).
- Combine labels for more granular control, for example, using com.example.env=prod and com.example.tier=frontend to distinguish frontend from backend services in production environments.
Accept the default values in Resources Configuration or enter new CPU and memory values. By default, this application is limited to use no more than 2 CPU cores and 4096 megabytes available memory. The application might use considerably less system resources.
To customize the CPU and memory allocated to the container the app uses, enter new CPU values as a plain integer value (letter suffix is not required). The default is 4096.
Accept the default value (4 Gb) allocated memory or enter a new limit in bytes. Enter a plain integer without the measurement suffix, for example, 129 not 129M or 123MiB.
GPU Configuration provides the option to enable GPU passthrough. Select Passthrough available (non-NVIDIA) GPUs or, if your system has an NVIDIA GPU device, select Use this GPU.
For more information on GPU passthrough, see TrueNAS Apps.