Invite people and manage accounts

Silo is in active development before 1.0. These guides are updated frequently.

Use an invitation when someone should choose their own password. Create an account yourself when you need to set it up before handing it over. Both actions are in Admin > Users in the web app.

An account is a sign-in for your server. Its profiles keep household members’ history and preferences separate. Make most people User, even if they manage profiles for their family. Admin gives control of the server.

Invitation and password reset links point to your server’s Silo public URL. Set it in Admin > Settings > General first, using an address the recipient can open. Without it, Silo can’t create these links.

Invite someone

1. Open Admin > Users > Invitations and choose Invite someone.
2. Enter their email address. This will also be their sign-in username.
3. Choose an Access group and check the library access. Leave Role set to User.
4. Keep Create their first profile on if they need a ready-to-use profile.
5. Choose Send invite. If email isn’t set up, copy the invitation link and send it privately.

The link works once and expires after seven days. The recipient chooses a password, then signs in to your server. Send them Join a server with the invitation.

If the link expires, resend the invitation to create a new link. Revoking a pending invitation stops its link from working; it doesn’t remove an account that has already accepted.

Create an account yourself

1. In Admin > Users, choose Add User.
2. Enter a username, email address, and password. Keep Create a default profile selected unless you plan to add profiles separately.
3. Select Require change at first sign-in so the person chooses their own password before using the account.
4. Review Access and Limits, then create the user.
5. Share the server address and credentials privately. Ask the person to sign in through the web app first to choose their password.

For a group of people with the same access, configure an access group first.

Change access or reset a password

Open the person’s name in Admin > Users, then choose Edit to change their access. Leave the password blank to keep it unchanged.

To suspend an account without deleting it, turn off Enabled under Account status, then save.

The Profiles tab lists the account’s household profiles. Missing media or unexpected restrictions can come from the profile as well as the account.

To see the web app as that person does, use View as user. Actions in that session affect their account.

Help someone reset their password

For an enabled account that uses a local password:

1. Open the person’s name in Admin > Users and choose Reset password.
2. Choose Email reset link, or Create link to share and then Copy link to send it privately.
3. Have the person open the link and choose a new password.

Emailing the link needs email set up and an email address on the account. A link works once and expires after 24 hours. Creating a new reset link replaces the previous one.

To hand over a temporary password instead, choose Edit, enter a new password, and select Require change at next sign-in before saving. The person then signs in through the web app to replace it before using their other apps.

Completing a reset link or setting a temporary password signs the account out on its devices. API keys remain active; revoke those separately if the account was compromised. For accounts managed by another sign-in provider, reset the password with that provider.

Let people reset their own passwords

Set the Silo public URL and set up email, then turn on Self-service password reset in Admin > Settings > General and save. It is off by default. The web sign-in page then shows Forgot password?.

People can request a link using their username or email address. These links expire after one hour. See Forgot your password? for the steps to share with them.

A lost device or unwanted playback

Use active playback controls to stop a stream. Stopping playback doesn’t sign the account out. If an account is compromised, disable it while you arrange recovery with its owner.

The admin Devices view holds saved preferences and device overrides, not sign-ins.