Prepare media folders and filenames

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

Keep movies and series in separate folders, give each title its own folder named Title (Year), and number episodes S01E01. Silo also reads most names produced by Sonarr, Radarr, FileBot, Plex, and Jellyfin, so you rarely need to rename an existing collection.

Library folders

Silo reads media from a folder on its filesystem. It cannot use an s3://, https://, or file:// URL as a library folder.

With the default Docker setup, MEDIA_ROOT=/srv/media maps the host’s media to /mnt/media in the container:

Folder on the host	Folder entered in Silo
`/srv/media/movies`	`/mnt/media/movies`
`/srv/media/tv`	`/mnt/media/tv`

Mount network shares on the host first, and make sure Silo can read the files, before you add the library.

Movies

Use one folder per movie, especially when you have posters, subtitles, extras, or several versions:

movies/
  Movie Name (2024)/
    Movie Name (2024).mkv
    Movie Name (2024).en.srt
    poster.jpg

Loose files such as movies/Movie Name (2024).mkv also work, as do release-style names like Movie.Name.2024.1080p.BluRay.mkv. Silo removes resolution, source, and codec details from the search title.

Series

Give every show its own folder, with a folder per season:

tv/
  Show Name (2024)/
    Season 01/
      Show Name - S01E01.mkv
      Show Name - S01E02.mkv
    Specials/
      Show Name - S00E01.mkv

Use S01E01 for ordinary episodes and S00E01 for specials. Text after the episode number, such as an episode title or release details, is fine.

Audiobook folders are covered in the Beta audiobook guide.

Provider IDs

If a title matches the wrong entry, add its provider ID to the folder name:

Movie Name (2024) {tmdb-12345}
Show Name (2024) {tvdb-12345}
Movie Name (2024) {imdb-tt1234567}

Replace the sample numbers with the real ID for your title.

Also supported

Silo reads these forms as well.

Kind	Examples
Other episode numbering	`1x03`, `S01xE03`, `s01.e03`, `Season 1 Episode 3`, `2009x03`
Episode-only names inside a season folder	`Season 02/E03.mkv`, `Season 02/03 - Episode Title.mkv`, `S02/Episode 03.mkv`
Compact codes	`Show.Name.103.mkv` (season 1, episode 3)
Several episodes in one file	`S01E01-E03`, `S01E01E02`, `1x01x02`
Air dates	`Show Name - 2024-02-15.mkv`; dots, underscores, and spaces also work as separators
Season folder names	`Season 01`, `Season_01`, `S01`, `01`, and localized names such as `Staffel 1` or `Temporada 1`
Provider IDs in other styles	`[tmdbid=12345]`, `[tmdbid-12345]`, `[imdbid-tt1234567]`, `[tvdbid=12345]`
Editions	`{edition-Director's Cut}`, or words such as `Extended`, `Theatrical`, or `Director's Cut` in the name
Multipart movies	`Movie Name (2024) cd1.mkv`, `disc2`, `part1`, `pt2`

A file with several episodes links to its first episode. Editions and multipart files of one movie are grouped under the same title.

Numbers without season context can be ambiguous. A bare 03.mkv or an absolute number such as 136 links only when it identifies one episode, so put these files in a season folder or add the season to the name. Episode files that don’t name their show also need a show folder; otherwise you have to match them by hand.

Sidecars and extras

Keep NFO files, posters, and subtitle files beside the item they describe. See Local metadata for what Silo reads.

Put movie extras in a folder inside the movie’s folder, such as Trailers, Featurettes, or Behind the Scenes. Silo ignores an extras folder at the top of the library because it doesn’t belong to a title. In a series, files in Extras with a name like S00E01 stay episodes.

Renaming and moving files

Test a naming change on one title before renaming a whole collection. If files disappear after a network mount drops, restore the mount and check the path; don’t delete the library or move the files.

Paths sent by another service must map to the folder Silo sees. For example, an import reported as /tv/Show Name may need a rewrite to /mnt/media/tv/Show Name. Set the rewrite on the Autoscan source.