--- {"title": "How to keep media logging data on a local server in 2026", "description": "Learn how offline-first media loggers can keep every entry on a local server, with setup steps, options to compare, and common mistakes to avoid.", "url": "https://vlcleanplayer.com/how-to-keep-all-data-on-a-local-server-for-offline-first-media-loggers/", "date": "2026-11-08"} --- Learn how offline-first media loggers can keep every entry on a local server, with setup steps, options to compare, and common mistakes to avoid. A local server keeps your log on hardware in your home, with a backup copy in a second place you control. Start by checking where each tool stores its data, then set up a folder, run a test, and make a backup before you rely on it. | Option | Where data is kept | Setup and terms | |---|---|---| | Watcharr | Cloudflare database [^1] | Hosted version needs nothing to install and no account [^1] | | Other tools | not published | not published | ## What you need before you start Start by listing what you log and where each kind of entry should live, such as movies, shows, books or games, so the storage plan matches your habits. Next, pick a computer, small home server or network drive that stays switched on at home, and check that it has enough free space for your full history with room to grow. Make sure you can reach that machine from every device you log on, whether through your home network or a private connection you set up yourself. Decide who in the household will own the machine, who can add or edit entries, and where the most recent copy of each file will sit. Set aside time to make a first backup before you move any data, so an early mistake does not cost you your history. Keep the login details for the machine somewhere safe, because you will need them each time you update or restore it. ## Step by step 1. Export or copy your current log into a plain, readable format such as CSV or JSON, so you keep a copy that does not depend on any one app. 2. Place that copy in a folder on your local machine, and label the folder with today's date so you can tell later copies apart. 3. Choose the software that will read and write the log, and confirm that it can run on the machine you picked before you commit to it. 4. Point the software at the local folder so that every new entry is saved there first, and not only in an online copy. 5. Test the setup by adding a few entries from one device, then check that they appear in the local folder with the correct details. 6. Repeat the same test from a second device on your home network, so you know the folder is reachable from every place you log. 7. Set up a backup that copies the folder to a second drive or location, on a schedule you choose and can keep. 8. Restore the backup to a spare folder once, to confirm that the copy opens and holds every entry you expect. 9. Write down the steps you used, in plain words, so that someone else in the household can follow them if you are not around. 10. Check the backup and the free storage space once a month, and fix any gaps you find before they grow. ## Tools that can do it Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. It accepts any public IMDb watchlist or list from the desktop site, the phone site or IMDb's other-language pages. [^1] You paste one public IMDb list and get one link for Radarr with the movies and one for Sonarr with the shows. [^1] Radarr and Sonarr are helper programs that find and add movies (Radarr) and shows (Sonarr) to a library. Watcharr's hosted version runs as one Cloudflare app with a Cloudflare database, plus a GitHub job that reads IMDb. [^1] The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. [^1] Watcharr's data is kept in a hosted database on Cloudflare's servers, not on a machine in your home. [^1] Its code can be read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence. [^1] Commercial use is not licensed. [^1] Before choosing a tool, check where it stores its data, whether it runs on hardware you control, what it needs to read and write logs, and how backups and syncing work. ## Common mistakes to avoid Avoid choosing a tool before you know where it keeps its data. A tool that stores everything somewhere other than your own machine can conflict with a local-server goal, even if it is easy to start using. Avoid setting up the folder without a backup. A single copy on one machine is easy to lose through a failed drive, a bad update or an accidental delete. Avoid skipping the restore test. A backup that has never been opened is only a guess that the copy works, so open it once and check the entries. Avoid forgetting the login details and the setup steps. Write them down in plain words and keep them somewhere the household can reach, so the setup does not depend on one person's memory. ## Frequently asked questions ### How can offline-first media loggers keep all their data on a local server? Start by checking where a tool stores its data before you install it or sign up. A tool that keeps its database on your own machine or home server matches this job, while a tool that stores its data elsewhere does not. Plan a folder on the local server for the log, set up a second copy for backups, and test that both open correctly. Recheck the setup after any update, because storage and backup settings can change when software is upgraded. ### Does Watcharr keep all data on a local server? Watcharr runs as one Cloudflare app with a Cloudflare database, plus a GitHub job that reads IMDb. [^1] Its data is kept in that hosted database on Cloudflare's servers, not on a machine in your home. [^1] The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. [^1] Check where any tool keeps its data before you rely on it for this job. ### Can Watcharr combine one household's lists? Signed-in users can combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for the whole household. [^1] A title that is on two lists is added only once. [^1] The shared links come from the hosted service described above, so check where that service keeps its data before you decide. [^1] ### How often does Watcharr re-read a list? If you sign in, Watcharr re-reads your list about every 15 minutes and warns you when a list fails three reads in a row. [^1] Radarr checks its link every 15 minutes and Sonarr checks its link every 5 minutes. [^1] If a read fails, the links keep serving the last list that loaded correctly. [^1] Compare these timings with your own setup before you rely on them. ### Can Watcharr be used for commercial work? Commercial use is not licensed, and no commercial licence is for sale. [^1] Its code can be read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence, and older versions remain under MIT. [^1] Read the licence text yourself before you use the code in any way, because this page does not give legal advice. Its code is available to read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence; older versions remain under MIT. [^1] - [Visit Watcharr](/go/start-watcharr) ## Sources [^1]: Watcharr's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher) (/go/start-watcharr)