Jellyfin Integration: Stream Your Self-Hosted Library from GridStreamr

GridStreamr has always been about bringing your entire streaming world into one place — IPTV channels from Xtream sources, M3U playlists, Smart Collections. Today we're taking the next step: native Jellyfin support. If you run a self-hosted Jellyfin server, you can now connect it directly in GridStreamr Settings and stream your personal movie and series library alongside all your other content.

What is Jellyfin?

Jellyfin is a free, open-source media server that lets you host your own Netflix-like library at home or in the cloud. Point it at your movie and TV collection, and it automatically fetches artwork, descriptions, cast, ratings and trailers. Because you host it yourself, there are no subscription fees and no third-party data sharing.

Connecting Jellyfin to GridStreamr

1. Open GridStreamr on iOS or Android and go to Settings → Jellyfin.
2. Tap 'Add Server' and enter your Jellyfin server URL (e.g. https://jellyfin.yourdomain.com).
3. Sign in with your Jellyfin username and password. GridStreamr stores an access token — your password is never saved.
4. Your Jellyfin libraries appear immediately in the Jellyfin tab.

Browsing movies and series

The Jellyfin home screen inside GridStreamr shows Continue Watching and Next Up rows, so you can pick up exactly where you left off. Tap into any movie or series for the full detail page: poster, backdrop, synopsis, cast and crew, genres, release year, content rating and audience score — all pulled directly from your Jellyfin server.

Series pages display every season and episode, each with its own thumbnail, title and runtime. Episode progress is synced via Jellyfin so you always see exactly how much of each episode you've watched.

Subtitle and audio track support

Subtitles in Jellyfin work differently from IPTV streams. A single episode can have dozens of embedded and external subtitle tracks — in Jellyfin's case they're served as direct SRT or ASS files rather than baked into the video. GridStreamr fetches the available tracks from Jellyfin's Playback Info API and lets you pick a language from the subtitle menu mid-playback.

• Lazy loading: the subtitle file for the selected track is downloaded only when you choose it, keeping startup fast.
• Multiple audio tracks: if your Jellyfin library has dual-audio files, switch tracks in the audio menu just like you would for IPTV content.
• Subtitle styles: foreground colour, background opacity and text direction all work the same as with Xtream and Smart Collections.

Android TV

GridStreamr for Android TV now includes a dedicated Jellyfin home card on the main screen. Navigate to it with your remote, browse your libraries, and select a movie or episode to play — all using the lean-back ten-foot UI the TV app was built for. Jellyfin settings are read from your account via Supabase, so there's no need to re-enter credentials on every device.

Network timeout and retry handling

Self-hosted servers can occasionally be slow to respond, especially over VPN or on mobile networks. GridStreamr automatically retries failed Jellyfin API calls up to three times before showing a friendly error message. A 'Retry' button on the error screen lets you recover without leaving the current page.