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Watch-Aware Preloader

An Unraid plugin that warms the Linux page cache with the media each household user is most likely to play next, so playback starts instantly instead of…

  • Media Servers
  • Plugins
  • Tools & Utilities
An Unraid plugin that warms the Linux page cache with the media each household user is most likely to play next, so playback starts instantly instead of waiting for an array disk to spin up. Unlike preloaders that guess from filesystem modification time, this derives intent from your media server's own watch state: resume points, next-up episodes, recently-added items, and what each user has actually been watching. Emby and Jellyfin (10.9 or later) are supported. Items in an active playback session are excluded, since those disks are already spinning. Each preload is sized by playback seconds rather than a fixed byte count, using the bitrate the server already reports, so a 4K title and an SD one both cover the spin-up window. Resume candidates are warmed from the byte offset where playback will actually resume, not the file head, and the file tail is warmed too so a mid-file seek does not stall reading.

Platform availability

Available on 1 of 9 platforms

  • Unraid
  • TrueNAS (not listed)
  • Umbrel (not listed)
  • ZimaOS (not listed)
  • Proxmox (not listed)
  • Helm (not listed)
  • Mac (not listed)
  • Windows (not listed)
  • Linux (not listed)

Health score?A 0-100 score computed nightly from four factors: maintained (40%: recent commits and steady activity), popular (25%: GitHub stars, log scale), easy to install (20%: platforms, install notes, setup guides, Docker image) and light to run (15%: minimum RAM, ARM support). When the source code has been checked, a fifth factor, security check (20%: automated scan for committed secrets, unsafe desktop-app settings, known-vulnerable dependencies and project hygiene; any serious finding caps it at 20), is added. Factors without data are left out and the rest are rescaled.

55/100 Fair

Maintained
100last commit 3 days ago
Popular
61 GitHub stars
Easy to install
251 install platform, install notes
Light to run
No data

Based on 3 of 4 factors.

Availability: platform listings confirmed today

GitHub stars
1
Open issues
18
Last commit
2026-10-19
Latest release
2026.10.14
License
MIT
Activity
steady

Checked 2 days ago - source: GitHub (sydlexius/watch-aware-preloader)

Resources & Compatibility

Requirements not published yet.

First-install notes

  • Install the iPhone companion app too If you're using the Apple Watch side, install the iPhone companion app (the related app on your iPhone) too. Without it, Watch features can fail or say the companion app isn't installed. source
  • Keep paired Watch data safe If the app saves Watch-specific settings or files, don't unpair the Apple Watch or uninstall the app if you need to keep them. Apple deletes that Watch-specific data when you unpair the Watch or uninstall the app. source
  • Let the Watch link finish When you first open the app, let it finish connecting to your Apple Watch before you try Watch features. If nothing happens, reopen the app or re-pair the Watch so the connection can complete. source
  • Install the Unraid plugin Add it as a plugin from Unraid Community Applications, then point it at your Emby or Jellyfin server (Jellyfin 10.9 or later) so it can read your watch state. source

Fetched yesterday - each note links to its source

Alternatives

No alternatives collected yet.

Common questions

Do I need a specific Emby or Jellyfin version?

It supports Emby and Jellyfin 10.9 or later.

Will it preload an item that is already in an active playback session?

No. Items in an active playback session are excluded because those disks are already spinning.

Does it help when a client transcodes the stream?

The benefit applies to direct-play or direct-stream clients. A transcode makes the server read the whole file off disk, which a bounded preload cannot cover.

Can the preloaded read itself wake the drive?

A warm read is served from RAM and leaves the drive in standby. The disk only spins up when playback runs past the warmed window.

Answers sourced from github.com

Community

No community discussions collected yet.