Radiccio Server

What is Radiccio Server?

Server is an optional feature of Radiccio that makes your On My Mac sources available for streaming and listening on other apps and devices over the network. You can connect to Radiccio Server using Radiccio on another Mac, or other compatible apps on other types of devices.

Server requires Radiccio Plus!

How can I start using Radiccio Server?

Go to App Settings > Server and click to enable the checkbox “Enable Server”. That’s it! Your server is now ready to use.

If you have Radiccio on another Mac, and you are signed into the same iCloud account, and on the same LAN: Simply open Radiccio and your server automatically appears in the sidebar. You’re ready to start listening!

If your other Mac uses a different iCloud account:

1. On the player Mac, add a source.
2. Copy and paste the server URL from the Mac running the server (find it in Settings).
3. Select “Sign in with: API Key”. Copy and paste the API Key from the Mac running the server.

Is there an iPhone or iPad app that I can use to connect to Radiccio Server and listen to my music?

Yes, there are many apps from other developers you can try. Radiccio Server uses the OpenSubsonic protocol, which is supported by a wide variety of music player apps on many platforms. Try searching the App Store for “OpenSubsonic”. Also check out our list of friends.

We do not have an iPhone app of our own at this time, but we are aware that people want this. We hear you! We are a small company and we are working as hard as we can to build the future of Radiccio for you.

Can I use Radiccio Server when away from home?

In most typical network setups, by default, you can only connect to Radiccio Server when you are on the same local area network (LAN).

However, there are ways to access it when away from home. We recommend Tailscale. It is free for personal use, and easy to use. Simply install the Tailscale app on both your Mac running Radiccio Server, and the device you want to connect from. Tailscale automatically configures a private IP address and hostname for each device, which you can use to connect to that device no matter where you are in the world.

(Note: We are not affiliated with Tailscale.)

Another alternative would be to configure port forwarding on your home router, but this is no longer considered a security best practice, and as such, we do not recommend doing this. A VPN solution like Tailscale is much more secure because it provides additional layers of authentication and encryption. If you decide to use port forwarding, please understand that you do so at your own risk.

How can I set up Tailscale to access my Radiccio Server when away from home?

1. Sign up for a free Tailscale account
2. Install Tailscale on your Mac with Radiccio Server
3. Install Tailscale on your other device with the player app
4. If the player app is Radiccio and you are signed into the same iCloud account on both Macs, your server automatically appears in the sidebar. You’re all set, so you can stop here! Otherwise, keep reading.
5. On the Mac with Radiccio server, find the server URL in App Settings > Server. The URL is updated to reflect that you are connected to Tailscale (should contain ts.net). Copy the URL.
6. In the player app, add a new source or connect to a server. Paste the URL.
7. Copy and paste the API Key from the server into the player, and sign in.

Even though we’re using HTTP, Tailscale secures and encrypts all of the traffic between your devices.

The ts.net URL will only work as long as both devices are connected to Tailscale. Many people choose to keep Tailscale connected at all times, whether at home or away. There is not much downside to doing this: Tailscale automatically selects the most efficient route, so at times when your devices are both on the same LAN, traffic between them will stay on the LAN. By default, Tailscale ignores traffic that is not destined for your private network (tailnet), so your normal internet traffic is unaffected. Whenever you move a device to a different network, Tailscale automatically keeps your devices connected to each other.

The player app is asking for a username and password. What should I do?

Radiccio uses API Key authentication, which is a newer part of the OpenSubsonic standard that some players don’t support yet.

If the player app does not have a place to enter your API Key, you can sign in this way instead:

• Username: admin
• Password: Enter your API Key here.

If the player offers a choice between API Key or password, use API Key instead.

Can I use Radiccio Server to share music with other people?

Radiccio Server is intended primarily for personal use. Here are some things you should be aware of:

• Signing into Radiccio Server with the API Key allows making changes (such as adding and removing favorites, creating and deleting playlists, tracking activity like play counts and last played date, and more) so we don’t recommend sharing the API Key with other people.

• If you enable anonymous access (off by default), your server can be accessed without an API Key. Anonymous access is “read only” (meaning, no changes allowed) and personal data such as favorites and play counts can’t be seen.

When you are using Radiccio Server with purchased music, please make sure that your usage would be considered “personal use” as defined by the law where you are, or that you otherwise comply with the terms you agreed to when you purchased it.

Please support the artists you love – don’t steal music.

Can I create additional API Keys?

No, Radiccio Server can only have one API Key at a time.

What if someone has unauthorized access to my API Key?

Reset the API Key in settings. The previous API Key will no longer work, effective immediately.

If I quit Radiccio, will Radiccio Server continue to work?

No. If you want to ensure continuous operation of Radiccio Server, you should keep Radiccio open.

If I sleep my Mac, or close the laptop lid, will Radiccio Server continue to work?

No. If you want to ensure continuous operation of Radiccio Server, you should avoid sleeping your Mac or closing the laptop lid.

Of course, we understand that sometimes you need to take your laptop somewhere. If you sleep your Mac, nothing bad will happen; Radiccio Server simply won’t be operational until you wake it up again.

If you install Tailscale on both your Mac with Radiccio Server, and on your other devices, then it doesn’t matter where Radiccio Server is physically located as long as it has a stable internet connection. For example, you can take your MacBook (with Radiccio Server) and your iPhone to a friend’s home, connect to the Wi-Fi there, and continue to use Radiccio Server. This may also work at places like hotels, restaurants, and workplaces, as long as the Wi-Fi doesn’t block or throttle Tailscale.

If you are thinking about adding a Mac to your household for use as an always-on server, the Mac Mini can be a good choice, even an older model. The main requirement to run Radiccio Server is that the Mac needs to be able to run macOS 15 Sequoia or newer.

Occasionally you may find that Radiccio Server continues to work when the laptop lid is closed, but this is not guaranteed by any means. The operating system decides when and how often to occasionally wake up the Mac while the lid is closed to perform various tasks for short periods. You should not rely on this behavior.

If my Mac’s display turns off, will Radiccio Server continue to work?

Yes. When you enable Radiccio Server, it prevents the Mac from sleeping automatically. Your display will still turn off automatically as it normally does, but the Mac will remain awake, and Radiccio Server will be available for streaming music to player apps indefinitely. (However, you can still sleep your Mac manually; see the previous question.)

If you disable Radiccio Server, or quit Radiccio, then the Mac is no longer prevented from sleeping, and it will resume its previous automatic sleep behavior (assuming there are no other apps preventing the Mac from sleeping).

When your Mac is running on battery power, macOS may decide to sleep the Mac even despite Radiccio’s attempt to prevent it.

When you want to preserve battery life on your laptop, feel free to temporarily disable Radiccio Server in app settings, which will allow your Mac to sleep automatically. You can always enable Radiccio Server again later.

If you want to see a list of apps preventing your Mac from sleeping, open the built-in macOS Activity Monitor app, click the Energy tab, and look for the column named “Preventing Sleep”. When Radiccio is open and Radiccio Server is enabled, this column says “Yes”. When Radiccio Server is disabled, this column says “No”. (It takes a few seconds for Activity Monitor to update the information you see here.)

I saw something about iCloud. How exactly does Radiccio Server use iCloud?

iCloud is used for automatically signing in to your server. Radiccio automatically generates a secret key and stores it in iCloud, where it can be retrieved by Radiccio on your other Macs. This allows you to sign into your Radiccio Server from another Mac quickly and easily, without needing a password or API Key.

If you use Tailscale, Radiccio stores your server URL in iCloud so that your other Macs can more easily find and connect to your server outside of the home.

Radiccio Server does not transmit or store any of your music through iCloud. Radiccio Server does not use any of your iCloud storage. (The amount of data stored by Radiccio is very small and does not count against your storage limit.)

If you are unable to use iCloud, or prefer not to use iCloud, you can use the API Key to sign in instead. iCloud is not a requirement to use Radiccio Server.

What port number does Radiccio Server use?

By default: 3264

If you need to change the port number, you can use this Terminal command:

defaults write computer.crispycrunchy.radiccio serverPortNumber -int 3265

Quit and relaunch Radiccio for the change to take effect.

You can replace 3265 with any other number between 1024 and 65535. Port numbers outside of this range will not work. Also, make sure no other app on your Mac is already using the port number you choose.

Does Radiccio Server use HTTPS?

No, and we do not recommend exposing it directly to the public internet. We recommend using Radiccio Server on a trusted LAN, or accessing it with a secure VPN.

When connecting to Radiccio Server from a Radiccio player, in order to avoid errors related to App Transport Security (ATS), connect using a LAN IP address, a .local hostname, or a Tailscale hostname (subdomain of ts.net).

If you use another VPN provider and are having trouble connecting, please contact us so we can look into it.

If desired, you can enable HTTPS by placing a reverse proxy in front of Radiccio Server. This is not necessary for most people, but if you have a specific requirement for HTTPS, you can find a how-to example further down this page.

Can I use an app compatible with Subsonic (but not OpenSubsonic)?

Officially, no. We have only tested Radiccio Server with OpenSubsonic player apps. Subsonic is the older version of the standard.

It is possible that it might partially work, but we cannot offer any support for using Radiccio Server with non-OpenSubsonic player apps.

Sometimes app developers say “Subsonic” but they really mean OpenSubsonic. It might be worth checking with them to confirm.

Which OpenSubsonic features does Radiccio Server support?

Supported:

• API Key authentication
• Multiple libraries (each “On My Mac” source is considered a separate library)
• Streaming
• Downloads
• Playlists
• Favorites
• Auto Skip (custom extension)
• Journal (custom extension)
• Folder browsing

Not supported:

• Transcoding
• Star ratings
• Multiple users
• Song lyrics
• Podcasts
• Internet radio stations

If you need features that Radiccio Server does not support, you may wish to consider Navidrome. Radiccio can connect to Navidrome as a player.

Does Radiccio Server work with DAAP, UPnP Audio, or DLNA?

Not currently, no.

Initially, we have chosen OpenSubsonic because we think it currently has the most support among the self-hosting community.

If you are interested in using Radiccio Server with any of these other technologies, please let us know! We would like to learn more about what kinds of other apps and products you are looking to use with Radiccio Server.

Does Radiccio Server work with automatic port forwarding, such as UPnP IGD, NAT-PMP, or PCP?

No. As mentioned previously, we do not recommend port forwarding, and we have no plans to support these. We recommend using a secure mesh VPN like Tailscale.

How to: HTTPS reverse proxy with Tailscale

In most cases, you don’t need HTTPS to use Radiccio Server. However, if your specific situation requires it, there is a relatively easy way to set it up if you are using Tailscale. This creates a reverse proxy on your Mac which automatically configures HTTPS on port 6432. Basically, Tailscale provides a tiny HTTPS web server that forwards requests back and forth between Radiccio Server. Tailscale automatically obtains and configures a free, valid HTTPS certificate for you (from Let’s Encrypt).

This HTTPS server is only accessible by devices that are connected to your tailnet. It does not expose your server to the public internet.

First, follow the general Tailscale setup instructions earlier on this page.

Next, we will configure Tailscale to work as an HTTPS reverse proxy. On the Mac with Radiccio Server, run this command in Terminal:

tailscale serve --bg --https=6432 http://localhost:3264

You might be prompted to visit the Tailscale web site to approve this action.

The --bg flag makes it run in the background (so you can quit Terminal and it will keep running) and it will automatically start again when your Mac restarts.

In Radiccio app settings > Server, the information should be updated to reflect your new HTTPS URL (only if you used port 6432). Copy the new HTTPS URL and paste it into a player app to connect to the server. (The previous HTTP URL with port 3264 continues to work also.)

To see the status of your reverse proxy:

tailscale serve status

To stop the reverse proxy:

tailscale serve --https=6432 off