Open http://127.0.0.1:32500/ on the new server. From another device on the same network, use the server’s local IP address with port 32500. A server that hasn’t been set up yet shows Welcome to Portico.

Name the server

Enter a Server name that people will recognize on their devices. Under How will people sign in?, choose one of the two options below.

Use a Portico Account

Choose Use a Portico Account for one sign-in across Portico apps, invitations and access away from home.

  1. Under Create a recovery owner, enter a Username, Password and Confirm password. This server account gets you back in if your Portico Account is unavailable.
  2. Save the credentials somewhere safe and check I saved this password somewhere safe.
  3. Select Create recovery owner.
  4. In the Portico Account window, sign in if needed and approve the server. If you need to reopen it, select Open Portico Account.
  5. Return to the setup page. It continues after approval, and the server requests its secure connection.

Do this later skips account approval. You can finish it under Settings → Server → Remote access. Until then, devices use plain HTTP.

Your media and the recovery owner’s password stay on your server. The Portico Account handles account sign-in and server discovery.

Keep accounts on this server

Choose Keep accounts on this server to manage sign-ins locally.

  1. Under Create the owner account, enter a Username, Password and Confirm password.
  2. Select Create owner.

This option doesn’t create a Portico Account. You can configure remote access separately. See Enable remote access.

Server account password rules

The password must contain at least eight characters and use no more than 72 UTF-8 bytes. Some characters use more than one byte. Uppercase letters, numbers and symbols aren’t required; choose a long, unique password.

These rules apply to the server owner and recovery owner accounts. Your Portico Account has its own account-security settings.

After the owner is created

Portico closes first-run setup so nobody else can claim the server. Keep owner access for the person responsible for the server.

Check the basics

Before you add media, check the server name, data folder location, local connection and system clock. See Portico data folder for its location. Incorrect system time can break authentication and signed connection checks.

Add viewers later

Don’t use the owner account as a shared household login. Finish your first library and a local playback test, then Add a person for each viewer.