Baby monitoring
on your server.

Choose your data folder and user

Replace /path/to/your/data with an absolute folder path on your server. This stores your database and, by default, recordings, so allow room for video and back up this folder. Set PUID and PGID to the folder owner's IDs; find them with id your_username. The values below, 99 and 100, are the usual Unraid defaults.

Start the container

Run this in your server's terminal after changing the data path and user IDs. You can replace UTC with your timezone, such as Australia/Sydney; this controls log timestamps.

docker run -d \
  --name nightlight \
  --network host \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  --log-opt max-size=10m \
  --log-opt max-file=3 \
  --stop-timeout 30 \
  -e PUID=99 \
  -e PGID=100 \
  -e TZ=UTC \
  -v /path/to/your/data:/app/data \
  sauso/nightlight:latest

Host networking shares your server's IP and ports, including the web interface on port 4000. Keep the log limits and 30-second stop timeout: they limit Docker log growth and give recordings time to finish during shutdown.

Open Nightlight and create your admin account

From a trusted device on the same network, open http://<server-ip>:4000, replacing <server-ip> with your server's local IP address. Create the first admin account before making the installation accessible to anyone else.

Add your children and cameras

Use the Children tab to add a child, then Cameras → Add camera. Enter the camera's IP and credentials. Use ONVIF to fetch connection details if supported, or enter its RTSP port and stream path from the camera's manual. Assign the camera to a child.

Check your setup

Confirm live video and audio work on the devices you'll use. Set the app's timezone in Settings, review recording storage and retention, and configure and test any motion or sound alerts you enable. These instructions set up local access; remote access needs additional configuration.