Olaris vs Rygel
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted media servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Olaris | Rygel |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Media Servers | Media Servers |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | LGPL-2.1 |
| Language | Go | Vala |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 300 | ★ 200 |
| First released | 2019 | 2008 |
| Replaces | Plex | Plex |
What are Olaris and Rygel?
Olaris
Olaris is an open-source media manager and transcoding server for organizing and streaming movies and TV shows. It scrapes metadata automatically and serves content over a GraphQL API.
- Automatic metadata scraping
- GraphQL API
- On-the-fly transcoding
- Movie and TV organization
Rygel
Rygel is a home media solution that allows you to share and stream audio, video, and images to UPnP and DLNA devices on your network. It is part of the GNOME project and integrates with the Linux desktop.
- UPnP/DLNA sharing
- GNOME desktop integration
- Pluggable backends
- Transcoding support
Olaris vs Rygel: key differences
Olaris is written in Go, while Rygel is built with Vala. Licensing differs — AGPL-3.0 for Olaris versus LGPL-2.1 for Rygel. Rygel is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Olaris. Rygel is the more established project (first released 2008), while Olaris arrived in 2019. Olaris lists first-class Docker deployment; Rygel does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Olaris if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Go
Watch out for
- Development stalled
- Limited client apps
Choose Rygel if…
- Released under the LGPL-2.1 license
- Written in Vala
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Watch out for
- Linux desktop oriented
- No standalone UI
Frequently asked questions
Is Olaris or Rygel better?
Neither is universally better. Olaris has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Olaris and Rygel free and open-source?
Yes. Olaris is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Rygel under LGPL-2.1. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Olaris and Rygel with Docker?
Olaris: yes. Rygel: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Olaris or Rygel?
Rygel has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Olaris. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.