Shell Automation on Unraid

Persistence Model

Unraid runs entirely from RAM. All persistent scripts and configuration must reside on the USB flash drive under /boot/config/. Files outside this path are lost on reboot.

Master Boot Script

/boot/config/go executes during boot before the WebGUI starts. Use it to install SSH keys, event hooks, kernel modules, and network tuning:

#!/bin/bash
# /boot/config/go — runs at boot before WebGUI

# Restore SSH authorized keys
mkdir -p /root/.ssh
cp /boot/config/ssh/authorized_keys /root/.ssh/authorized_keys
chmod 700 /root/.ssh && chmod 600 /root/.ssh/authorized_keys

# Install custom event hook
cp /boot/config/custom/my-hook.sh \
  /usr/local/emhttp/plugins/user.scripts/event/array_started/

# Network tuning
echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward

# Start background services
/boot/config/custom/my-daemon.sh &

User Scripts Plugin

The CA User Scripts plugin provides a WebGUI for managing persistent bash scripts.

Storage Location

/boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/<script_name>/script

Each script lives in its own directory. The executable file must be named script.

Scheduling Options

Schedule	When
At Array Start	When array comes online
At Array Stop	When array goes offline
Custom Cron	Any cron expression
At First Array Start Only	Once after boot, on first array start
Manual Only	Run from WebGUI or CLI

Create a User Script

mkdir -p /boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/my-backup
cat > /boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/my-backup/script << 'SCRIPT'
#!/bin/bash
#name=Nightly Backup
#description=Backs up appdata to array

rsync -a /mnt/user/appdata/ /mnt/user/backups/appdata/
/usr/local/emhttp/webGui/scripts/notify \
  -e "Backup" -s "Nightly backup completed" -i "normal"
SCRIPT
chmod +x /boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/my-backup/script

Scripts run as root with full system access.

Event System (emhttp_event)

The emhttp_event dispatcher runs scripts placed in event directories when system events fire.

Script Location

/usr/local/emhttp/plugins/<plugin_name>/event/<EVENT_NAME>/

Startup Event Sequence

Events fire in this order during boot:

Order	Event	Meaning
1	driver_loaded	Kernel drivers ready
2	starting	emhttp initializing
3	array_started	Array disks online
4	disks_mounted	Filesystems mounted
5	docker_started	Docker daemon running
6	libvirt_started	libvirt/KVM ready
7	started	System fully operational

Shutdown Event Sequence

Reverse order: stopping -> libvirt_stopped -> docker_stopped -> disks_unmounted -> array_stopped -> stopped -> driver_unloaded

Event Script Rules

• Scripts must be executable (chmod +x)
• IMPORTANT: Long-running scripts must background (&) to avoid blocking emhttp
• Scripts run as root
• Event directories under /usr/local/emhttp/ are in RAM and must be recreated on each boot (use /boot/config/go)

Example Event Hook

# /boot/config/custom/on-array-start.sh
# Install from go: cp /boot/config/custom/on-array-start.sh \
#   /usr/local/emhttp/plugins/user.scripts/event/array_started/

#!/bin/bash
# Start a service after array is online
docker start myservice &
/usr/local/emhttp/webGui/scripts/notify \
  -e "Array" -s "Array started, services launched" -i "normal" &

CLI Tools

mdcmd -- Array Management

Command	Purpose
mdcmd check NOCORRECT	Start non-correcting parity check
mdcmd check CORRECT	Start correcting parity check
mdcmd nocheck	Cancel running parity check
mdcmd spinup N	Spin up disk N
mdcmd spindown N	Spin down disk N
mdcmd set md_write_method 1	Set write method (1=reconstruct)
mdcmd status	Array status

emcmd -- Array Start/Stop

Command	Purpose
emcmd cmdStart=Start	Start the array
emcmd cmdStop=Stop	Stop the array

notify -- System Notifications

/usr/local/emhttp/webGui/scripts/notify \
  -e "Event Title" \
  -s "Subject line" \
  -d "Detailed description" \
  -i "normal"    # normal, warning, alert

The -i flag sets importance level, which determines notification routing (email, push, etc.) based on Unraid notification settings.

mover -- Cache-to-Array Migration

Run /usr/local/sbin/mover start to trigger manually, or /usr/local/sbin/mover start -f to force (ignore age threshold).

Cron Scheduling

User Scripts creates cron entries automatically. For manual cron, add to /boot/config/go: echo "0 3 * * * /boot/config/custom/nightly-job.sh" >> /var/spool/cron/crontabs/root

Notification Integrations

Combine the built-in notify with external webhooks in User Scripts:

#!/bin/bash
MSG="Parity check finished at $(date)"

# Unraid native notification
/usr/local/emhttp/webGui/scripts/notify -e "Parity" -s "$MSG" -i "normal"

# ntfy.sh push
curl -s -d "$MSG" https://ntfy.sh/my-unraid-alerts

# Discord webhook
curl -s -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"content\": \"$MSG\"}" https://discord.com/api/webhooks/YOUR_URL

Key Configuration Files

Path	Purpose
/boot/config/go	Master startup script (runs before WebGUI)
/boot/config/domain.cfg	VM manager settings
/boot/config/docker.cfg	Docker daemon settings
/boot/config/shares/<Name>.cfg	Per-share config (key=value pairs)
/boot/config/vfio-pci.cfg	VFIO passthrough device bindings
/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg	Kernel boot parameters (IOMMU, etc.)
/boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/	User Scripts storage

Debugging

Test a user script manually with bash /boot/config/plugins/user.scripts/scripts/my-script/script. Watch emhttp events with tail -f /var/log/syslog | grep emhttp. Check recent syslog entries with tail -100 /var/log/syslog.