How should a beginner start using TRaSH Guides?

Start at the Getting Started section, then work through one tool at a time: open the Radarr or Sonarr home page, follow the recommended naming scheme, set up quality profiles, and only then import custom formats. TRaSH Guides is a collection of setup guides for Radarr, Sonarr, and related media management tools, so the right entry point depends on which app you are configuring first.

Understand what the site covers before you click

The site is organized by tool rather than by task, which is why beginners often land on an advanced page too early. The main sections are:

If you are unsure what the project is at all, read the "About TRaSH-Guides" page first; it explains the scope and the official collaboration behind the guides.

Follow this order for a first setup

1. Read Getting Started. It exists to stop you from applying quality profiles before your file structure and downloader paths make sense.
2. Set up your file and folder structure. Use the Hardlinks and Instant Moves pages and pick the guide for your platform (Docker, Dockstarter, Native, Synology, TrueNAS Core, unRAID, or Windows). There is also a "Check if Hardlinks Are Working" page and a "Replace Copies With Hardlinks" page for verifying and fixing results.
3. Configure your downloader. Choose your client's Basic-Setup page, then its Path and Categories page. qBittorrent, Deluge, and ruTorrent also have port forwarding pages; NZBGet and SABnzbd have Scripts pages.
4. Configure Radarr or Sonarr in this sequence: recommended naming scheme → quality settings (file size) → quality profiles → import custom formats → update custom formats. Anime, French, and German profile guides exist as separate pages if they apply to your library.
5. Add Prowlarr if you use indexers, including the FlareSolverr and limited-API indexer pages when relevant.
6. Tune Plex with the suggested server and client settings pages once libraries are populated.
7. Keep the Tips section bookmarked. Merging quality, ordering quality sources, renaming folders, language custom formats, syncing two Radarr or Sonarr instances, and remote path mappings are the pages you will return to as your setup grows.

What to expect at each step

• Naming scheme pages define how files and folders are named so later tools can parse them. Apply this before profiles, because profile decisions assume consistent naming.
• Quality profile pages walk through building a profile; the custom format pages then attach scoring rules to it. Importing custom formats before a profile exists leaves you with nothing to apply them to.
• Custom formats have an update page. Treat custom formats as something you maintain, not a one-time import.
• Hardlink guides are platform-specific. Follow the one matching your install; the verification page tells you whether the result actually worked.

Common places beginners get stuck

• Starting with custom formats. They are the most shared part of the guides but depend on profiles and naming being in place first.
• Skipping the file structure step. Hardlink and instant-move problems surface later as duplicate copies or slow imports; the "Replace Copies With Hardlinks" page addresses the cleanup.
• Mixing platforms. Pick your OS or container guide and stay with it rather than combining steps from several.
• Ignoring the Tips section. Pages like "How to Merge Quality" and "How to Order Quality Sources" resolve conflicts that appear only after your first downloads.

When you need help

The site lists a Support section and a Contributors page. Check whether your question is already answered on the relevant tool's home page or in the troubleshooting pages (for example, Plex streaming and buffering, or ruTorrent troubleshooting) before asking elsewhere.