matrix-docker-ansible-deploy/docs/configuring-playbook-ntfy.md

Setting up the ntfy push notifications server (optional)

The playbook can install and configure the ntfy push notifications server for you.

Using the UnifiedPush standard, ntfy enables self-hosted (Google-free) push notifications from Matrix (and other) servers to UnifiedPush-compatible Matrix compatible client apps running on Android and other devices.

This role is intended to support UnifiedPush notifications for use with the Matrix and Matrix-related services that this playbook installs. This role is not intended to support all of ntfy’s other features.

Note: In contrast to push notifications using Google’s FCM or Apple’s APNs, the use of UnifiedPush allows each end-user to choose the push notification server that they prefer. As a consequence, deploying this ntfy server does not by itself ensure any particular user or device or client app will use it.

The Ansible role for ntfy is developed and maintained by the MASH (mother-of-all-self-hosting) project. For details about configuring ntfy, you can check them via:

• 🌐 the role’s documentation at the MASH project online
• 📁 roles/galaxy/ntfy/docs/configuring-ntfy.md locally, if you have fetched the Ansible roles

Adjusting DNS records

By default, this playbook installs ntfy on the ntfy. subdomain (ntfy.example.com) and requires you to create a CNAME record for ntfy, which targets matrix.example.com.

When setting, replace example.com with your own.

Adjusting the playbook configuration

To enable ntfy, add the following configuration to your inventory/host_vars/matrix.example.com/vars.yml file:

########################################################################
#                                                                      #
# ntfy                                                                 #
#                                                                      #
########################################################################

ntfy_enabled: true

########################################################################
#                                                                      #
# /ntfy                                                                #
#                                                                      #
########################################################################

As the most of the necessary settings for the role have been taken care of by the playbook, you can enable ntfy on your Matrix server with this minimum configuration.

See the role’s documentation for details about configuring ntfy per your preference (such as its web app).

Adjusting the ntfy URL (optional)

By tweaking the ntfy_hostname variable, you can easily make the service available at a different hostname than the default one.

Example additional configuration for your vars.yml file:

# Change the default hostname
ntfy_hostname: push.example.com

After changing the domain, you may need to adjust your DNS records to point the ntfy domain to the Matrix server.

Installing

After configuring the playbook and potentially adjusting your DNS records, run the playbook with playbook tags as below:

ansible-playbook -i inventory/hosts setup.yml --tags=setup-all,start

The shortcut commands with the just program are also available: just install-all or just setup-all

just install-all is useful for maintaining your setup quickly (2x-5x faster than just setup-all) when its components remain unchanged. If you adjust your vars.yml to remove other components, you’d need to run just setup-all, or these components will still remain installed. Note these shortcuts run the ensure-matrix-users-created tag too.

Usage

To make use of your ntfy installation, on Android for example, you need two things:

• the ntfy app
• a UnifiedPush-compatible Matrix app

For details about installing and configuring the ntfy app, take a look at this section on the role’s documentation.

Setting up a UnifiedPush-compatible Matrix app

Install any UnifiedPush-enabled Matrix app on that same device. The Matrix app will learn from the ntfy app that you have configured UnifiedPush on this device, and then it will tell your Matrix server to use it.

Steps needed for specific Matrix apps:

• FluffyChat-android:

  • Should auto-detect and use it. No manual settings.

• SchildiChat-android:

  1. enable Settings -> Notifications -> UnifiedPush: Force custom push gateway.
  2. choose Settings -> Notifications -> UnifiedPush: Re-register push distributor. (For info, a more complex alternative to achieve the same is: delete the relevant unifiedpush registration in ntfy app, force-close SchildiChat, re-open it.)
  3. verify Settings -> Notifications -> UnifiedPush: Notification targets as described below in the “Troubleshooting” section.

• Element-android v1.4.26+:

  1. choose Settings -> Notifications -> Notification method -> ntfy
  2. verify Settings -> Troubleshoot -> Troubleshoot notification settings

If the Matrix app asks, “Choose a distributor: FCM Fallback or ntfy”, then choose “ntfy”.

If the Matrix app doesn’t seem to pick it up, try restarting it and try the Troubleshooting section below.

Web App

ntfy also has a web app to subscribe to and push to topics from the browser. This may be helpful to further troubleshoot UnifiedPush problems or to use ntfy for other purposes. The web app only runs in the browser locally (after downloading the JavaScript).

The web app is disabled in this playbook by default as the expectation is that most users won’t use it. You can either use the official hosted one (it supports using other public reachable ntfy instances) or host it yourself by setting ntfy_web_root: "app" and re-running Ansible.

Troubleshooting

Check a client application

First check that the Matrix client app you are using supports UnifiedPush. There may well be different variants of the app.

To check if UnifiedPush is correctly configured on the client device, look at “Settings -> Notifications -> Notification Targets” in Element Android or SchildiChat Android, or “Settings -> Notifications -> Devices” in FluffyChat. There should be one entry for each Matrix client app that has enabled push notifications, and when that client is using UnifiedPush you should see a URL that begins with your ntfy server’s URL.

In the “Notification Targets” screen in Element Android or SchildiChat Android, two relevant URLs are shown, “push_key” and “Url”, and both should begin with your ntfy server’s URL. If “push_key” shows your server but “Url” shows an external server such as up.schildi.chat then push notifications will still work but are being routed through that external server before they reach your ntfy server. To rectify that, in SchildiChat (at least around version 1.4.20.sc55) you must enable the Force custom push gateway setting as described in the “Usage” section above.

If it is not working, useful tools are “Settings -> Notifications -> Re-register push distributor” and “Settings -> Notifications -> Troubleshoot Notifications” in SchildiChat Android (possibly also Element Android). In particular the “Endpoint/FCM” step of that troubleshooter should display your ntfy server’s URL that it has discovered from the ntfy client app.

The simple UnifiedPush troubleshooting app UP-Example can be used to manually test UnifiedPush registration and operation on an Android device.

Check the service’s logs

See this section on the role’s documentation for details.