This simple tutorial shows how to install and setup SABnzbd, Usenet download tool, in Ubuntu 22.04 and Ubuntu 24.04.

SABnzbd is a free open-source program to download binary files from Usenet servers. Many people upload all sorts of interesting material to Usenet and you need a special program to get this material with the least effort.

The app makes Usenet as simple and streamlined as possible by automating everything. All you have to do is add an .nzb. SABnzbd takes over from there, where it will be automatically downloaded, verified, repaired, extracted and filed away with zero human interaction.

Method 1: Install SABnzbd via Snap package

The most easy way to get the software package is using the official Snap, which however runs in sandbox.

For Ubuntu on x86_64 and ARM devices, simply search for and install it from either Ubuntu Software or App Center.

Or, open terminal and install the Snap via command:

snap install sabnzbd

Method 2: Install SABnzbd via Ubuntu PPA

The software is also available in system repository as .deb package. However, it’s old!

For the most recent version, there’s an Ubuntu PPA contains the package for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 23.04/23.10, and Ubuntu 24.04! Though, only for modern Intel/AMD x86_64 CPUs.

1. First, press Ctrl+Alt+T to open terminal. In case, you’re trying to install on Ubuntu server, first install the tool for adding PPA:

sudo apt install software-properties-common

Then, enable multiverse and universe repositories:

sudo add-apt-repository multiverse

sudo add-apt-repository universe

2. Then, run command to add the PPA:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:jcfp/nobetas

Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it asks and hit Enter to continue.

3. Finally, install the app as native .deb package from PPA:

sudo apt install sabnzbdplus

NOTE: Linux Mint needs to run sudo apt update to refresh package cache.

Setup SABnzbd

After installing the app, it should run silently as background service.

To check its status, use command:

systemctl status sabnzbdplus.service

By replacing status in command, you may also enable, start, and/or restart the service according to your need.

By default, only local machine can access the web interface. To allow access remotely, run command to edit the config file:

sudo nano /etc/default/sabnzbdplus

Then, set HOST=0.0.0.0 or HOST=127.0.0.1. For choice, you may also change the port number (8080 by default). Finally, press Ctrl+S to save file, and Ctrl+X to exit config file.

Finally, in a web browser, go to either localhost:8080/sabnzbd (from local machine) or ip-address:8080/sabnzbd (from remote) to access the wizard.

Enter your usenet server details, and enjoy!

Uninstall SABnzbd

Depends on how you installed the software, either remove the Snap from Ubuntu Software.

Or run command in terminal to install the PPA package:

sudo apt remove --autoremove sabnzbdplus

Also, remove the Ubuntu PPA by running command:

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:jcfp/nobetas