From 73d3c0f73321ab0713f3619820a6e48bb0af0dcf Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Wendell Jones <wpjonesnh@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2026 14:54:05 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] Add jellyfin-ffmpeg requirements and recommendations to
 README

---
 README-POSTGRESQL.md | 52 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 52 insertions(+)

diff --git a/README-POSTGRESQL.md b/README-POSTGRESQL.md
index 3f819f20..f112d4d9 100644
--- a/README-POSTGRESQL.md
+++ b/README-POSTGRESQL.md
@@ -15,6 +15,52 @@ This is a fork of Jellyfin that adds PostgreSQL database support for .NET 11 pre
 
 ## Requirements
 
+### FFmpeg Requirements
+
+**jellyfin-ffmpeg is highly preferred and recommended** for use with Jellyfin Media Server. While standard FFmpeg can be used, the custom `jellyfin-ffmpeg` fork includes specifically targeted fixes, optimizations, and enhanced hardware acceleration support for media streaming that may not be available or prioritized in the upstream version.
+
+#### Why jellyfin-ffmpeg is Preferred:
+
+- **Improved Hardware Acceleration**: Better support for hardware acceleration (NVENC, QuickSync, VA-API) across a wider range of GPUs, reducing the risk of partial acceleration
+- **Reduced Playback Issues**: Specifically built to handle HDR/Dolby Vision content, HLS/fMP4/MPEG-TS streaming, and complex transcoding scenarios better than standard FFmpeg
+- **Optimized Performance**: Often includes more efficient software decoders (like dav1d for AV1)
+- **Pre-configured**: Automatically included with official Docker images, deb packages, and Windows installers
+
+**Link**: [jellyfin-ffmpeg repository](https://github.com/jellyfin/jellyfin-ffmpeg)
+
+#### Installation:
+
+**Debian/Ubuntu** (using Jellyfin repository):
+```bash
+# Add Jellyfin repository (if not already added)
+sudo apt-get install -y software-properties-common
+sudo add-apt-repository universe
+
+# Install jellyfin-ffmpeg
+sudo apt-get update
+sudo apt-get install -y jellyfin-ffmpeg6
+```
+
+**Manual Download**:
+Download from [jellyfin-ffmpeg releases](https://github.com/jellyfin/jellyfin-ffmpeg/releases) and configure the path in Jellyfin settings.
+
+#### Using Standard FFmpeg (Not Recommended):
+
+If using a custom or unofficial installation where jellyfin-ffmpeg is not available, standard FFmpeg might work but could lead to issues with specific transcoding tasks:
+
+```bash
+# Debian/Ubuntu
+sudo apt-get install -y ffmpeg
+
+# RHEL/Fedora
+sudo dnf install -y ffmpeg
+
+# Arch Linux
+sudo pacman -S ffmpeg
+```
+
+**Note**: You may need to manually set the FFmpeg path in Jellyfin's dashboard under **Dashboard → Playback → FFmpeg path**.
+
 ### System Dependencies (Linux)
 
 Jellyfin requires certain system libraries to be installed:
@@ -30,6 +76,8 @@ sudo apt-get install -y \
     libicu-dev
 ```
 
+**Note**: See the [FFmpeg Requirements](#ffmpeg-requirements) section above for installing `jellyfin-ffmpeg`.
+
 #### RHEL/CentOS/Fedora-based systems:
 
 ```bash
@@ -40,12 +88,16 @@ sudo dnf install -y \
     libicu
 ```
 
+**Note**: See the [FFmpeg Requirements](#ffmpeg-requirements) section above for installing FFmpeg.
+
 #### Arch Linux:
 
 ```bash
 sudo pacman -S fontconfig freetype2 openssl icu
 ```
 
+**Note**: See the [FFmpeg Requirements](#ffmpeg-requirements) section above for installing FFmpeg.
+
 **Note**: The `libfontconfig1` library is **required** for SkiaSharp (image processing). Without it, Jellyfin will fail to start with:
 ```
 libfontconfig.so.1: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory