GVE Now!

Guided-view editor companion app for Comics Now!. Serves a web UI and REST API (port 3100 by default) for authoring guided-view data, and hosts the full-res WebP page cache shared with the comics-now reader.

New here? The docs/WIKI.md is a full instructional guide — concepts, the editor, import/export, the data model, the API, and troubleshooting. This README is the install/ops reference.

Requirements

• Node.js ≥ 20
• A comics-now install anywhere on disk — the app needs its database and library, not a specific path
• ffmpeg on PATH for page transcoding (default ffmpegBin)

Install

git clone <repo-url> /opt/gve-now
cd /opt/gve-now
npm ci

Create config.json pointing at your comics-now install (see config.example.json). Every path key is optional — they all derive from comicsNowRoot, which may be any path:

{
  "comicsNowRoot": "/media/comics/comics-now",
  "bind": "127.0.0.1"
}

Check the setup before starting, then run:

node bin/gve-now.js check
npm start

The web UI bundle is committed (public/app.js), so no build step is needed for a fresh install. After changing anything under src/web, rebuild with npm run build:web (the server warns at startup if the bundle is missing).

Configuration

config.json (in the app root, or wherever GVE_NOW_CONFIG points):

| Key | Default | Meaning | | --- | --- | --- | | comicsNowRoot | /opt/comics-now | Where comics-now is installed. dbPath, guidedViewDir, backupDir and pageCacheDir all derive from it | | port | 3100 | HTTP port. If it's already in use the server exits with an error — change this value | | bind | 127.0.0.1 | Bind address. Non-loopback requires GVE_NOW_ALLOW_REMOTE=1 | | ffmpegBin | ffmpeg | ffmpeg executable for WebP transcoding | | prefsUserId | default-user | comics-now preferences user id | | dbPath, guidedViewDir, backupDir, pageCacheDir | derived from comicsNowRoot | Optional pins for custom locations. Prefer letting them derive — the settings UI refuses to change comicsNowRoot while a custom pin is present, and drops stale ones automatically |

Environment variables (override config.json):

| Variable | Overrides | | --- | --- | | GVE_NOW_CONFIG | Path of the config file | | COMICS_NOW_ROOT | comicsNowRoot | | GVE_NOW_PORT, GVE_NOW_BIND | port, bind |

Systemd

Copy systemd/gve-now.service to /etc/systemd/system/, adjust User and WorkingDirectory, then:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now gve-now

Restart after saving settings (sudo systemctl restart gve-now). The unit binds 0.0.0.0 via GVE_NOW_ALLOW_REMOTE=1 — see below.

Security

The app has no built-in authentication and can rewrite reader content; it refuses to bind non-loopback addresses unless GVE_NOW_ALLOW_REMOTE=1 is set. Remote binding is a deliberate LAN-trust decision: anyone who can reach the port can read and change the guided-view data and the config. Don't expose it directly to the public internet — always run containerized or remote deployments behind a secure reverse proxy (such as Caddy, Nginx, or Traefik with authentication and TLS) or within a private network/VPN.

The server enforces Host header validation to prevent DNS rebinding attacks on loopback and LAN interfaces. To allow additional custom domain names or hostnames, set GVE_NOW_ALLOWED_HOSTS=myhost.local,comics.example.com.

The official Docker image runs as the unprivileged node user.

Development

npm test                  # full suite
npm run build:web         # rebuild the frontend bundle
npm run build:web:watch   # rebuild on change

License

AGPL-3.0-or-later. GVE Now! is a companion to — and ports code from — comics-now, which is AGPL-3.0, so it carries the same license. See LICENSE.

Copyright (C) 2026 comicsnowdev