Setting Up Photos

Getting Started

All photo screensaver settings live under the Control Center. Here's how to get there:

1. Open the Dashie sidebar by swiping from the left edge of the screen.
2. Tap "Control Center" at the bottom of the sidebar.
3. Go to Screensaver & Display → Screensaver.
4. Set Screensaver Mode to "Photos". The photo slideshow options will appear below — this is where you'll pick a source and configure it.

Available Photo Sources

Dashie supports three photo sources today, with two more on the way. Once you've enabled Photos mode (above), pick your source from the photo slideshow options.

Immich

Immich is a popular self-hosted photo management server — think Google Photos, but on your own hardware. Dashie connects directly to your Immich instance to pull random photos from your full library or a specific album.

Before You Start

You'll need:

• A running Immich server reachable from your Dashie device (same network or remotely accessible)
• Your Immich server URL (e.g., http://192.168.1.50:2283)
• Your Immich account email and password

Configure Immich

1. Open the photo slideshow options as described in Getting Started.
2. Set Photo Source to "Immich".
3. Enter your Immich server URL. Dashie will try common ports automatically (2283, 8080, 3001) if you don't specify one. For example, http://192.168.1.50 works just as well as http://192.168.1.50:2283.
4. Sign in. A login screen opens — enter your Immich email and password. Dashie captures your access token automatically and stores it locally on the device.
5. (Optional) Pick an album. Once signed in, you'll see a list of your Immich albums. Select one to limit photos to that album, or leave it on "All Photos" for random pulls from your entire library.
6. Save. Dashie pre-fetches a small cache of photos and streams them into your slideshow.

Re-authenticating

If your Immich session expires or you change your Immich password, just go back to Control Center → Screensaver & Display → Screensaver → Immich and sign in again. The new token replaces the old one.

Home Assistant Media Browser

Dashie pulls photos from your Home Assistant's /config/media/ folder (or /media/ on Home Assistant OS). This central location means you add photos once and every Dashie device on your account displays them automatically.

Step 1: Add Photos to Home Assistant

You need to get your photos into Home Assistant's media folder first. There are several ways to do this — pick whichever fits your workflow.

Option A: Samba Share (Recommended for Bulk Uploads)

1. Install the Samba share add-on from Home Assistant Settings → Add-ons → Add-on Store. Search for "Samba share" and click Install.
2. Configure a username and password in the add-on's Configuration tab, then start the add-on.
3. Connect from your computer. On Mac, open Finder and press Cmd+K, then enter smb://homeassistant.local/config. On Windows, open File Explorer and type \\homeassistant.local\config in the address bar.
4. Open the media folder (create it if it doesn't exist) and drag-and-drop your photos.

Option B: File Editor Add-on

For a few photos at a time, install the "File editor" or "Studio Code Server" add-on from the Add-on Store. Use its upload button to push photos into /config/media/.

Option C: Home Assistant Media Browser UI

In Home Assistant, go to Media in the sidebar. You can upload images directly into the Local Media library from your browser. Files land in the same /config/media/ folder.

Step 2: Organize with Subfolders (Optional)

Dashie scans subfolders automatically, so you can organize photos however you like. A typical setup looks like this:

Step 3: Configure Dashie

1. Open the photo slideshow options as described in Getting Started.
2. Set Photo Source to "Home Assistant Media".
3. Choose a folder scope:
   • All Folders — recursively includes every photo across all subfolders
   • Root Only — only photos at the top level of /config/media/
4. Photos will sync automatically. First sync may take a moment depending on library size.

Unsplash

Configure Unsplash

1. Open the photo slideshow options as described in Getting Started.
2. Set Photo Source to "Unsplash".
3. Enter a search keyword in the query field. Examples: nature, mountains, minimalist, ocean sunset, autumn forest. Leave blank to default to nature.
4. Save. Photos start streaming immediately on the next slideshow tick.

Slideshow Settings

These settings apply to whichever source you've picked. You'll find them alongside the source options under Control Center → Screensaver & Display → Screensaver.

Setting	Options	Description
Slide Duration	5, 15, 30, 60 seconds	How long each photo displays before the next one
Transition	Fade, Slide, None	Animation style between photos
Shuffle	On / Off	Randomize order instead of sequential. On by default.
Show Info	On / Off	Overlay photo date and location (when available)

Coming Soon

Two more photo sources are in active development. They'll appear in your Photos settings once released — no app update required if you're on the latest version.

Need Help?

If you have questions or run into issues setting up photos:

• Screensaver Setup Guide
• Home Assistant Integration Guide
• Contact Support