anubis

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19.3k stars·System Optimization·SHA-256 checksum verified

Lightweight self-hosted AI firewall that challenges visitors to protect upstream servers from scraper bots.

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Download Download Version

v1.25.0 · 20.9 MB

Self-hosted AI firewall that challenges visitors to block scraper bots.

Core Features

Lightweight Go binary with minimal resource usage
Multiple challenge types (computational, CAPTCHA, etc.)
Allowlist support for legitimate bots like Internet Archive
Fully self-hosted, no third-party dependency
Open source with active community

What It Can't Do

•Caveats: 1. Challenges may block legitimate crawlers (e.g., Googlebot) unless added to allowlist. 2. Every visitor must pass a challenge, which may degrade UX. 3. Only protects the origin server, not against client-side DDoS.

Use Cases

Protect small websites and communities from AI crawler overload
Alternative when Cloudflare is not an option

Detailed Introduction

Anubis is a web AI firewall utility that uses one or more challenges (like computational puzzles or CAPTCHAs) to verify human visitors and block automated scraper bots. Built in Go for minimal resource usage, it is designed for small websites and communities overwhelmed by AI company crawlers. Unlike cloud-based solutions such as Cloudflare, Anubis is fully self-hosted and gives you complete control. It supports allowlists for 'good bots' (e.g., Internet Archive) and is open source with a strong community. Ideal for scenarios where using a third-party CDN is not feasible or desired.

Troubleshooting & FAQ (2)

Troubleshooting

How to fix 'unknown network' error when binding Anubis metrics port in Docker?

The 'unknown network' error typically occurs due to an invalid metrics configuration in botPolicy.yaml. Workaround: bind the metrics address to 0.0.0.0:9191 instead of :9191, and ensure the network field is set to a valid value like tcp4 (or remove it entirely). Example:

metrics:
  bind: "0.0.0.0:9191"
  # network: "tcp"  # remove or change to 'tcp4' if needed

Restart the Docker container after updating the policy file. This resolves the binding failure by explicitly specifying the IPv4 interface.

GitHub Issue #1605

Configuration

How can I change or disable the Anubis mascot artwork on my site?

There is no environment variable for this. Changing branding is an enterprise feature. As a workaround, use a reverse proxy like nginx to alias the image directory and serve custom happy.webp, pensive.webp, and reject.webp files.

GitHub Issue #281

Getting Started

Download installer

Click the button above to download the installer for your system

Linux· 20.9 MB Windows· 20 MB

Install the software

Install the appropriate package for your distro (dpkg / rpm / AppImage)

Step 1: Download the latest anubis binary from GitHub Releases

Step 2: Create a configuration file (default works)

Step 3: Run `./anubis` and configure your reverse proxy (e.g., nginx) to forward requests to anubis

Install Guide

Step 1: Download the latest anubis binary from GitHub Releases
Step 2: Create a configuration file (default works)
Step 3: Run `./anubis` and configure your reverse proxy (e.g., nginx) to forward requests to anubis

File Integrity

SHA-256 checksum verified

Checksum extracted from GitHub official Release page

SHA256 Checksum

958d17e52e9445a0f60c2f35ab05b7464841e4714d8df6c5ec986800f06471f7

This checksum is extracted from the GitHub Release page. Verify file integrity after download.

All SHA-256 checksums on this platform are extracted from the project's official GitHub Release page, without any modification. You can independently verify them on the GitHub Releases page.

Open Source Transparency

View GitHub Source

Environment Guide

Uninstall Info

Stop the anubis process, delete the binary, configuration files, and any stored data.

No Extra Dependencies

Ready to use after download. No additional runtime required.

Project Info

LicenseMIT

Last Updated2026-06-26 01:40:18

GitHub Repository Official Website

Having issues? Check the FAQ below

2 FAQs

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