What is Bloom?

Bloom is an intuitive, privacy-focused file manager for Blossom and NIP-96 servers. It lets you store, organize, and share files across the distributed Nostr ecosystem with no passwords required.

What Bloom Can Do

• Simple Sign-In: Sign in instantly with your Nostr npub using a browser extension (NIP-07) or a remote signer (NIP-46).
• Organized Storage: View all your files across connected servers at a glance. Create folder-like structures using lists (NIP-51) so you can organize blobs as if you were in a traditional file system.
• Smart Search: Find anything by name, file type, MIME type, extension, or size. Bloom includes quick filters for common file types right in the toolbar.
• Backup and Safety: Replicate your files to other servers with just a few clicks to ensure they’re never lost.
• Private by Design: Encrypt files locally using AES-GCM (NIP-44) before upload. Please note that Bloom cannot retroactively encrypt files that already exist on a remote server.
• Easy Sharing: Generate shareable links or post directly to Nostr as public notes, DMs (NIP-04), or private DMs (NIP-17 + NIP-59) without leaving Bloom.
• Private Links: Use Bloom’s optional proxy microservice to hide server URLs and create expiring or revocable private links.
• Folder Sharing: Make folders public so anyone can view and download contents without logging in, using NIP-19 events.
• Metadata and File Info: Edit file metadata anytime via NIP-94. Rename blobs, tag folders, or strip EXIF data from images on upload.
• Built-in Media Support: Play audio directly in Bloom. Files with ID3 tags are automatically parsed into readable metadata.
• Connection Management: Easily manage your Blossom and NIP-96 media servers, and Nostr relay (NIP-65) connections.
• Profile Editing: Edit your Nostr profile (kind-0) from within Bloom, and quickly choose avatars or banners from your connected servers.
• Customization and Sync: Personalize your interface and settings. Optionally sync preferences across devices using NIP-77, or keep them local for privacy.

Before You Start

• You need a browser with a Nostr extension such as Alby installed, or have a remote signer such as Amber available.

Quick Start

If you wish to set up the event proxy to serve private links (links to files without exposing the Blossom endpoints) follow the steps below. If you do not wish to serve private links, skip to the Development Build or Production Build sections further down.

Setting up the private link proxy (Optional)

If you want to proxy private links, follow the instructions below. This is optional, but recommended.

1. Copy the Bloom env template:

   cp .env-example .env

2. Edit .env and set:
   • VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_PUBKEY to the hex public key that will publish private link aliases.
   • VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_HOST to the URL where the proxy will be reachable (defaults to http://localhost:8787).
3. Copy the proxy env template:

   cd services/private-link-proxy
   cp .env.example .env

4. Edit services/private-link-proxy/.env and configure the service:
   • PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_SECRET must be the hex private key that matches the public key from step 2.
   • RELAY_URLS should list the relays (comma-separated) Bloom uses to resolve aliases.
   • Optional overrides: PORT (proxy listen port), BLOSSOM_REQUEST_HEADERS (forwarded headers such as auth tokens), CACHE_TTL_SECONDS.
5. While still in services/private-link-proxy, install dependencies and start the proxy:

   pnpm install
   pnpm build
   pnpm start
   # The proxy will start listening at http://localhost:8787 by default. 
   # Change this to the domain you will be using to server proxy links. 
   # We recommend using a subdomain such as https://private.mydomain.com

Development Build

pnpm install
pnpm dev
# open http://localhost:5173

Production Build

pnpm build
pnpm preview
# open http://localhost:4173

Docker

You can build and run the production bundle inside a container without installing pnpm locally. Provide the proxy values as build arguments (replace them inline or export them in your shell) before running the container.

docker build \
  --build-arg VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_HOST=${VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_HOST:-CHANGE_THIS_BEFORE_BUILDING \
  --build-arg VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_PUBKEY=${VITE_PRIVATE_LINK_SERVICE_PUBKEY:-CHANGE_THIS_BEFORE_BUILDING} \
  -t bloom-web .
docker run --rm -p 3000:80 bloom-web
# open http://localhost:3000

To run the private link proxy alongside the web container, build the proxy stage and supply the environment file you configured in Setting up the private link proxy (Optional):

docker build --target private-link-proxy -t bloom-private-link-proxy .
docker run --rm --env-file services/private-link-proxy/.env -p 8787:8787 bloom-private-link-proxy

Docker Compose

Docker Compose builds both containers with your .env values and starts them together. Make sure .env and services/private-link-proxy/.env exist from the earlier setup steps before running the command below.

docker compose up --build
# open http://localhost:3000

The web service publishes port 80 to 3000 by default. Override PRIVATE_LINK_PROXY_PORT in your environment if you need the proxy on a different host port.