Custom (Apprise)

The Custom field accepts one complete URL for a service supported by ChannelWatch’s bundled Apprise version. Use it when a dedicated provider slot does not cover your service or URL scheme.

How it works

Every Apprise-supported service has a URL scheme that encodes all the credentials and settings needed to send a notification. The Custom field accepts one complete Apprise URL. ChannelWatch passes non-HTTP service schemes to Apprise as supplied. HTTP-style destinations such as json://, form://, and xml:// also go through ChannelWatch’s destination safety checks before Apprise receives them. A private or local destination needs approval through Trusted Destinations in Settings; unsafe or unapproved destinations are dropped.

The general pattern is:

scheme://[<user>:<password>@]<host>[:<port>]/[path][?param=value]

For example:

# ntfy.sh topic
ntfy://<topic-name>

# Pushbullet
pbul://<pushbullet-access-token>

The full list of supported services and their URL formats is in the Apprise wiki.

Note

Only services supported by the Apprise version bundled with ChannelWatch are available. Current upstream documentation can describe services added after that version. The Custom field does not install extra Apprise plugins.

To check the bundled Apprise version:

docker exec channelwatch python -c "import apprise; print(apprise.__version__)"

Add a custom provider in the web UI

Caution

The Custom field accepts exactly one URL. If you need to send to multiple services that don’t have dedicated slots, you can only configure one at a time in this field. Use the dedicated provider slots (Discord, Telegram, Slack, etc.) for those services instead.

1. Open the ChannelWatch web UI at http://your-server-ip:8501
2. Go to Settings > Notifications and stay on the Global scope
3. Enable Custom
4. Look up your service in the Apprise wiki and copy the URL format for it
5. Fill in your credentials and paste the complete URL into the Custom Apprise URL field
6. If ChannelWatch flags a private HTTP-style destination, review the exact scheme, host, and port before choosing Trust this destination
7. Click Save
8. Follow the notification test guidance, including the v1.6.0 command-line fallback. A test sends a real message.

Custom Apprise URL fieldEnter the complete service URL, including its scheme. Sample credentials are masked. Captured from ChannelWatch v1.6.0 with safe demo data.View full-size screenshot

Add a custom provider via environment variable

For headless or automated deployments, set CW_APPRISE_CUSTOM in your compose file with the full Apprise URL:

environment:
  CW_APPRISE_CUSTOM: "ntfy://<topic-name>"

Unlike the dedicated provider slots, the Custom field does not prepend a scheme. The value you provide must be a complete, valid Apprise URL including the scheme.

Finding your service’s URL format

The Apprise wiki has a page for each supported service. Each page shows:

• The URL syntax with all required and optional parameters
• A parameter breakdown table
• Working examples you can adapt

Search for your service, then check whether that service and its requested options are supported by your installed Apprise version.

Troubleshooting

No notification arrives

1. Compare the URL with your service’s Apprise documentation. Check the scheme, credential encoding, destination, and required parameters.
2. Check that Custom is enabled, settings were saved, and the alert is allowed by its preset and DVR routing.
3. For HTTP-style destinations, check whether the exact scheme, host, and port require approval in Trusted Destinations.
4. If you deliberately send a test, use ChannelWatch’s documented test path so its routing and URL checks still apply. Check both the Delivery Log and the receiving service.

Service not recognized

Check for a misspelled scheme first. If the syntax matches the service documentation, check when it was added and compare that with the bundled Apprise version. Its presence in the latest wiki alone does not establish compatibility.

Related pages

• Provider Matrix - compare all notification providers at a glance
• Delivery Log - review sent notification history
• Matrix - dedicated Matrix provider with room join guidance