ZIMServer

A modern and lightweight alternative to kiwix-serve for your ZIM files

About • Features • Use Cases • Installation • Usage • License

About

ZIMServer lets you serve ZIM files (Wikipedia, Wiktionary, etc.) through a clean Web interface. It is a streamlined alternative to kiwix-serve with a focus on usability and modern web standards.

Features

• Single binary: Statically compiled for every OS/architecture with no dependencies.
• Zero configuration: Point it at your ZIM files and start serving immediately.
• Multi-archive support: Serve an unlimited number of ZIM files simultaneously from folders or specific paths.
• Hot reload: Automatically detects and loads new ZIM files without needing a restart.
• Fast search: Optimized search functionality to find articles quickly across your library.
• Responsive interface: A clean, modern UI designed for both mobile and desktop browsers.
• Multilingual support: Native support with automatic detection and manual selection of the interface language.
• Light & Dark themes: Automatic system detection or manual toggle, with a forced dark mode option for ZIM content.
• Resource efficient: Low memory and CPU footprint, suitable for hardware ranging from Raspberry Pi to dedicated servers.

Use Cases

• Offline Education: Host Wikipedia and educational materials locally for schools and libraries without internet access.
• Censorship Resistance: Provide uncensored access to knowledge in restricted regions via local networks or USB drives.
• Emergency Response: Carry WikiMed and technical manuals in the field for medical teams and disaster units.
• Remote Work: Access reference materials in isolated locations without depending on satellite connectivity.
• Personal Knowledge Base: Keep a fast, offline home library of Wikipedia, documentation, and books.
• Air-Gapped Networks: Deploy in secure or classified environments where external internet is prohibited.

Installation

Grab a binary (Linux (amd64, i386, arm64, armv7), macOS (Intel/ARM), Windows (amd64, i386, arm64)) from releases or build from source.

Build from source

Needs Go 1.26+.

git clone https://github.com/gaetanlhf/ZIMServer.git
cd ZIMServer
make build

Usage

# Point it at your ZIM files
./zimserver /path/to/zim-files

# Or specific files
./zimserver wikipedia.zim wiktionary.zim

# Mix files and directories
./zimserver file.zim /another/directory

# Serve on your network
./zimserver --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8080 /path/to/zims

Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. That's it.

ZIM files

Download from download.kiwix.org - Wikipedia, Wiktionary, medical references, Stack Exchange, TED, books, and more.

License

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU Affero General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License along with this program. If not, see http://www.gnu.org/licenses/.