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Understanding the Open WebUI Architecture

The Open WebUI system is designed to streamline interactions between the client (your browser) and the Ollama API. At the heart of this design is a backend reverse proxy, enhancing security and resolving CORS issues.

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How it Works

The Open WebUI is designed to interact with the Ollama API through a specific route. When a request is made from the WebUI to Ollama, it is not directly sent to the Ollama API. Initially, the request is sent to the Open WebUI backend via /ollama route. From there, the backend is responsible for forwarding the request to the Ollama API. This forwarding is accomplished by using the route specified in the OLLAMA_BASE_URL environment variable. Therefore, a request made to /ollama in the WebUI is effectively the same as making a request to OLLAMA_BASE_URL in the backend.
For instance, a request to /ollama/api/tags in the WebUI is equivalent to OLLAMA_BASE_URL/api/tags in the backend.

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Security Benefits

This design prevents direct exposure of the Ollama API to the frontend, safeguarding against potential CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) issues and unauthorized access. Requiring authentication to access the Ollama API further enhances this security layer.

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Common Issues

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Server Connection Error

If you’re experiencing connection issues, it’s often due to the WebUI docker container not being able to reach the Ollama server at 127.0.0.1:11434 (host.docker.internal:11434) inside the container.
Use the --network=host flag in your docker command to resolve this. Note that the port changes from 3000 to 8080, resulting in the link: http://localhost:8080.
Example Docker Command: 
docker run -d --network=host -v open-webui:/app/backend/data -e OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://127.0.0.1:11434 --name open-webui --restart always ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main

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Slow Response Timeout

Open WebUI has a default timeout of 5 minutes for Ollama to finish generating the response. If needed, this can be adjusted via the environment variable AIOHTTP_CLIENT_TIMEOUT, which sets the timeout in seconds.
For longer-running models, increase the timeout value:
-e AIOHTTP_CLIENT_TIMEOUT=600

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General Connection Errors

Ensure Ollama Version is Up-to-Date: Always start by checking that you have the latest version of Ollama. Visit Ollama’s official site for the latest updates. Troubleshooting Steps:
1

Verify Ollama URL Format

When running the Web UI container, ensure the OLLAMA_BASE_URL is correctly set (e.g., http://192.168.1.1:11434 for different host setups).
2

Check Admin Settings

In the Open WebUI, navigate to “Settings” > “General”.Confirm that the Ollama Server URL is correctly set to [OLLAMA URL] (e.g., http://localhost:11434).

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Docker Volume Data Persistence

When using Docker to install Open WebUI, make sure to include the -v open-webui:/app/backend/data in your Docker command. This step is crucial as it ensures your database is properly mounted and prevents any loss of data.

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Offline Mode Issues

If you are running Open WebUI in an offline environment, you can set the HF_HUB_OFFLINE environment variable to 1 to prevent attempts to download models from the internet. 
export HF_HUB_OFFLINE=1

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Getting Help

By following these enhanced troubleshooting steps, connection issues should be effectively resolved. For further assistance or queries, feel free to reach out to us on our community Discord or check our GitHub Issues.

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