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Comparison · Infra & APIs

Cobbler vs Jackett

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Cobbler and Jackett — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Cobbler vs Jackett: at a glance

FeatureCobblerJackett
SectorInfra & APIsInfra & APIs
Velocity score5.05.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesprovisioning, backports, distro-support, installer-supporttorrent indexers, open source, media automation, maintenance
Last editorial update2mo ago1d ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Cobbler?

Cobbler's 3.3 backport branch ships Leap 16 and Agama support, then has to re-cut the release

Cobbler's public releases are all 3.3-branch backports, and the branch just had its most substantial drop in nearly two years. 3.3.8 added import and manage support for openSUSE Leap 16 and its Agama installer, interactive and automatic XCP-ng network installs, and basic Python 3.13 support. It was withdrawn 76 minutes after it appeared because its CI packaging workflow never ran on the tag, and 3.3.9 re-shipped the same content once the PyPI publish action was fixed. Before that pair, recent history is dominated by the CVE-2024-47533 admin-API bypass, patched on both 3.3 and 3.2.

Read the full Cobbler trajectory →

What is Jackett?

Jackett ships a daily build to keep hundreds of torrent indexers working as sites move and close.

Jackett is an open-source proxy that turns hundreds of torrent tracker sites into a single Torznab API for media automation tools. It ships an auto-generated release roughly every day, and nearly every one is indexer upkeep: new domains, category mappings, selector fixes after site redesigns, and removing dead trackers.

Read the full Jackett trajectory →

Cobbler vs Jackett: editorial side-by-side

C
Cobbler
INFRA · APIS
5.0

Cobbler's 3.3 backport branch ships Leap 16 and Agama support, then has to re-cut the release

◆ Current state

Cobbler's public releases are all 3.3-branch backports, and the branch just had its most substantial drop in nearly two years. 3.3.8 added import and manage support for openSUSE Leap 16 and its Agama installer, interactive and automatic XCP-ng network installs, and basic Python 3.13 support. It was withdrawn 76 minutes after it appeared because its CI packaging workflow never ran on the tag, and 3.3.9 re-shipped the same content once the PyPI publish action was fixed. Before that pair, recent history is dominated by the CVE-2024-47533 admin-API bypass, patched on both 3.3 and 3.2.

◆ Where it's heading

The branch is tracking new installer and distro ecosystems rather than winding down: Agama and XCP-ng are current targets, and Python 3.13 support keeps the package installable on newer hosts. Release engineering is the weak point, and the entries show why - SHA-pinning GitHub Actions inside CI is what broke the publish step, at the cost of a same-day defunct-and-replace. Feature work continues to arrive as rollups from main rather than as branch-native development.

◆ Prediction

Expect the next 3.3.x tag to be another backport rollup, with CI hardening following the 3.3.9 failure. Whether the main line cuts a 3.4 is not something these entries show.

J
Jackett
INFRA · APIS
5.0

Jackett ships a daily build to keep hundreds of torrent indexers working as sites move and close.

◆ Current state

Jackett is an open-source proxy that turns hundreds of torrent tracker sites into a single Torznab API for media automation tools. It ships an auto-generated release roughly every day, and nearly every one is indexer upkeep: new domains, category mappings, selector fixes after site redesigns, and removing dead trackers.

◆ Where it's heading

The work is entirely maintenance. Its value depends on keeping up with a tracker ecosystem where sites change domains and layouts weekly. Where possible, the project is moving definitions to sturdier integrations, such as switching world-of-tomorrow to its Torznab API and retiring trackers that moved to direct downloads.

◆ Prediction

Expect the daily cadence to continue, with more trackers moved to API-based definitions and more dead sites removed. Core changes stay rare.

Alternatives to Cobbler and Jackett

Other Infra & APIs products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Cobbler or Jackett.

See all Cobbler alternatives → · See all Jackett alternatives →

Recent activity from Cobbler and Jackett

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 1d agoJackettJackett adds bigbbs, flags magnetz as pay-to-download
  2. 2d agoJackettUATorrent multi-category search disabled
  3. 2d agoJackettJackett adds UATorrent and Pornorip, bumps three domains
  4. 3d agoJackettJackett drops ptying and bluebird, bumps core packages
  5. 4d agoJackettJackett adds binarybay, renames tocashare to sapibr
  6. 5d agoJackettJackett updates thebrothers categories and v3x engine tag
  7. 2mo agoCobbler3.3.8 re-cut after fixing the PyPI publish workflow
  8. 2mo agoCobblerLeap 16 and Agama support, withdrawn as defunct
  9. 3mo agoCobblerCVE-2024-47533 backported to the 3.2 branch
  10. 1y agoCobblerCVE-2024-47533: API admin authentication bypass fixed
  11. 2y agoCobblerEFI support added to cobbler buildiso
  12. 2y agoCobblerLazy collection loading and UUID, MAC and IP indices

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Cobbler and Jackett?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Cobbler and Jackett are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Cobbler better than Jackett?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Cobbler and Jackett are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Infra & APIs products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Cobbler?

Top Cobbler alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Cobbler alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/cobbler for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Jackett?

Top Jackett alternatives in Infra & APIs are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Jackett alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/jackett for the full list with editorial commentary on each.