SearxNG and Perplexica both run in the services stack and expose HTTPS endpoints through Traefik. This guide captures the exact
URL templates and browser settings needed to make those instances the default search providers in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox
so that day-to-day queries stay on homelab infrastructure.
https://searxng.nicholstech.org reachable on the LAN or via VPN.https://perplexica.nicholstech.org reachable with an Authentik session.%s placeholders are supported.Tip: Both URLs require valid certificates issued by the internal ACME/Traefik stack. If you see warnings, renew the certs before
setting the browser default so future syncs do not get flagged.
Chrome lets you pin multiple custom providers and then pick one as the default. Repeat the steps below twice—once for SearxNG and
again for Perplexica.
chrome://settings/searchEngines.SearxNG (Homelab)sxhttps://searxng.nicholstech.org/search?q=%schrome://settings/searchEngines and click Add again.Perplexica (Homelab)pxhttps://perplexica.nicholstech.org/?q=%ssx, px) followed by the query to route a single search to a specific backend without toggling the default.Firefox exposes similar controls via about:preferences#search. You can add both services as Search Shortcuts and choose one as the
default engine.
about:preferences#search.SearxNG (Homelab)sxhttps://searxng.nicholstech.org/search?q=%sabout:preferences#search, click Add again.Perplexica (Homelab)pxhttps://perplexica.nicholstech.org/?q=%ssx <query> or px <query> in the address bar. You should be redirected to the respective self-hosted instance.| Symptom | Fix |
|---|---|
| Auth redirect loop on Perplexica | Confirm the browser is signed into Authentik; service requires SSO before showing the UI. |
| Chrome refuses to set as default | Ensure the URL uses https:// and includes %s; Chrome rejects entries without the placeholder. |
| Firefox opens Google instead | Drag the new provider to the top of the search list or explicitly tick the default checkbox. |
| Certificate warnings | Re-issue certificates in Traefik (docker compose restart traefik) or import the internal CA into the browser trust store. |
By locking Chrome and Firefox to these endpoints, every ad-hoc search stays inside the homelab, ensuring telemetry, history, and AI-enhanced
results flow through privacy-preserving services you operate.