I updated to the latest version of dietpi (6.17) and finally got it working.
For other: I mounted a USB Drive to the pi and copied the user data to it (via dietpi file manger). the installation got stuck on the pip requirement install after i did this. I had to manually run the pip install after with the correct USB drive file location. After I did this i ran the diet pi software again, installed sickrage and it worked!
@echelon I had a backup file made before this whole mess. I’m having trouble restoring it. When i select to restore it it just gets stuck. I see the small circular cursor moving but nothing happens.
do i need to start over completely or is there a way to restore my old back up file?