The Ultimate Guide to Setting Up Coolify: Your Self-Hosted PaaS Solution

If you've ever wanted the convenience of platforms like Vercel or Netlify but with complete control over your infrastructure, Coolify is the solution you've been looking for.

Coolify is an open-source, self-hosted Platform as a Service (PaaS) that simplifies deploying and managing applications by wrapping Docker into an intuitive web interface. In this comprehensive guide, we'll walk through setting up your own Coolify instance on an Altivox VM or any Linux server.

What is Coolify?

Coolify is designed to streamline your deployment workflow with features like:

• One-click deployments from Git repositories
• Built-in SSL certificate management via Let's Encrypt
• Docker container orchestration
• Database management
• Intuitive web interface
• Monitoring and logging
• Scalable architecture

By the end of this guide, you'll have your own private PaaS running that gives you the convenience of cloud platforms with the privacy and control of self-hosting.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, you'll need:

• A Linux server (Ubuntu 20.04+ or Debian 10+ recommended)
• SSH access to your server with sudo privileges
• A domain name pointing to your server (for SSL)
• Basic familiarity with command line
• Open ports: 80, 443, and 3000

Step 1: Preparing Your Server

First, ensure your server is updated and has the necessary dependencies:

# Update package lists
sudo apt update

# Upgrade installed packages
sudo apt upgrade -y

# Install required dependencies
sudo apt install -y curl wget git
Make sure your firewall allows the required ports:
# If using UFW (Ubuntu's default firewall)
sudo ufw allow 22/tcp   # SSH
sudo ufw allow 80/tcp   # HTTP
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp  # HTTPS
sudo ufw allow 3000/tcp # Coolify dashboard (initial setup)

Step 2: Installing Coolify

SSH into your server and run the official installation script:

curl -fsSL https://cdn.coollabs.io/coolify/install.sh | sudo bash

This command downloads and executes the Coolify installation script. The script will:

1. Install Docker if not already present
2. Pull the necessary Docker images
3. Create required directories
4. Set up the Coolify service
5. Start the Coolify instance

Once the installation completes, you'll see output similar to:

✅ Coolify has been successfully installed!

📝 Dashboard: http://your-server-ip:3000

Take note of the URL - you'll need it to access your Coolify dashboard.

Step 3: Initial Configuration

Securing Your Instance

⚠️ IMPORTANT: Immediately after installation, visit the dashboard URL and create your admin account. This is a critical security step as the first user to register becomes the root administrator. If you delay this step, someone else could potentially take control of your Coolify instance.

1. Navigate to the dashboard URL from the installation output
2. Create your admin account with a strong password
3. Save your credentials in a secure password manager

Completing the Onboarding Process

After creating your admin account, you'll be guided through an onboarding process:

1. Welcome Screen: You can either follow the guided tour or skip to the dashboard
2. Team Setup: Create or join a team (for personal use, create your own)
3. Server Configuration: Your installation server is automatically added

You can always revisit any skipped steps later through the settings menu.

Step 4: Configuring Your Domain and SSL

To make your Coolify instance more accessible and secure, you'll want to set up a custom domain with SSL:

1. Navigate to the Settings tab in the dashboard
2. Find the Domain Configuration section
3. Change the domain to your preferred domain that points to your server IP
4. Save your changes

Coolify will automatically attempt to provision an SSL certificate through Let's Encrypt. Make sure your domain's DNS records are properly configured to point to your server's IP address.

For example, if your domain is coolify.yourdomain.com, you should create an A record in your DNS settings:

Type: A
Name: coolify
Value: your-server-ip
TTL: 3600 (or automatic)

After a few minutes, your Coolify instance should be accessible via https://coolify.yourdomain.com with a valid SSL certificate.

Step 5: Adding Your First Application

Now that your Coolify instance is up and running, let's deploy your first application:

1. From the dashboard, click on Resources > Create New Resource
2. Select the application type you want to deploy (Node.js, PHP, Static Site, etc.)
3. Connect your Git repository (GitHub, GitLab, or direct Git URL)
4. Configure your build settings:
   • Build command (e.g., npm run build)
   • Output directory (e.g., dist or build)
   • Environment variables
5. Click Deploy

Coolify will now pull your code, build your application, and deploy it to your server. You can monitor the deployment process in real-time through the dashboard.

Step 6: Advanced Configuration

Setting Up Separate Build and Deployment Servers

For production environments, it's recommended to separate your Coolify panel from your build and deployment servers. This prevents one application's failure from affecting your entire infrastructure.

To add a new server:

1. Navigate to Settings > Servers > Add Server
2. Choose the server type (Build or Deployment)
3. Follow the instructions to connect your new server
4. Once connected, you can assign specific applications to specific servers

Monitoring and Logging

Coolify provides built-in monitoring and logging capabilities:

1. Navigate to the Monitoring tab for resource usage statistics
2. View application logs directly from the application dashboard
3. Set up alerts for critical events

Backup and Restore

To protect your Coolify data:

1. Go to Settings > Backup
2. Configure automated backups to a secure location
3. Test the restore functionality in a development environment

Please note that backups only encapsulate the Coolify database, not your individual apps.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You now have a fully functional, self-hosted PaaS solution with Coolify. You can deploy applications directly from your Git repositories, manage databases, and monitor your infrastructure, all from a single dashboard.

By self-hosting Coolify, you maintain complete control over your data and deployment pipeline while enjoying the convenience of modern cloud platforms. As your needs grow, consider expanding your setup with dedicated build and deployment servers to create a robust, scalable infrastructure.

Additional Resources

• Official Coolify Documentation
• Coolify GitHub Repository
• Community Forums
• Best Place to Host Coolify

Happy deploying!

This guide was last updated on May 10, 2025. Coolify is an open-source project and features may change. Always refer to the official documentation for the most up-to-date information.