Setting Up Coolify for Self-Hosted Deployments

Introduction

Coolify is a self-hosted Heroku alternative that automates deployments, SSL, and monitoring. This guide covers installation and deploying an app.

Prerequisites

• Ubuntu 20.04+ server
• Docker & Docker Compose
• Domain name with DNS configured

Step 1: Clone Coolify Repository

git clone https://github.com/coollabsio/coolify.git
cd coolify

Step 2: Configure Environment

Copy env file:

cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env to set APP_PORT, DOMAIN, DB credentials

Key variables:

• DOMAIN: your domain for dashboard
• APP_PORT: port Coolify listens on

Step 3: Deploy with Docker Compose

docker-compose up -d

Check services:

docker-compose ps

Step 4: Access Coolify Dashboard

Visit https://<DOMAIN> and complete initial setup (admin user).

Step 5: Add a New Application

1. Click Add App.
2. Choose Git or Docker Registry.
3. For Git: provide repo URL, branch, and build command.
4. Configure environment variables.

Step 6: Enable SSL

Coolify provisions Let’s Encrypt certificates automatically for your DOMAIN.

Step 7: Monitoring and Logs

• View logs in App > Logs tab.
• Monitor metrics under Stats.

Summary

Coolify simplifies self-hosted deployments with a GUI for builds, SSL, environment management, and monitoring. Perfect for teams wanting Heroku-like experience on their own infrastructure.