README

Openship


  Open-source, self-hostable deployment platform with built-in CI/CD.
  Point it at a repo — it builds, ships, routes, and TLS-terminates your app. Drive it from a desktop app, web dashboard, or CLI.



  
    
  



  
  
  



  Quick Start ·
  How It Works ·
  Interfaces ·
  Docs ·
  Contributing



  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



  


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 Quick Start

There's one decision to make first: how you run Openship itself (the control plane). Everything else is the same afterwards.

| If you're… | Run Openship as | Where your apps run |
|---|---|---|
| Solo, one machine, no ops | Desktop app | A server you connect over SSH, or Openship Cloud |
| A team — or you want push-to-deploy / to host apps on your own box | Self-hosted server (openship up) | On that box (Compose mode) — or out to another server / Cloud (bare mode) |
| Not interested in running anything | Openship Cloud | Managed sandboxes, zero setup |

 [!TIP]
 Solo? Use the desktop app. It runs Openship's control plane on your own machine only while the app is open — nothing is left running on an always-on server, nothing is exposed publicly. You only need an always-on server install once you want push-to-deploy (CI/CD), team access, or to host apps on that box — the things that need a public, always-on endpoint.

 Solo — desktop app

The control plane runs locally and drives your servers over SSH. No login, no terminal, no public surface — download, open, done:

| Platform | Download |
|---|---|
| macOS (Apple Silicon) | Openship-arm64.dmg |
| macOS (Intel) | Openship-x64.dmg |
| Windows | Openship-win32-x64.zip |
| Linux | Openship.AppImage |

Linux: chmod +x Openship.AppImage && ./Openship.AppImage. Already have the CLI? openship install fetches and launches it. Links always point at the newest release.

From the desktop app you connect a server (SSH) or Openship Cloud and deploy to it — the app itself doesn't host public apps on your laptop.

 Team / always-on — self-hosted server

Install the CLI (it bundles the API + dashboard), then run openship — an interactive wizard creates the first admin, wires your domain, and installs Openship as a boot service. Run it again anytime to manage the instance.

bash
curl -fsSL https://get.openship.io | sh           install  (or: npm i -g openship — needs Node 22+)
openship                                           guided setup, then control panel


The install script brings its own Node when your system one is older than 22; a package-manager
install runs on the Node you already have.

For CI / headless boxes, skip the wizard and drive openship up directly:

bash
openship up                                        install + start as a background service (boots + auto-restarts)
openship up --public-url https://openship.example.com    + serve the dashboard on your domain (edge + TLS handled)


openship up picks how it runs for you:

- On Linux with Docker → Compose mode (the default). Brings up the full stack — Postgres, Redis, API, da