---
title: Dokku
description: Deploy ParadeDB on Dokku
canonical: https://www.paradedb.com/docs/operate/deploy/cloud-platforms/dokku
---

[Dokku](https://dokku.com) is a self-hosted PaaS built on Docker. This guide walks you through deploying ParadeDB Community on a Dokku host.

## Prerequisites

1. A Dokku host running version 0.34 or newer, with the [`dokku` CLI installed](https://dokku.com/docs/getting-started/installation/)
2. SSH access to the host as a user that can invoke `dokku` (typically `root` via `sudo`, or a user in the `dokku` group)

Run all `dokku ...` commands from the host, either directly on the host over SSH or via `ssh dokku@<HOST> <command>` from your local machine.

## Creating the App

```bash
dokku apps:create paradedb
```

## Attaching Persistent Storage

ParadeDB stores its data under `/var/lib/postgresql`. Create a host directory and mount it into the app so the database survives container rebuilds:

```bash
dokku storage:ensure-directory paradedb
dokku storage:mount paradedb /var/lib/dokku/data/storage/paradedb:/var/lib/postgresql
```

## Setting the Postgres Password

Set the database password as a Dokku config var so it never lives in a Docker image or a `git` history:

```bash
dokku config:set paradedb \
  POSTGRES_PASSWORD=<PASSWORD> \
  POSTGRES_USER=postgres \
  POSTGRES_DB=paradedb
```

## Exposing Port 5432

Postgres speaks TCP on port 5432. Tell Dokku to forward that port through its proxy layer:

```bash
dokku ports:add paradedb tcp:5432:5432
```

## Deploying from Docker Hub

Point Dokku at the ParadeDB Community image registry:

```bash
dokku git:from-image paradedb paradedb/paradedb:latest
```

See [Docker Hub](https://hub.docker.com/r/paradedb/paradedb/tags) for available tags.

## Connecting to ParadeDB

From any machine that can reach your Dokku host on port 5432:

```bash
psql "postgres://postgres:<PASSWORD>@<DOKKU_HOST>:5432/paradedb"
```

Replace `<DOKKU_HOST>` with your Dokku host's IP or hostname. By default the port is exposed on every interface. If the host is on the public internet, restrict inbound traffic to trusted IPs with your firewall (e.g. `ufw allow from <YOUR_IP> to any port 5432 proto tcp`).