SkiffLaunch console

Getting started

Self-hosting

One command turns a fresh Linux server into your own deploy platform — the web dashboard, an edge router with automatic HTTPS, and everything needed to push apps to it.

What you'll need

  • A fresh Ubuntu or Debian server with a public IP and root SSH access (a $5/mo VPS is plenty to start).
  • A domain you can add DNS records to. Apps are served at <app>.yourdomain.com and the dashboard at dash.yourdomain.com.

Install

SSH into your server and run this as root — replace example.com with your domain:

on your server
curl -fsSL https://useskiff.xyz/install | sh -s -- --domain example.com

The installer:

  • installs Docker (if it isn't already),
  • downloads the latest skiff binary,
  • sets up systemd services for the edge router(binds :80 / :443 with Let's Encrypt) and the control panel (zero-downtime, blue-green),
  • generates a one-time setup key and prints your dashboard URL.
It finishes by printing your DNS records, dashboard URL, and setup key. Keep that key — you need it for the first login.

Point your DNS

Add these records at your DNS provider, pointing at your server's IP (the installer prints it). The wildcard covers every app and the dashboard in one record:

dns
A    *.example.com    <your-server-ip>
A    example.com      <your-server-ip>    (optional — apex / marketing site)

Certificates are issued automatically on the first HTTPS request, so there's nothing to configure — just wait for DNS to propagate (usually a few minutes).

First login

  1. 1

    Open your dashboard

    Visit https://dash.example.com once DNS resolves. The first visit asks you to create the owner account.
  2. 2

    Enter the setup key

    Paste the setup key the installer printed, then set your email and password. That's the owner account — teammates join later by invite.
  3. 3

    Deploy your first app

    Click Deploy, paste a Git repository URL (or connect GitHub), pick a name and port, and Skiff builds and runs it at <name>.example.com with its own certificate.

Connect GitHub (optional)

For push-to-deploy — a git push rebuilds and ships automatically, and branches can spin up preview environments — install the Skiff GitHub App from Settings → GitHub in the dashboard and pick which repos it can access. Without it, you can still deploy any public repo (or a private one with a token) by pasting its URL.

Updating

Re-run the installer any time to update to the latest release. Your data, apps, and setup key are preserved — it swaps the binary and restarts the services:

on your server
curl -fsSL https://useskiff.xyz/install | sh -s -- --domain example.com

Troubleshooting

Check the services and their logs over SSH:

on your server
systemctl status skiff-router skiff-panel@7070
journalctl -u skiff-router -n 50 --no-pager
journalctl -u skiff-panel@7070 -n 50 --no-pager
  • Dashboard won't load / no certificate: confirm dash.example.comresolves to your server's IP. Certs issue on the first request once DNS is correct.
  • An app 404s: check it's running under Server in the dashboard, and that <app>.example.com is covered by your wildcard record.
  • Ports 80/443 in use: make sure nothing else (nginx, Apache, Caddy) is bound to them — the Skiff router needs both.
PreviousOverview