Database Management

Dokploy can deploy databases as managed services with a few clicks. Supported engines:

• PostgreSQL — The default choice for most applications
• MySQL / MariaDB — WordPress, Laravel legacy, specific compatibility needs
• MongoDB — Document storage, flexible schemas
• Redis — Caching, sessions, queues

Each runs as a Docker container with persistent volumes. Dokploy handles networking so your apps can reach them by hostname.

Via Dashboard

1. Open your project in Dokploy
2. Click Create Service → Database → PostgreSQL
3. Configure:
   • Name: main-db (becomes the hostname)
   • Database Name: myapp
   • Username: myapp
   • Password: Generate a strong one
   • Version: 16 (latest stable)
4. Click Create

Dokploy spins up the container and creates a persistent volume for /var/lib/postgresql/data.

Connection Details

Host: main-db (internal hostname)
Port: 5432
Database: myapp
Username: myapp
Password: (what you set)

postgresql://myapp:yourpassword@main-db:5432/myapp

Same process, different engine:

1. Create Service → Database → MySQL (or MariaDB)
2. Configure:
   • Name: mysql-db
   • Root Password: Generate one
   • Database Name: myapp
   • Username: myapp
   • Password: Generate one
   • Version: 8.0

mysql://myapp:yourpassword@mysql-db:3306/myapp

MySQL vs MariaDB

Use MariaDB unless you specifically need MySQL features. MariaDB is fully compatible with MySQL clients, often faster for common workloads, and truly open source.

Redis is essential for caching, sessions, and background job queues.

1. Create Service → Database → Redis
2. Configure:
   • Name: cache
   • Password: Set one (optional but recommended)
   • Version: 7

redis://:yourpassword@cache:6379/0

Redis for Multiple Purposes

Use different database numbers to separate concerns:

# Caching
CACHE_URL=redis://cache:6379/0

# Sessions
SESSION_URL=redis://cache:6379/1

# Job Queues
QUEUE_URL=redis://cache:6379/2

Database numbers 0-15 are available by default.

In your application's Environment tab, add the connection details:

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://myapp:yourpassword@main-db:5432/myapp

# Or split out (some frameworks prefer this):
DB_HOST=main-db
DB_PORT=5432
DB_NAME=myapp
DB_USER=myapp
DB_PASSWORD=yourpassword

Framework-Specific Examples

DB_CONNECTION=pgsql
DB_HOST=main-db
DB_PORT=5432
DB_DATABASE=myapp
DB_USERNAME=myapp
DB_PASSWORD=yourpassword

CACHE_DRIVER=redis
QUEUE_CONNECTION=redis
SESSION_DRIVER=redis
REDIS_HOST=cache
REDIS_PASSWORD=yourpassword
REDIS_PORT=6379

Migrations need to run once per deployment, not per container. Here are three approaches:

Option 1: Manual via Dokploy Terminal

After deployment, go to your application → Terminal tab → run:

# Laravel
php artisan migrate --force

# Django
python manage.py migrate

# Prisma (Next.js, etc.)
npx prisma migrate deploy

# Rails
rails db:migrate

Good for: Initial setup, debugging, one-off changes.

Option 2: Startup Script

Add migrations to your container startup with an entrypoint.sh:

#!/bin/sh
set -e

echo "Running migrations..."
npx prisma migrate deploy

echo "Starting application..."
exec node server.js

Good for: Simple apps, development environments. Warning: runs on every container start.

Option 3: Deployment Hook (Recommended)

Use Dokploy's Advanced settings to run a command after build, before traffic switches:

1. Go to your application → Advanced tab
2. Find Post-deployment command
3. Add your migration command

Good for: Production deployments, zero-downtime migrations.

Dokploy doesn't have built-in backup scheduling (yet). Set it up yourself — it takes 10 minutes and will save you someday.

Manual Backup Commands

docker exec dokploy-main-db pg_dump -U myapp myapp > backup-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S).sql

Automated Backup Script

Create /opt/dokploy-backups/backup.sh:

#!/bin/bash
set -e

BACKUP_DIR="/opt/dokploy-backups"
RETENTION_DAYS=14
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)

# Create backup directory
mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR/daily"

# PostgreSQL backup
echo "Backing up PostgreSQL..."
docker exec dokploy-main-db pg_dump -U myapp myapp | gzip > "$BACKUP_DIR/daily/postgres-$DATE.sql.gz"

# Redis backup
echo "Backing up Redis..."
docker exec dokploy-cache redis-cli -a yourpassword BGSAVE
sleep 5  # Wait for save to complete
docker cp dokploy-cache:/data/dump.rdb "$BACKUP_DIR/daily/redis-$DATE.rdb"

# Clean up old backups
echo "Cleaning up backups older than $RETENTION_DAYS days..."
find "$BACKUP_DIR/daily" -type f -mtime +$RETENTION_DAYS -delete

echo "Backup complete!"

Schedule with Cron

crontab -e

# Add this line for daily backup at 3 AM:
0 3 * * * /opt/dokploy-backups/backup.sh >> /var/log/dokploy-backup.log 2>&1

Offsite Backups with Restic

Local backups aren't enough — if the server dies, so do your backups. Use Restic to sync to S3-compatible storage.

# After local backup completes
echo "Syncing to offsite storage..."
restic -r s3:s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/your-bucket backup "$BACKUP_DIR/daily"
restic -r s3:s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/your-bucket forget --keep-daily 7 --keep-weekly 4 --keep-monthly 6 --prune