Requirements
Before installing Slipway, make sure your server meets these requirements.
Server Requirements
Minimum
| Requirement | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU | 1 core |
| RAM | 1GB |
| Disk | 10GB |
| OS | Ubuntu 20.04+, Debian 11+, or any Linux with Docker |
Recommended
| Requirement | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU | 2+ cores |
| RAM | 4GB+ |
| Disk | 50GB+ SSD |
| OS | Ubuntu 22.04 LTS |
Software Requirements
Slipway's install script will automatically install Docker if it's not already present. However, if you prefer to set things up manually:
| Software | Version | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Docker | 20.10+ | Required for container management |
| Docker Compose | v2+ | Included with Docker Desktop |
Network Requirements
| Port | Purpose | Required |
|---|---|---|
| 80 | HTTP traffic and certificate provisioning | Yes in the default mode |
| 443 | HTTPS traffic | Yes in the default mode |
| 1337 | Slipway dashboard loopback binding | No public access |
| 1338–1500 | Optional direct application IP:port URLs | Only after explicitly enabled |
| 22 | SSH access | Recommended |
Public bindings may need to be allowed at two separate network boundaries:
- The host firewall running on the server, such as UFW or firewalld. The installer aligns Slipway's public bindings when either firewall is already active. It does not enable a firewall or change SSH rules.
- The provider firewall or security group managed by Hetzner, DigitalOcean, AWS, or your VPS provider. Slipway cannot change these rules, so you must configure them in your provider's control panel.
Fresh installations expose only Caddy on ports 80 and 443. The dashboard and deployed applications bind to 127.0.0.1, which means they are reachable from the server itself but not directly from the internet. Open 1338–1500 only after explicitly enabling raw IP:port access. Cloudflare Tunnel mode can keep every Slipway origin port private. See Ingress and Firewall for each supported mode.
CLI Requirements
To use the Slipway CLI on your local machine:
| Software | Version | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Node.js | 22+ | Required for CLI |
| npm | 10+ | Comes with Node.js |
The CLI has zero npm dependencies — it uses only Node.js built-ins.
Supported Platforms
VPS Providers (Tested)
- Hetzner Cloud (Recommended — great performance/price ratio)
- DigitalOcean Droplets
- Linode
- Vultr
- AWS EC2
- Google Cloud Compute Engine
Getting a VPS
If you're new to self-hosting, we recommend starting with a Hetzner Cloud server. Their CX22 plan (2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 40GB SSD) is an excellent starting point for running Slipway and a few applications.
Other Platforms
Slipway should work on any Linux server with Docker support. If you encounter issues on a specific platform, please open an issue.
What's Next?
Once you've confirmed your server meets these requirements, proceed to Server Installation.