Service: Penpot - EyevinnOSC/community GitHub Wiki

Penpot

Penpot is an open-source design tool for teams. It runs in the browser and supports vector design, prototyping, and developer handoff — similar to Figma. Files are stored as open SVG-based formats with no vendor lock-in.

Getting Started

Go to Penpot on OSC to create your instance.

Prerequisites

  • An OSC account (sign up at app.osaas.io)
  • A PostgreSQL database instance
  • A Valkey (Redis-compatible) instance for real-time collaboration

Step-by-Step Setup

Step 1: Create a PostgreSQL Database

Penpot stores all projects, files, users, and teams in PostgreSQL:

osc create birme-osc-postgresql mypostgres

Note the connection URL (e.g. postgresql://user:password@host:5432/db) and the database username and password.

Store the database password as a service secret:

osc secret set penpot-db-password <your-db-password>

Step 2: Create a Valkey Instance

Valkey is required for Penpot's real-time collaboration features:

osc create valkey-io-valkey myvalkey

Store the Valkey password as a service secret:

osc secret set penpot-valkey-password <your-valkey-password>

The Redis URL format is: redis://:password@host:6379

Step 3: Create the Penpot Instance

osc create penpot-penpot mypenpot \
  -o DbUrl="postgresql://host:5432/db" \
  -o DbUsername="postgres" \
  -o DbPassword="{{secrets.penpot-db-password}}" \
  -o RedisUrl="redis://:{{secrets.penpot-valkey-password}}@host:6379"

Step 4: Create Your Account

Navigate to your Penpot URL and register a new account. The first user to register gets admin privileges.

Default credentials: Penpot has no pre-set admin credentials. Register your account on first launch.

Usage Example

Access Penpot via its URL and create your first project:

  1. Log in at your Penpot instance URL
  2. Click New Project to create a design project
  3. Invite teammates by email from Team Settings
  4. Share design specs with developers using View Mode or the Inspect panel

Penpot Desktop App

Penpot also has a desktop application. Point it to your self-hosted instance URL instead of the cloud version:

  1. Open Penpot Desktop
  2. On the login screen, click Use custom server
  3. Enter your OSC instance URL

Resources