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Self-hosted backend in five minutes. Postgres, GraphQL, Auth, Nginx. No cloud required.
ɳSelf is an open-source CLI that spins up a production-grade backend stack on any server or local machine. PostgreSQL, Hasura GraphQL, Auth, and Nginx reverse-proxy out of the box. MIT licensed, no vendor lock-in, no cloud dependency. 25 free plugins included, 62 Pro plugins available (87 total) starting at $0.99/mo.
brew install nself-org/nself/nself # or: curl -sSL https://install.nself.org | bash
nself init myapp
nself startThree commands. Complete backend. Your infrastructure.
- Getting Started
- Core Stack
- Features
- Commands
- Configuration
- Plugins
- Guides
- Architecture
- Security
- Brand
- Contributing
- Resources
New to ɳSelf? Start here.
| Page | Description |
|---|---|
| Installation | Install via Homebrew, curl, or manual download (macOS, Linux, WSL) |
| Quick-Start | Zero to running backend in under 5 minutes |
| First-Project | Guided walkthrough building a real project with auth, storage, and custom services |
| Upgrading-from-v1 | Migrating from the legacy Bash CLI to the Go rewrite |
| FAQ | Common questions and answers |
Every ɳSelf project runs these four services. No configuration required.
| Service | Version | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| PostgreSQL | 16-alpine | Primary database. pgvector, PostGIS, TimescaleDB extensions available |
| Hasura GraphQL | v2.44.0 | Instant GraphQL API with row-level permissions, subscriptions, remote schemas |
| Auth (nHost) | 0.36.0 | JWT sessions, 13 OAuth providers, MFA, magic links, passwordless flows |
| Nginx | alpine | SSL termination, reverse proxy, rate limiting, security headers. Only external-facing service |
Optional services (enable per project): Redis | MinIO (S3 storage) | Search (MeiliSearch) | Functions | Email (Mailpit dev / 16+ prod providers) | MLflow | Admin GUI (localhost:3021)
➡️ Architecture for full system overview, data flow, and service isolation
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Features | Complete feature matrix with status indicators |
| Feature-Auth | Authentication, OAuth providers, JWT, MFA, magic links |
| Feature-Storage | S3-compatible object storage with MinIO |
| Feature-Search | Full-text search with MeiliSearch |
| Feature-Functions | Serverless function runtime |
| Feature-Email | Email delivery with 16+ provider integrations |
| Feature-Monitoring | Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, Tempo (10-service monitoring bundle) |
| Feature-Plugins | Plugin system overview and capabilities |
ɳSelf provides 25 top-level commands with 295+ subcommands. Full reference:
| Category | Commands | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Lifecycle | cmd-init · cmd-build · cmd-start · cmd-stop · cmd-restart | Create, build, and manage your stack |
| Monitoring | cmd-status · cmd-logs · cmd-health · cmd-urls · cmd-doctor | Observe and diagnose services |
| Data | cmd-db | Database operations, migrations, backup, restore |
| Config | cmd-config · cmd-service · cmd-ssl · cmd-security | Environment, services, certificates, and security hardening |
| Plugins | cmd-plugin · cmd-license | Install, manage, and license plugins |
| Utilities | cmd-exec · cmd-clean · cmd-reset · cmd-update · cmd-version · cmd-admin · cmd-migrate · cmd-completion | Shell access, cleanup, updates, migrations |
➡️ Commands for the full command table with descriptions
ɳSelf uses a layered .env file system. No YAML, no config files to learn.
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Configuration | Overview: env file cascade, switching environments, validation |
| Config-Env-Vars | Complete environment variable reference (every variable, every service) |
| Config-Postgres | PostgreSQL: extensions, version pinning, connection pooling |
| Config-Hasura | Hasura: admin secret, JWT, console, dev mode, metadata |
| Config-Auth | Auth: OAuth providers, SMTP, rate limiting, JWT settings |
| Config-Nginx | Nginx: domains, SSL mode, rate limits, custom locations |
| Config-Optional-Services | Redis, MinIO, Functions, Search, Email, MLflow, Admin |
| Config-Custom-Services | Custom service slots CS_1 through CS_10 with 40+ templates |
| Config-System | System-level settings: Docker, networking, ports |
87 plugins extend your stack. 25 are free (MIT), 62 require a Pro license key.
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Plugin-Overview | All plugins by category with tier requirements |
| Plugin-Install | Installing, removing, updating, and listing plugins |
| Plugin-Licensing | License keys, tiers, pricing, validation |
| Plugin-Architecture | Technical internals: compose overlays, nginx injection, schemas |
| Plugin-Dev-Guide | Build and publish your own plugin |
Free Plugins (25), MIT licensed, no key required
| Plugin | What it does |
|---|---|
| plugin-backup | Automated backup with pruning and cloud storage |
| plugin-content-acquisition | RSS monitoring, release calendars, download pipelines |
| plugin-content-progress | Watch/read progress tracking |
| plugin-cron | Scheduled job execution |
| plugin-donorbox | Donorbox donation integration |
| plugin-feature-flags | Feature flag management |
| plugin-github | GitHub integration |
| plugin-github-runner | Self-hosted GitHub Actions runner |
| plugin-invitations | User invitation system |
| plugin-jobs | Background job queues |
| plugin-link-preview | URL preview and metadata extraction |
| plugin-mdns | mDNS/Bonjour service discovery |
| plugin-mlflow | ML experiment tracking |
| plugin-monitoring | Prometheus + Grafana + Loki + Tempo (10 services) |
| plugin-notifications | Notification management |
| plugin-notify | Push notifications |
| plugin-paypal | PayPal payment integration |
| plugin-search | MeiliSearch full-text search |
| plugin-shopify | Shopify storefront integration |
| plugin-stripe | Stripe payment and billing integration |
| plugin-subtitle-manager | Subtitle download and management |
| plugin-tokens | Token management |
| plugin-torrent-manager | Torrent client integration |
| plugin-vpn | VPN/WireGuard management |
| plugin-webhooks | Webhook delivery and management |
Pro Plugins (62), License key required, starting at $0.99/mo
AI and Automation: plugin-ai · plugin-claw · plugin-claw-web · plugin-claw-budget · plugin-mux · plugin-voice · plugin-browser · plugin-bots · plugin-workflows
Communication: plugin-chat · plugin-livekit · plugin-streaming · plugin-realtime · plugin-podcast · plugin-meetings · plugin-recording
Commerce and Payments: plugin-commerce · plugin-stripe · plugin-paypal · plugin-shopify · plugin-subscription · plugin-checkout · plugin-donorbox-pro · plugin-entitlements
Content and Social: plugin-cms · plugin-blog · plugin-pages · plugin-social · plugin-activity-feed · plugin-moderation · plugin-knowledge-base · plugin-support · plugin-documents · plugin-calendar · plugin-post
Email Providers: plugin-sendgrid · plugin-mailgun · plugin-postmark · plugin-twilio
Security and Auth: plugin-auth · plugin-sso · plugin-saml · plugin-ldap · plugin-oauth-providers · plugin-access-controls · plugin-idme · plugin-compliance · plugin-admin-api · plugin-audit · plugin-waf · plugin-rate-limit
Infrastructure: plugin-google · plugin-cloudflare · plugin-object-storage · plugin-cdn · plugin-observability · plugin-ddns · plugin-devices · plugin-vpn · plugin-mdns
Media: plugin-media · plugin-media-processing · plugin-file-processing · plugin-photos · plugin-stream-gateway · plugin-epg · plugin-transcoder · plugin-thumb · plugin-watermark · plugin-drm
Productivity: plugin-cron-pro · plugin-notify-pro · plugin-scheduler · plugin-backup-pro · plugin-analytics · plugin-reports · plugin-export · plugin-import
Specialized: plugin-tmdb · plugin-game-metadata · plugin-retro-gaming · plugin-rom-discovery · plugin-sports · plugin-geocoding · plugin-geolocation · plugin-home · plugin-web3 · plugin-flow · plugin-content-acquisition · plugin-content-progress · plugin-torrent-manager · plugin-subtitle-manager
Step-by-step guides for common workflows.
| Guide | Description |
|---|---|
| Guide-Production-Deployment | Take your local stack to a production server |
| Guide-SSL-Setup | SSL certificates: auto-generated local, Let's Encrypt, and wildcard |
| Guide-Multi-Tenancy | Enterprise multi-tenant setup with row-level isolation |
| Guide-Security-Hardening | Lock down your production deployment |
| Guide-Monitoring-Setup | Set up Grafana dashboards, alerting, and log aggregation |
| Guide-Backup-Restore | Automated backups, cloud storage, and disaster recovery |
| Guide-Custom-Services | Add your own microservices using 40+ templates |
| Guide-Migration-from-v1 | Migrate from the legacy Bash CLI |
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Architecture | System overview, core services, data flow, service isolation |
| Service-Graph | Visual service dependency graph |
| Compose-Generation | How nself build generates docker-compose.yml |
| Nginx-Generation | How nginx.conf is generated from project config |
| Config-System | System-level architecture and Docker networking |
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Security-Policy | Responsible disclosure and reporting |
| Security-Architecture | How ɳSelf isolates and hardens services |
| Security-Hardening | Production hardening checklist |
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Branding | Brand guidelines and usage |
| Brand-Assets | Downloadable logos, icons, and assets |
| Logo-Usage | Logo usage rules and clear space |
| Color-Palette | Official colors and usage |
| Page | Covers |
|---|---|
| Contributing | How to contribute to ɳSelf |
| Dev-Setup | Set up a local development environment |
| Plugin-Dev-Guide | Build and publish your own plugin |
| Release-Process | How releases are built and published |
| Resource | Link |
|---|---|
| Changelog | Version history and release notes |
| FAQ | Common questions and answers |
| Migration-Roadmap | v0.9 → v1.0.9 → v1.1.0 migration roadmap |
| Migration-Signals-v1.0.9 | v1.0.8 → v1.0.9 migration signals |
| GitHub Repository | Source code |
| Report Issues | Bug reports and feature requests |
| Discussions | Community conversations |
| nself.org | Official website |
| docs.nself.org | Online documentation |