---
title: "Deploy Chhoto URL template"
description: "Chhoto URL: lightweight self-hosted URL shortener built in Rust"
category: "Other"
url: https://railway.com/deploy/chhoto-url-template
---

# Deploy Chhoto URL template

Chhoto URL: lightweight self-hosted URL shortener built in Rust

**[Deploy Chhoto URL template on Railway](https://railway.com/template/chhoto-url-template)**

- **Creator:** Karim Zarzour's Projects
- **Category:** Other

## Template content

### Chhoto URL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/SinTan1729/chhoto-url/12862fbb5a7054548a9ef1e4c2ff1395ea6a1084/resources/assets/favicon.svg

- **Image:** sintan1729/chhoto-url:latest
- **Public domain:** Yes

## Documentation

# Deploy and Host Chhoto URL on Railway

Chhoto URL is a lightweight, open-source URL shortener written in Rust. It focuses on simplicity, performance, and self-hosting, allowing you to generate short links with optional expiration, analytics, and password protection without relying on third-party SaaS providers.

## About Hosting Chhoto URL

Hosting Chhoto URL involves deploying a single Rust-based web service backed by a SQLite database. The application exposes an HTTP API and web UI for managing shortened links. On Railway, this typically means deploying the official Docker image or building from source, configuring environment variables, and attaching a persistent volume to store the SQLite database. No external cache or message queue is required, which keeps the infrastructure minimal. Railway handles networking, port exposure, and restarts, while the mounted volume ensures link data persists across deploys.

## Common Use Cases

- Self-hosted URL shortener for personal or internal team use  
- Privacy-friendly alternative to Bitly or TinyURL  
- Short links for marketing campaigns, documentation, or QR codes  

## Dependencies for Chhoto URL Hosting

- SQLite (embedded, file-based database)  
- Persistent storage volume for database durability  

### Deployment Dependencies

- Official repository: https://github.com/Sanix-Darker/chhoto-url  
- Docker image: https://hub.docker.com/r/sanix/chhoto-url  
- Railway volumes documentation: https://docs.railway.com/guides/volumes  

### Implementation Details 

Chhoto URL expects a writable database path provided via an environment `db_url`. On Railway, this is commonly set to a file path inside a mounted volume (for example, `/data/chhoto.db`). The database file is created automatically on first startup if it does not already exist.

## Why Deploy Chhoto URL on Railway?

Railway is a singular platform to deploy your infrastructure stack. Railway will host your infrastructure so you don't have to deal with configuration, while allowing you to vertically and horizontally scale it.

By deploying Chhoto URL on Railway, you are one step closer to supporting a complete full-stack application with minimal burden. Host your servers, databases, AI agents, and more on Railway.


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