--- title: "Deploy Dgraph | (Just Updated) Graph Database, GraphQL + DQL API, Token Auth On, Data Survives Redeploys" description: "Dgraph graph database with GraphQL and DQL API, token auth on" category: "Storage" url: https://railway.com/deploy/dgraph-or-just-updated-graph-database-gr --- # Deploy Dgraph | (Just Updated) Graph Database, GraphQL + DQL API, Token Auth On, Data Survives Redeploys Dgraph graph database with GraphQL and DQL API, token auth on **[Deploy Dgraph | (Just Updated) Graph Database, GraphQL + DQL API, Token Auth On, Data Survives Redeploys on Railway](https://railway.com/template/dgraph-or-just-updated-graph-database-gr)** Machine-readable deploy manifest (JSON, validated by TemplateCI): https://railway.com/deploy/dgraph-or-just-updated-graph-database-gr/manifest.json - **Creator:** SuperSlowSloth - **Category:** Storage ## Template content ### dgraph - **Image:** dgraph/dgraph:v25.5.1@sha256:f7459f391921c94db78f8205de9b4624210e2396c6b4ef5736838a906a38becb - **Start command:** `/bin/sh -c 'echo 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 | base64 -d > /tmp/boot.sh; exec /bin/sh /tmp/boot.sh'` - **Health check:** /health - **Public domain:** Yes ## Documentation # Deploy and Host Dgraph on Railway **Built for an LLM agent to deploy and use.** There is no setup wizard and nothing to fill in: a 40-character API token is generated at deploy time and every query, mutation and schema call must present it. A stock Dgraph answers anonymous queries, mutations and schema drops from any address; this template switches that off from the first boot. The contract below lists every URL, variable name and the one script that proves it works. Dgraph is an open-source distributed graph database with a native GraphQL API and its own query language, DQL. It is used for knowledge graphs, recommendation engines, entity resolution and the relationship layer of AI applications. This template runs a single-node Dgraph (one Zero and one Alpha) in one container. ## About Hosting Dgraph This template runs one service, `dgraph`, built from the official **Dgraph v25.5.1** image (`dgraph/dgraph`, pinned by digest). Upstream documents Zero and Alpha as two processes; here one start command runs both in the same container against one volume at `/dgraph`, and stops the container if either exits so Railway restarts it instead of leaving a half-alive node. Zero listens on the loopback interface only. Alpha serves HTTP (GraphQL, DQL and admin) on port 8080 and gRPC on port 9080. The Alpha cache is sized to a quarter of the container memory limit and the Go runtime is told the real CPU and memory limits, because Dgraph otherwise assumes a 4096 MB cache and the host's core count. Data, the write-ahead log and the Zero state all live on the volume and survive redeploys. After a deploy, `/health` turns 200 before the GraphQL admin endpoint is ready; retry schema calls for a few seconds. ### Agent contract - Public URL: `https://` plus the `RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN` of the `dgraph` service, as `DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL`. It serves `/graphql`, `/query`, `/mutate`, `/alter`, `/admin` and `/health` (HTTP). - Private URL: `http://dgraph.railway.internal:8080` (HTTP) and `dgraph.railway.internal:9080` (gRPC for the official clients). - Credentials: the token in `DGRAPH_TOKEN`. There is no username; ACL logins are not enabled. - Auth: send the header `X-Dgraph-AuthToken` with the token on every call. Without it, query, mutation, alter, admin and state calls are rejected with an unauthenticated error. Only `/health` is open. - Health: `GET /health` returns 200 with no credentials. GraphQL admin readiness: `POST /admin/schema` succeeds with the token. ```bash # run with DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL and DGRAPH_TOKEN set; needs curl H="X-Dgraph-AuthToken: $DGRAPH_TOKEN" curl -s -o /dev/null -w 'health %{http_code}\n' "$DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL/health" curl -s "$DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL/query" -H 'Content-Type: application/dql' -d '{ q(func: has(name)) { name } }' | grep -o 'Unauthenticated\|Invalid X-Dgraph-AuthToken' | head -1 until curl -fsS -H "$H" -H 'Content-Type: application/graphql' -d 'type Person { id: ID! name: String! @search(by: [hash]) }' "$DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL/admin/schema" | grep -q Success; do sleep 3; done echo schema ok curl -fsS -H "$H" -H 'Content-Type: application/json' -d '{"query":"mutation { addPerson(input: [{name: \"Ada\"}]) { numUids } }"}' "$DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL/graphql"; echo curl -fsS -H "$H" -H 'Content-Type: application/json' -d '{"query":"{ queryPerson(filter: {name: {eq: \"Ada\"}}) { name } }"}' "$DGRAPH_PUBLIC_URL/graphql"; echo ``` A fresh deploy prints `health 200`, the word `Unauthenticated` or `Invalid X-Dgraph-AuthToken` for the anonymous call, `schema ok`, `"numUids":1` and `"name":"Ada"`. Use the DQL endpoint the same way: `POST /query` with `Content-Type: application/dql` and the same header. Official Dgraph clients take the gRPC address `DGRAPH_PRIVATE_GRPC` and the token as an auth header. ## Why Deploy Dgraph 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 Dgraph 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. - **Agent-ready** - generated token, contract block and one working script; no setup step. - **Closed by default** - anonymous queries, mutations, schema changes and drops are rejected, unlike a stock Dgraph. - **One container** - Zero and Alpha together on one volume, so one service to run and pay for instead of two. - **Right-sized** - cache and Go limits come from the container limits, not from the host. - **State survives redeploys** - data, write-ahead log and cluster state live on a volume. - **Pinned image** - the Dgraph version is pinned, so a redeploy never changes the server underneath you. ## Common Use Cases - **Knowledge graphs for AI agents** - store entities and relations and traverse them with GraphQL or DQL. - **Recommendations and entity resolution** - multi-hop traversals over users, items and links. - **Backend for a GraphQL API** - define a schema and get queries and mutations generated for it. ## Dependencies for Dgraph Hosting - None. Dgraph stores its own data on the volume at `/dgraph`. ### Deployment Dependencies - [dgraph-io/dgraph](https://github.com/dgraph-io/dgraph) - upstream project ## Similar templates - [RustFS | (Just Updated) S3 Object Store, Public URL and Keys Set](https://railway.com/deploy/rustfs-or-just-updated-s3-object-store-p) — S3-compatible object store, keys and public URL preset, volume kept - [TimescaleDB](https://railway.com/deploy/timescaledb-railway-template) — A PostgreSQL-based time-series database for analytics on Railway. - [Garage S3 Storage](https://railway.com/deploy/garage-s3-storage) — Ultra-light S3 server: fast, open-source, plug-and-play. Open this page in a browser: https://railway.com/deploy/dgraph-or-just-updated-graph-database-gr