---
title: "Deploy Filestash | Open Source Dropbox UI"
description: "Self-Host Filestash. Web file manager for S3, FTP, SFTP, NFS& more."
category: "Storage"
url: https://railway.com/deploy/filestash
---

# Deploy Filestash | Open Source Dropbox UI

Self-Host Filestash. Web file manager for S3, FTP, SFTP, NFS& more.

**[Deploy Filestash | Open Source Dropbox UI on Railway](https://railway.com/template/filestash)**

- **Creator:** Heimdall
- **Category:** Storage
- **Total deploys:** 3

## Template content

### Filestash https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/homarr-labs/dashboard-icons/svg/filestash.svg

- **Image:** machines/filestash:latest
- **Start command:** `/bin/sh -c 'mkdir -p /app/data/state/log /app/data/state/config /app/data/state/db /app/data/state/certs /app/data/state/plugins /app/data/state/search && exec /app/filestash'`
- **Public domain:** Yes

## Documentation

![Filestash logo](https://openalternative.co/cdn-cgi/image/width=1024,quality=75,format=avif,metadata=none/https%3A%2F%2Fassets.openalternative.co%2Ftools%2Ffilestash%2Fscreenshot.webp%3Fv%3D1738071695582)

# Deploy and Host Filestash on Railway

Filestash is an open-source web file manager that puts a polished, multi-user UI in front of storage you already have — S3, FTP, SFTP, SMB, WebDAV, NFS, Git, Backblaze B2, MinIO, IPFS, Storj, even Dropbox or Google Drive. Self-host Filestash on Railway to turn any backend into a fast, browser-accessible file portal with sharing, previews, image/PDF/office viewers, and an admin console — without writing a custom Nextcloud-sized stack.

This Railway template deploys the official `machines/filestash:latest` Docker image with a persistent volume mounted at `/app/data/state` (config + embedded SQLite + plugins + search index + logs in one place), a public HTTPS domain on port 8334, and an idempotent start command that pre-creates the state subdirectories Filestash expects on first boot.

## Getting Started with Filestash on Railway

After Railway shows the service as **Active**, click the generated public domain — your browser will redirect to `/admin/setup`. **This is the single most important step:** Filestash has no first-boot password seeding via environment variables, so whoever loads `/admin/setup` first becomes the admin. Set a strong password before sharing the URL with anyone. From `/admin` you can then attach storage backends (S3, FTP, SFTP, SMB, WebDAV, etc.), wire OAuth/SAML identity providers, enable the `force_ssl` option, and tune access controls per role. Storage credentials are encrypted into the embedded SQLite database under the persistent volume.

![Filestash dashboard screenshot 1](https://res.cloudinary.com/asset-cloudinary/image/upload/v1778608303/bb5cd73f-6118-43e6-9794-214726490d24.png)

![Filestash dashboard screenshot 2](https://res.cloudinary.com/asset-cloudinary/image/upload/v1778608355/d05e1290-1c20-4daf-a2c4-059cdae9c37a.png)

## About Hosting Filestash on Railway

Filestash is the "Dropbox UI for everyone's existing storage": it doesn't own bytes, it federates them. It's written in Go, ships as a single ~344 MB Docker image bundling `ffmpeg`, `tinytex`, `emacs-nox`, `poppler-utils`, and `tor` so previews work out of the box, and persists everything (admin config, embedded SQLite sessions/audit log, full-text search index, installed plugins) under one volume.

Key features:
- 20+ storage backends (S3, FTP, SFTP, SMB, WebDAV, NFS, Git, B2, Storj, Dropbox, Google Drive, IPFS, …)
- Browser previews for images, video, audio, PDF, Office files, code, markdown
- Per-share public links with optional password protection and expiration
- OAuth2 / SAML / OpenID / LDAP authentication plugins
- Role-based access control via the admin console
- Hot-pluggable plugin system (`/app/data/state/plugins/`)
- Built-in full-text search across mounted backends

The architecture on Railway is single-service: one container, one Railway volume. No external database or cache required — SQLite under the volume handles all state.

## Why Deploy Filestash on Railway

- One-click deploy of the official `machines/filestash:latest` Docker image, no fork required
- Persistent volume mounted at `/app/data/state` so config and shares survive redeploys
- Public HTTPS domain on port 8334 — auto-issued and renewed by Railway
- Idempotent start command pre-creates state subdirs so first boot doesn't crash on missing `log/access.log`
- `RAILWAY_RUN_UID=0` sidesteps the root-owned volume vs non-root container conflict
- Vertical-scale RAM/CPU from the dashboard if you enable the video transcoder plugin

## Common Use Cases for Self-Hosted Filestash

- Give a non-technical team a Dropbox-style UI in front of your existing S3 bucket
- Expose an internal SFTP/SMB share to remote contractors with audited shareable links
- Replace `aws s3 cp` workflows with previews, full-text search, and drag-and-drop uploads
- Front a backup target (B2, MinIO, Storj) for occasional restores without CLI overhead

## Dependencies for the Filestash Railway Deployment

- **Filestash** — `machines/filestash:latest` ([GitHub](https://github.com/mickael-kerjean/filestash), [Docker Hub](https://hub.docker.com/r/machines/filestash))

### Environment Variables Reference

| Variable | Purpose |
|---|---|
| `PORT` | Public-facing port — must be `8334` (Filestash hardcodes its listen port and ignores `$PORT`) |
| `APPLICATION_URL` | Public URL used for share-link generation and OAuth callbacks |
| `RAILWAY_RUN_UID` | Forces the container to run as root so it can write to the root-owned Railway volume |
| `CANARY` | Enables newer/beta features (recommended) |
| `LOG_LEVEL` | One of `DEBUG`, `INFO`, `WARNING`, `ERROR` |

### Deployment Dependencies

- Runtime: Docker (single container)
- Image: [machines/filestash on Docker Hub](https://hub.docker.com/r/machines/filestash)
- Source: [mickael-kerjean/filestash on GitHub](https://github.com/mickael-kerjean/filestash)
- Docs: [filestash.app/docs](https://www.filestash.app/docs/)

## Hardware Requirements for Self-Hosting Filestash

| Resource | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | 0.5 vCPU | 1–2 vCPU |
| RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB – 1 GB |
| Storage | 1 GB | 5 GB+ (Filestash state only — actual files live on the remote backends) |
| Runtime | Docker | Docker |

The 344 MB image plus the volume's full-text search index drive most of the memory cost. Bump RAM to 2–4 GB if you enable the `plg_video_transcoder` plugin or serve dozens of concurrent users.

## Self-Hosting Filestash with Docker

The Railway template runs the same image you would use locally. The vendor's minimal Docker recipe is:

```
docker run -d --name filestash \
  -p 8334:8334 \
  -v filestash-state:/app/data/state \
  -e APPLICATION_URL=https://files.example.com \
  machines/filestash:latest
```

On Railway the equivalent service-instance start command (set via `serviceInstanceUpdate` GraphQL) pre-creates the state subdirectories so the first boot doesn't crash on the empty volume:

```
/bin/sh -c 'mkdir -p /app/data/state/log /app/data/state/config /app/data/state/db /app/data/state/certs /app/data/state/plugins /app/data/state/search && exec /app/filestash'
```

Source build instructions (Go 1.21+, Node 18+, libvips, ffmpeg) live in the [project README](https://github.com/mickael-kerjean/filestash#install).

## How Much Does Filestash Cost to Self-Host?

Filestash itself is open source under the AGPLv3 license — there is no license fee for self-hosters. On Railway you only pay infrastructure: typically a few dollars per month for a small container plus the persistent volume. The vendor also sells a paid Enterprise tier and a hosted SaaS at filestash.app, but the Docker image you self-host on Railway is fully functional and free.

## FAQ

**What is Filestash and why self-host it on Railway?**
Filestash is an open-source web file manager that exposes any S3/FTP/SFTP/SMB/WebDAV/NFS backend through a multi-user UI with previews, sharing, and RBAC. Self-hosting it on Railway gives you a Dropbox-style frontend over storage you already own — no per-seat fees, no third-party trust.

**What does this Railway template deploy?**
A single Docker service running `machines/filestash:latest` on port 8334, fronted by a Railway-issued HTTPS domain, with a persistent volume mounted at `/app/data/state` for config, embedded SQLite, plugins, search index, and logs.

**Why does the template use an embedded SQLite database instead of Postgres?**
Filestash stores only metadata, sessions, shares, and audit entries — workloads SQLite handles comfortably on a single container. Avoiding an external Postgres service keeps the template to one container, one volume, and zero cross-service env wiring.

**How do I set the admin password for self-hosted Filestash on Railway?**
There is no env var. After the deploy goes live, open `https:///admin/setup` immediately and pick a password. Anyone who hits that URL first becomes the admin — set the password before sharing the URL.

**Why is `RAILWAY_RUN_UID=0` required for Filestash?**
The `machines/filestash` image's default user is the non-root `filestash` account, but Railway volumes are root-owned. Without `RAILWAY_RUN_UID=0`, Filestash crash-loops on `mkdir: cannot create directory '/app/data/state/log': Permission denied` during first boot.

**How do I connect S3, SFTP, or WebDAV to self-hosted Filestash?**
Log in to `/admin`, open **Backend**, click **Add a backend**, pick the provider (S3, SFTP, etc.), paste credentials, and save. Credentials are encrypted into the SQLite state database under `/app/data/state/db/`.


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- [Redis](https://railway.com/deploy/redis-1) — Self Host Latest Redis with Railway
- [EasyImg](https://railway.com/deploy/easyimg) — Simple self-hostable Nuxt.js personal image hosting system.

Open this page in a browser: https://railway.com/deploy/filestash