Deploy and Host Hot Updater on Railway

Hot Updater is an open-source over-the-air update system for React Native. This template deploys a complete self-hosted Hot Updater stack built with Bun, Hono, and Drizzle, including a PostgreSQL database and a Railway S3-compatible Object Storage Bucket.

About Hosting Hot Updater

This template provisions everything needed to run Hot Updater on Railway: the API server, PostgreSQL database, and object storage bucket. Database and bucket variables are connected and prefilled automatically. The server applies committed Drizzle migrations before startup and listens on port 8080.

Public routes allow React Native clients to check for app-version or fingerprint updates. Bundle and channel management routes are protected by bearer authentication. The only value you need to provide is your own secure HOT_UPDATER_AUTH_TOKEN.

Common Use Cases

Self-host over-the-air React Native updates
Manage release channels, bundles, app versions, and fingerprints
Store update bundles in Railway's S3-compatible object storage
Deploy a complete Hot Updater backend without configuring external infrastructure

Dependencies for Hot Updater Hosting

Hot Updater API server running on Bun and Hono
PostgreSQL 18 database for persistent metadata
Railway S3-compatible Object Storage Bucket for update bundles
Automatic Drizzle migrations before server startup

Deployment Dependencies

Configuration

Enter one value before deploying:

HOT_UPDATER_AUTH_TOKEN: your secure bearer token for bundle and channel management requests

The template automatically configures DATABASE_URL, S3_REGION, S3_ENDPOINT, S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID, S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY, S3_BUCKET_NAME, and PORT. No external database, bucket, or storage credentials are required.

Implementation Details

The API is mounted at /hot-updater. Update checks under /version, /app-version/*, and /fingerprint/* are public. Bundle and channel management endpoints under /api/* require Authorization: Bearer .

The production image runs as an unprivileged user, connects to the included PostgreSQL and Railway Bucket services, performs database migrations, and starts on port 8080.

Why Deploy Hot Updater 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 Hot Updater 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.