Name: Litpage
Availability: InStock
Author: onepush

Deploy and Host self hosted Litpage (Workspace) on Railway

Litpage is an open-source workspace you run yourself, with a block editor, databases and optional AI in one Node.js process.

About Hosting Litpage open-source software on Railway (self hosted Litpage template)

This template runs one service called litpage, built from ghcr.io/onepush-dev/litpage:931cd28-r2, which packages upstream commit 931cd28 without changes.

Why Deploy Litpage, the self-hosted workspace for pages and databases on Railway (Railway Free Trial)

Notion is a convenient hosted workspace, but with Litpage your pages, databases and uploads sit in one SQLite file on a volume you control, and you can keep the instance private by leaving email off and signing in with the password account only.

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 Litpage 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.

Railway vs Other Hosting Providers and VPS for Litpage self hosting

Litpage runs as one container with a SQLite file on a persistent volume, so your hosting choice decides how much server work you take on.

Provider	What You Get with Railway	What You Get with the Other Provider
DigitalOcean	A template that starts Litpage on a public HTTPS domain with a /data volume and no server setup.	A droplet you configure yourself, including Docker, the volume and HTTPS in front of the app.
AWS	The same template, with the service, domain and volume created for you and no networking to build.	You configure instances, storage and TLS by hand.
Hetzner	Managed hosting of the container, so you do not patch the host or manage the volume yourself.	Low-cost servers where you install Docker, manage the volume and keep the host secure.

Common Use Cases for hosted Litpage

Team wiki and project briefs: Write docs and meeting notes in the block editor, which has 41 block types, a slash menu and markdown shortcuts.
Review and feedback on drafts: Leave comments and suggested edits, then accept or reject them in version history.
Task tracking in a database: Keep a roadmap as one database and switch between its eleven views (table, board, list, gallery, calendar, timeline, chart, dashboard, feed, form and map).
Shared workspace for a small team: Organize pages into teams, set page-level permissions, and edit together in real time over WebSocket.
Connecting scripts and AI tools: Use the REST API with webhooks or the MCP endpoint, and optionally add your own OpenAI or Anthropic key for chat, agents and writing help in English or Korean.

Dependencies for Litpage Docker hosted on Railway

The template runs as one container. The image builds upstream commit 931cd28 without changes, and the app keeps its data in a single SQLite file on a volume, so there is nothing else to provision.

Deployment Dependencies for Managed Litpage Service (one container with SQLite)

The template creates one service, litpage, on port 8080. No Postgres, Redis or queue is needed. Keep the replica count at one, since the local SQLite file should not be shared.

Implementation Details for Litpage (Litpage at commit 931cd28, listening on port 8080)

The image ghcr.io/onepush-dev/litpage:931cd28-r2 builds upstream commit 931cd28 unmodified. Upstream defaults to port 3001, but this image listens on 8080 to match the port Railway injects. Template variables are NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD, generated, and NC_PUBLIC_URL, the public HTTPS address used for links in emails and shares.

How does Litpage compare against other tools

Litpage vs Notion (Notion Alternative)

Hosting model: Notion is a hosted workspace run by its vendor, while Litpage is one Node.js process with one SQLite file that you run yourself.
Data location: Litpage keeps pages, databases and uploads in the /data volume you control.
Database views: Litpage offers eleven views (table, board, list, gallery, calendar, timeline, chart, dashboard, feed, form and map), and Notion has the more established hosted ecosystem.
AI: AI is optional and bring-your-own-key, and it is not configured in this template.

Litpage vs AppFlowy (AppFlowy Alternative)

Shape: AppFlowy is a self-hosted or local Notion-style app, while Litpage is a web workspace your team reaches through a browser.
Operations: Litpage needs one service with a volume and no Postgres, Redis or queue.
Interface: Litpage ships with English and Korean interfaces, while AppFlowy is known for its desktop-first experience.

Litpage vs AFFiNE (AFFiNE Alternative)

Focus: AFFiNE blends documents with whiteboard-style canvases, while Litpage centers on a block editor, databases and team pages.
Collaboration: Litpage provides real-time multi-user editing, comments, version history and page-level permissions in one process.
Trade-off: If a canvas-first workflow is central to your team, AFFiNE may be the better fit.

Litpage with Docker vs Railway (Railway Hosting)

Setup: Docker means you choose the host, open the port and manage the volume yourself, while the Railway template creates the service, domain, /data volume and health check.
Secrets: On Railway the generated NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD sits in the Variables tab, and it is re-applied on every start, so an app-only password change is overwritten on restart unless you update the variable too.
Control: A VPS with Docker gives you more control over networking, backups and upgrades.

How to use Litpage on Railway?

Open the public URL Railway gave your litpage service, then go to /login on that domain.
Choose Continue with a password and sign in as admin@example.com using the value of NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD from the litpage Variables tab. Upstream re-applies that password on every start, so change it in the variable too, not only in the app.
Open the seeded Workspace and start creating pages and databases from there.
For optional AI, set OPENAI_API_KEY (and OPENAI_BASE_URL if you use a compatible endpoint), or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY, and set NC_AI_MODEL. AI is not configured in the template, so skip this if you do not need it.
For login codes and invitations by email, set NC_SMTP_URL and NC_MAIL_FROM. Without SMTP only the password account can sign in, which keeps the instance private.

The health path is:

GET /login

How to self host Litpage on other VPS Services (Litpage self hosting guide)

These steps follow the upstream Docker or Node.js flow on a VPS or local machine.

Clone the Repository

Clone the upstream project and check out the pinned commit.

git clone https://github.com/litmers-dev/litpage.git
cd litpage
git checkout 931cd28

Install Dependencies

Build the Docker image from the repository root, or use Node.js 26 or later with pnpm 10.

docker build -t litpage .

Configure Environment Variables

Set an admin email and a strong bootstrap password.

export NC_BOOTSTRAP_EMAIL=you@example.com
export NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD=your-strong-password

Start the Litpage Application

Run the container with a volume at /data, then open localhost:3001 and sign in with "Continue with a password". Without Docker, run pnpm install, pnpm build and pnpm start.

Pricing and License of Litpage (Litpage pricing)

Litpage is MIT-licensed open-source software, and you can self-host it for free. Optional AI and mail are extras you add later; without them the workspace still runs, and only the password account can sign in.

Litpage hosted vs self hosted comparison (Pricing, features, costs, and more)

Upstream runs a public demo that expires after a few hours, and no hosted plan is described. Litpage is free MIT software, so self hosting costs only your infrastructure. Optional AI model usage is billed by your provider.

Monthly cost of self hosting Litpage on Railway

Railway bills by usage, so the monthly cost depends on RAM, CPU, volume size and any other services you attach. Check the current Railway pricing page for the rates that apply to your plan.

System Requirements for Hosting Litpage on a VPS

Litpage runs as one Node.js process with one SQLite file, so it does not need a separate database server or queue. Keep a single process against that file. Size the VPS for your team's use and the storage you expect for uploaded files, and put HTTPS in front of port 3001 on a stock upstream install.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do I sign in to my Litpage instance?

Open the public URL, go to /login, choose "Continue with a password", and sign in as admin@example.com with the NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD value from the litpage Variables tab. That account is created on first boot.

Will a password I change in the app stick after a restart?

Not unless you also update NC_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD, because that value is re-applied on every start.

Can strangers sign up to my instance?

No. Without NC_SMTP_URL and NC_MAIL_FROM, email login codes and invitations are unavailable, so only the password account can sign in and the instance stays private.

Do I need an AI key to use Litpage?

No. Optional AI keys such as OPENAI_API_KEY or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY are not set in the template, and everything except AI features works without one.

Which database views are available?

Databases have eleven views: table, board, list, gallery, calendar, timeline, chart, dashboard, feed, form and map.

What should I back up?

Back up the /data volume, which holds the SQLite database file and uploaded files.