Deploy Pufferpanel

Deploy and Host

PufferPanel — open-source game server management panel. Manage Minecraft, CS2, Valheim, and 50+ other game servers from a clean web UI with per-server users, file manager, console, stats, and SFTP access.

Source Repository

https://github.com/INAPP-Mobile/pufferpanel

System Requirements

• Disk: 10GB+ dedicated volume (panel DB + per-server game files)
• Memory: 512 MB RAM minimum for the panel (game servers need their own headroom)
• Network: HTTPS for the panel UI; optional TCP 5657 proxy for SFTP

About Hosting

This template deploys a single service running PufferPanel v3 (panel + daemon in one process) with SQLite at /var/lib/pufferpanel/database.db on a persistent Railway volume — no companion database needed. The admin account is created automatically on first boot; log in with the credentials from your Variables tab.

Because Railway doesn't grant CAP_SYS_ADMIN, game servers run as direct host processes under the panel (upstream disableUnshare mode) rather than in Docker sandboxes. The "docker" environment option is intentionally disabled; choose "host"-style server definitions when adding servers. Game servers also need their listen ports reachable from players. Railway exposes only HTTP/HTTPS domains and TCP proxies to the public internet — inbound UDP is not supported (enabling static outbound IPs does not change this; those addresses are egress-only). TCP-native games (e.g., Minecraft Java, Terraria) work via Railway TCP proxies; UDP-based games (7 Days to Die, Valheim, CS2) are only joinable from the private network, not by external players. This panel is therefore best suited for panel management, file/console/SFTP administration, and TCP-reachable game servers.

Playing UDP games externally (optional playit.gg tunnel): set the PLAYIT_SECRET variable to your agent secret from playit.gg and the container automatically starts the playit agent, which opens an outbound tunnel — no inbound ports needed. In the playit dashboard, create port mappings for your game servers (e.g., 127.0.0.1:2456 UDP for Valheim, 127.0.0.1:26900 UDP for 7DTD, 127.0.0.1:7777 UDP for ARK) and share the generated *.playit.gg address with players instead of the Railway domain. Leave PLAYIT_SECRET empty if you only host TCP games.

Note: Railway's HTTP proxy handles SSL termination for the panel UI. The SFTP daemon (port 5657) requires a Railway TCP proxy if you want external SFTP access.

First-run setup: none. The entrypoint runs the database migration and creates the admin account automatically:

• Username: admin (default)
• Password: auto-generated via ${{secret(16)}} — copy it from the service Variables tab after deploy

Change the admin password from the panel settings after your first login.

Key environment variables:

Railway-injected (no action needed): PORT (panel web listen port), RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN (used as the panel's master URL).

Ports

Supported Game Templates

Why Deploy

• One-click deploy: panel + daemon in a single service, zero manual setup
• Auto-provisioned admin: credentials generated and printed to Variables on boot
• Persistent storage: database, server files, and logs survive redeploys
• Lightweight: Go binary + embedded SQLite — no external database service
• Open source: Apache 2.0, community-driven Pterodactyl alternative

Common Use Cases

• Host game servers (Minecraft, Valheim, Terraria, etc.) for friends
• Self-host a lightweight Pterodactyl/Pelican alternative
• Manage per-user access to community game servers
• Provide game server hosting behind a clean web panel

Dependencies for PufferPanel

This template is fully self-contained — a single service with an embedded SQLite database on a persistent volume.

Deployment Dependencies

• None — SQLite runs inside the container at /var/lib/pufferpanel/database.db; no companion services required.

License

PufferPanel is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License.