Deploy and Host rqlite on Railway

rqlite is a lightweight relational database that puts SQLite behind an HTTP API. Applications send SQL as JSON over HTTP and get JSON results back, so any language can use it without a driver. It adds authentication, backups and optional Raft clustering on top of the SQLite engine.

About Hosting rqlite

This template runs the official rqlite/rqlite:10.3.6 image as a single node. The database lives on a Railway volume and survives redeploys. At boot, the start command writes an auth file from RQLITE_USERNAME and RQLITE_PASSWORD, then drops to the unprivileged rqlite user. Every query and write needs those credentials. Only the readiness and status probes are open without a password. The HTTP API is served over HTTPS on a public domain and over the private network on port 4001. The built-in web console at /console/ uses the same login. One node fits the Hobby plan easily.

Common Use Cases

A small SQL database for serverless functions, edge workers or scripts that only speak HTTP
Config, feature and metadata storage shared by several services
Prototyping with SQLite semantics without shipping a database file around

Dependencies for rqlite Hosting

rqlite/rqlite:10.3.6 (official image)
A Railway volume at /rqlite/file for the Raft log and SQLite data

Deployment Dependencies

Implementation Details

Service	Source	Networking	Storage
rqlite	`rqlite/rqlite:10.3.6`	public HTTPS + private port 4001	volume at `/rqlite/file`

Variable	Default	Purpose
`RQLITE_USERNAME`	`admin`	User with all permissions
`RQLITE_PASSWORD`	generated	Its password
`RQLITE_URL`	`https://user:pass@`	Connection URL for clients outside Railway
`RQLITE_PRIVATE_URL`	`http://user:pass@:4001`	Connection URL for services in the project
`NODE_ID`	`rqlite-1`	Fixed node ID, so the Raft state matches after redeploys

Example:

curl -u admin:$RQLITE_PASSWORD -XPOST "$RQLITE_URL/db/execute" -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '["CREATE TABLE notes (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, body TEXT)"]'

The template runs one node. rqlite can form a Raft cluster, but that needs more nodes and join addresses and is not set up here.

This is a community-maintained deployment package and does not imply affiliation with or endorsement by the rqlite project.

Why Deploy rqlite 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 rqlite 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.