Production Deployment

Production Build

Create an optimized production build using the pb-cli toolchain:

pb-cli --production

This command:

Builds and optimizes frontend assets
Generates OpenAPI specifications
Compiles the server binary with optimization flags (-ldflags="-s -w")
Creates a deployment-ready package in the dist/ directory

Custom Output Directory

Specify a custom output directory:

pb-cli --production --dist release

Automated Deployment with pb-deployer

pb-deployer provides automated VPS deployment with zero-downtime updates, security hardening, and automated backup management.

Installation

git clone https://github.com/magooney-loon/pb-deployer.git
cd pb-deployer

# Install dependencies
go mod tidy

# Run deployment wizard
go run cmd/scripts/main.go --install

Features

Server Provisioning

Automated server setup with best practices

Security Hardening

SSL/TLS, firewall configuration, and security updates

Zero-Downtime

Rolling updates with health checks

Auto-Rollback

Automatic rollback on deployment failure

Systemd Integration

Service management and auto-restart

Backup Management

Automated backups of data and configurations

pb-deployer handles the entire deployment lifecycle, from initial server setup to ongoing updates and maintenance.

Manual VPS Deployment

For manual deployments, follow these steps:

Build for production

Create the production build:

pb-cli --production

Upload to server

Transfer the dist/ directory to your VPS:

scp -r dist/ [email protected]:/opt/pb-ext/

Configure systemd service

Create a systemd service file at /etc/systemd/system/pb-ext.service:

[Unit]
Description=pb-ext Server
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=www-data
WorkingDirectory=/opt/pb-ext
ExecStart=/opt/pb-ext/pb-ext serve
Restart=always
RestartSec=5
StandardOutput=journal
StandardError=journal

# Environment variables
Environment="PB_DATA_DIR=/var/lib/pb-ext/data"

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enable and start service

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable pb-ext
sudo systemctl start pb-ext

Binary Optimization

The production build uses Go linker flags to reduce binary size:

go build -ldflags="-s -w" -o dist/pb-ext ./cmd/server

flag

Strip symbol table and debug information

flag

Strip DWARF debugging information

These flags typically reduce binary size by 20-30% without affecting runtime performance.

SSL/TLS Configuration

Reverse Proxy with Nginx

Recommended approach for production:

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name your-domain.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/privkey.pem;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8090;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Let’s Encrypt

Obtain free SSL certificates:

sudo apt-get install certbot python3-certbot-nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d your-domain.com

Zero-Downtime Updates

For manual zero-downtime deployments:

Upload new binary

scp dist/pb-ext user@server:/opt/pb-ext/pb-ext.new

Backup current binary

ssh user@server "mv /opt/pb-ext/pb-ext /opt/pb-ext/pb-ext.backup"

Replace binary

ssh user@server "mv /opt/pb-ext/pb-ext.new /opt/pb-ext/pb-ext"

Reload service

ssh user@server "sudo systemctl reload-or-restart pb-ext"

Verify deployment

Check health endpoint:

curl https://your-domain.com/_/_

Backup Strategies

Database Backups

PocketBase uses SQLite, making backups straightforward:

# Backup script
#!/bin/bash
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
cp /var/lib/pb-ext/data/data.db /backups/data_${DATE}.db

# Keep only last 30 days
find /backups -name "data_*.db" -mtime +30 -delete

Schedule with cron:

0 2 * * * /opt/pb-ext/backup.sh

Automated Backups with pb-deployer

pb-deployer includes built-in backup management with configurable retention policies and automated restoration.

Health Checks

Monitor your deployment:

# Check service status
sudo systemctl status pb-ext

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u pb-ext -f

# Health endpoint
curl http://localhost:8090/_/_

Production Checklist

Before Deployment

Run pb-cli --production successfully
Test OpenAPI specs with --validate-specs-dir
Review and test frontend build
Verify environment variables are configured
Backup current production database

Security

SSL/TLS certificates configured
Firewall rules in place
Service runs as non-root user
Database file permissions restricted (0600)
Admin panel behind authentication

Monitoring

Systemd service enabled and running
Log rotation configured
Backup script scheduled
Health check endpoint accessible
Alerts configured for service failures

Getting Started

Core Concepts

API Documentation

Features

Advanced

CLI Tools

Deployment

Production Deployment

Production Build

Custom Output Directory

Automated Deployment with pb-deployer

Installation

Features

Server Provisioning

Security Hardening

Zero-Downtime

Auto-Rollback

Systemd Integration

Backup Management

Manual VPS Deployment

Binary Optimization

SSL/TLS Configuration

Reverse Proxy with Nginx

Let’s Encrypt

Zero-Downtime Updates

Backup Strategies

Database Backups

Automated Backups with pb-deployer

Health Checks

Production Checklist

Next Steps

Frontend Configuration

Environment Setup

​Production Build

​Custom Output Directory

​Automated Deployment with pb-deployer

​Installation

​Features

Server Provisioning

Security Hardening

Zero-Downtime

Auto-Rollback

Systemd Integration

Backup Management

​Manual VPS Deployment

​Binary Optimization

​SSL/TLS Configuration

​Reverse Proxy with Nginx

​Let’s Encrypt

​Zero-Downtime Updates

​Backup Strategies

​Database Backups

​Automated Backups with pb-deployer

​Health Checks

​Production Checklist

​Next Steps

Frontend Configuration

Environment Setup

Production Build

Custom Output Directory

Automated Deployment with pb-deployer

Installation

Features

Manual VPS Deployment

Binary Optimization

SSL/TLS Configuration

Reverse Proxy with Nginx

Let’s Encrypt

Zero-Downtime Updates

Backup Strategies

Database Backups

Automated Backups with pb-deployer

Health Checks

Production Checklist

Next Steps