The Tool Desk
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The official Docker instructions are marked preview, so check the repository’s current files while you deploy. The commands below use the modern Compose plugin command, docker compose, rather than the older hyphenated docker-compose.
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The official tooling is a small Compose project rather than a single Ghost container. Its intended components are:
- Ghost: the publishing application and admin interface.
- Caddy: the reverse proxy and TLS front end.
- MySQL: the database service used by Ghost.
The Ghost Foundation repository is github.com/TryGhost/ghost-docker. Its top-level project includes Caddy and MySQL initialization directories. The repository uses a standard upstream MySQL image; do not assume a custom database image or a particular Ghost image tag without checking the Compose file you cloned.
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ActivityPub and Analytics services are optional additions in the tooling. Enable them only through the options and environment variables present in the version of the repository you checked out; the exact switches can change because the official page is still a preview.
Requirements before you start
| Requirement | What to have ready | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Operating system | A Linux VPS; the official install page recommends Ubuntu. | The commands and Docker packaging are written for a Linux server. |
| Docker | Docker 20.10.13 or higher. | Older engines may not support the behavior expected by the current Compose project. |
| Compose | The Docker Compose plugin, verified with docker compose version. |
The official steps use the space-separated plugin command. |
| DNS | A domain with an A record pointing to the VPS public IPv4 address. | Caddy and Ghost need the hostname to reach this server for the site and certificate. |
| Credentials for an SMTP email service. | Ghost needs outbound mail for account workflows and notifications. | |
| Memory | At least 1 GB officially; 2 GB is a safer practical baseline. | Ghost, MySQL, Caddy and Docker must share the machine’s memory. |
The 1 GB figure is the minimum stated in Ghost’s developer documentation. A third-party deployment guide lists 1 vCPU and 2 GB RAM as its documented minimum, and many operators use about 2 GB as a more comfortable baseline. Treat 2 GB as a planning recommendation, not as an official Ghost requirement.
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| Approach | Advantages | Risks and trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
Official ghost-docker |
Ghost-aligned layout; Caddy and MySQL are included; fewer integration decisions. | The page is preview documentation, and repository details can change. You must follow the version you actually clone. |
| Hand-written Compose | Freedom to choose a proxy, networks, volumes and service versions. | You own TLS, database wiring, upgrades and compatibility. Community examples may lag behind Ghost’s current tooling. |
For a new VPS, use the official project unless you already operate a standard infrastructure template. Writing your own file is reasonable when you need an existing proxy or database policy, but it is not a shortcut: every change that the official stack absorbs becomes your maintenance task.
Prepare the VPS and DNS
1. Point the hostname to the server
Create an A record such as blog.example.com pointing to the VPS IPv4 address. Use the exact hostname you intend to enter in Ghost and in the Caddy configuration. Check that the record resolves publicly before starting the proxy. If you also plan to use an IPv6 address, configure an AAAA record only when the VPS is correctly reachable over IPv6; an incorrect AAAA record can make some visitors fail even while IPv4 works.
2. Verify Docker and Compose
On the server, check both versions:
docker version
docker compose versionThe Docker engine must be 20.10.13 or newer. If docker compose is unknown, install or enable Docker’s Compose plugin rather than substituting the old docker-compose command in the official procedure. The hyphenated command appears in older community guides and may behave differently.
3. Make sure the web ports are available
Caddy must be able to accept the web traffic for your hostname. Check your VPS firewall and hosting firewall for the HTTP and HTTPS ports Caddy normally uses (TCP 80 and 443). Also check that another web server is not already bound to those ports. If you already run a reverse proxy, decide whether it will hand traffic to this stack or whether the bundled Caddy should be the public front end; do not run two services competing for the same host ports.
Clone Ghost’s Docker project
Place the checkout in /opt/ghost, the location used by the official walkthrough:
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sudo mkdir -p /opt/ghost
sudo chown "$USER":"$USER" /opt/ghost
cd /opt
git clone https://github.com/TryGhost/ghost-docker.git ghost
cd /opt/ghostIf your Git installation requires a different transport, clone the repository shown at github.com/TryGhost/ghost-docker into the same directory. Before editing anything, list the files:
ls -laThis matters because the Docker page is preview documentation and filenames can change. You should see the project’s Compose file, an example environment file and a Caddyfile example, along with the caddy and mysql-init directories.
Copy and edit the environment and Caddy files
1. Copy the supplied examples
Copy the repository’s example .env and Caddyfile to the active filenames expected by the Compose project. In the current-style layout these are commonly:
cp .env.example .env
cp Caddyfile.example CaddyfileIf ls -la shows different example names, use those names instead of forcing the commands above. Do not create an empty file with a guessed name: the Compose file determines which files are loaded.
2. Set the public domain
Open .env and set the site domain to the hostname whose A record points to this VPS. Keep the variable names supplied by the project. Then open the Caddyfile and make sure its site address matches the same hostname. A mismatch commonly produces a site that loads on one name while Ghost generates links or certificates for another.
3. Generate strong database passwords
The official instructions suggest generating passwords with OpenSSL. Generate values rather than reusing an application password:
openssl rand -hex 32
openssl rand -hex 32Paste the generated values into the database and application secret fields already present in .env. Use the same database credentials wherever the Compose project asks for the matching user, password and database values. Do not rename keys, remove quotes that the example requires, or commit .env to a public repository.
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4. Configure SMTP
Enter the SMTP host, port, username, password, encryption mode and sender address required by your mail provider, using the variable names in the supplied example. The sender domain should be one your provider permits. Without working SMTP, the site can still render, but password resets, staff invitations and other Ghost email workflows will fail.
5. Validate the rendered Compose configuration
Before pulling images, ask Compose to parse and render the project:
docker compose configFix missing variables, malformed indentation or duplicate keys before continuing. This command does not prove that DNS, SMTP or TLS are correct; it only catches configuration errors that Compose can see locally.
Pull images and start the stack
Run the two commands used by Ghost’s official procedure from /opt/ghost:
docker compose pulldownloads the images referenced by the repository’s current Compose file.docker compose up -dcreates the network, volumes and containers, then starts them in the background.
Immediately inspect the result:
docker compose ps
docker compose logs --tail=100All required services should reach a running or healthy state. The service names and health checks are defined by the checkout, so use the names printed by docker compose ps rather than assuming a particular container name.
Finish Ghost’s browser setup
Once the containers are running and DNS resolves, open your domain in a browser. Ghost’s initial setup is at:
https://your-domain.example/ghostReplace the hostname with the domain you configured; do not leave the example text in the URL. Complete the administrator account and site details, then verify that the admin interface loads over HTTPS. If Caddy has not obtained a certificate yet, first confirm that the A record points to this server and that the required web ports are reachable from the internet.
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Use the SMTP settings you entered when Ghost asks for email-related configuration or when you test an invitation or password reset. A successful page load does not verify email delivery, so send a test message before inviting other staff.
Enable optional services carefully
The project can include ActivityPub and Analytics services, but they are optional. Start with the smallest stack that meets your needs:
- Run Ghost, Caddy and MySQL first and establish a working publication.
- Read the environment example and Compose file for the exact option names in your checkout.
- Enable one optional service at a time, then run
docker compose configanddocker compose up -dagain. - Check
docker compose psand the combined logs after each change.
Do not copy an environment variable from an older article unless it exists in the repository version you cloned. Optional services can add memory use, ports and persistent data that must be included in your backup plan.
Verify the deployment before publishing
- DNS: The configured hostname resolves to the VPS address from an external network.
- TLS: The browser shows the expected HTTPS certificate for that hostname.
- Front end: The home page, an individual post and an image load without mixed-content warnings.
- Admin:
/ghostopens, accepts your administrator login and saves a test setting. - Database: Restarting the application container does not remove posts or settings.
- Email: A test invitation or password-reset message arrives through the configured SMTP service.
- Persistence: Identify the Docker volumes used for content and MySQL before you rely on the site for real publishing.
Never test persistence by running docker compose down -v on a live installation. The -v option removes named volumes and can destroy the database and uploaded content.
Common failures and their fixes
The domain shows a timeout or the default server
Check the A record first, then confirm that the VPS firewall and hosting firewall allow TCP 80 and 443. Run docker compose ps to see whether Caddy is running. If another web server already owns the ports, stop it or deliberately place it in front of Caddy and configure forwarding; do not start a second public listener blindly.
HTTPS certificate issuance fails
Caddy needs the public hostname to resolve to this machine and to receive the certificate authority’s validation request. Recheck the A record, remove stale records, verify port reachability and inspect the Caddy service logs with docker compose logs caddy if that service name appears in docker compose ps. Certificate issuance can also fail when the Caddyfile hostname does not match the domain in .env.
docker compose is not available
Install Docker’s Compose plugin and verify it with docker compose version. Do not silently change every command to docker-compose; the official procedure is written for the plugin syntax, and older guides may assume a different installation.
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MySQL repeatedly restarts
Inspect the database logs and compare the database name, user and passwords in .env with the values the Compose file passes to MySQL and Ghost. A password changed after the database volume was initialized does not automatically rewrite the existing database account. Resolve the mismatch before deleting anything; removing the volume can erase the site.
Ghost is killed or the VPS becomes unresponsive
Review memory usage and container logs. Ghost’s official minimum is 1 GB, but a 2 GB VPS gives the application, MySQL, Caddy and the operating system more headroom. If the workload outgrows the machine, increase RAM or move to a larger VPS before experimenting with arbitrary container limits.
Email never arrives
Recheck every SMTP field, including encryption mode, port, username and the permitted sender address. Look for authentication or connection errors in Ghost’s logs and test delivery to more than one mailbox. DNS and HTTPS can be perfect while SMTP remains misconfigured.
You cannot tell which Ghost version will run
Do not infer the image tag from a blog post or from another Compose project. The exact tag was not established for every repository revision; inspect the Compose file in your checkout and record it with your deployment notes. Pinning or changing a tag is an operational decision that should be tested before production use.
Updates, backups and day-to-day operation
Keep the project definition and data separate
The Git checkout contains the service definition; your database and uploaded media live in Docker volumes. Back up both the MySQL data and Ghost content, and store a copy outside the VPS. A backup is useful only if you can restore it, so perform a test restore on a disposable server before the first major upgrade.
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Use a cautious update sequence
- Record the current Git revision, image tags and environment-file backup (without exposing secrets).
- Read the current README and inspect changes in the Compose file and Caddy configuration.
- Take a verified database and content backup.
- Pull the repository changes and run
docker compose config. - Pull the new images with
docker compose pull, then apply them withdocker compose up -d. - Check service health, logs, the public site,
/ghostand email delivery.
These are standard Compose operations, not a promise that every Ghost release has the same upgrade procedure. The Docker page is explicitly preview documentation; follow any release-specific migration notes supplied by Ghost before changing production.
Protect the secrets
- Restrict access to
/opt/ghost/.envso ordinary users cannot read database and SMTP credentials. - Do not paste the file into issue trackers, chat rooms or public repositories.
- Use separate credentials for the VPS, database and SMTP service.
- Keep a record of which backup contains encrypted or unencrypted secrets.
Why the official preview status matters
Ghost’s Docker install page at docs.ghost.org/install/docker is labeled preview. That does not make the stack unusable; it means names, defaults and supported options can change. Before every new installation, compare the repository’s current Compose file, environment example and Caddyfile with the commands in this guide. In particular, verify the Ghost image tag, optional-service switches, volume names and any migration instructions. Those details were not established as fixed values and should never be copied from an outdated tutorial.
Decision checklist
Use the official stack when all of the following are true:
- You want Ghost, Caddy and MySQL managed together by Compose.
- You can point a dedicated domain A record at the VPS.
- You can provide SMTP credentials and at least the documented memory.
- You are willing to inspect preview documentation and repository changes.
Choose a custom Compose design only when you have a concrete requirement for a different proxy, database arrangement, network layout or organizational standard—and can own the resulting TLS, backup and upgrade work.
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