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deployment

How to Deploy a Ruby on Rails App to a VPS

Rails’ current guide uses Kamal to deploy a Dockerized app to a VPS. Here’s how to prepare the server and registry, configure secrets and HTTPS, deploy, and plan the production tasks Kamal does not decide.

By DocumentaryTube Team 5 min read
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The current Ruby on Rails Guides deployment walkthrough uses Kamal to build and deploy your app in Docker containers. You need an Ubuntu LTS VPS, SSH access, a container registry and credentials; for a domain, point DNS at the server and configure Kamal’s proxy for HTTPS. The guide’s example starts at 1 GB RAM, but that is not a sizing recommendation for every production app.

How the Rails VPS deployment works

Kamal builds a container image from your app’s production Dockerfile, pushes it to a registry, then runs it on your server. Rails’ current Getting Started guide walks through this route and uses Docker Hub in its example. Its sample prerequisites include an Ubuntu LTS server with at least 1 GB RAM and a Docker Hub account or token.

The 1 GB figure is the minimum in the guide’s example, not a guarantee that a server of that size can handle your app. Account for the app, database, background workers, expected traffic and temporary resource needs during deployment. The guide names Hetzner and DigitalOcean as examples of providers, not as a comparative recommendation.

Rails 8 architecture context

The Rails 8 launch announcement describes Kamal 2 as a way to deploy to a fresh Linux server. In that release context, the production Dockerfile includes Thruster in front of Puma for X-Sendfile acceleration, asset caching and compression; Kamal Proxy handles routing and supports zero-downtime deploys and automated Let’s Encrypt certificates. Treat this as Rails 8 launch context, not a promise that every app or later configuration has identical defaults. See the Rails 8 announcement and Rails 8.0 release notes, and check the live guide for version-specific details.

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Prepare the server, registry and app

  1. Provision an Ubuntu LTS VPS and SSH access. Have the server’s address and a secure deployment login ready. Size the server for your actual workload rather than treating the guide’s sample memory minimum as universal.
  2. Create a container registry repository and token. The Rails example uses Docker Hub and asks for read/write permissions so Kamal can push and retrieve the image. The deploy configuration can also use other registry hosts.
  3. Set the deployment configuration. Edit config/deploy.yml with the service and image names, target server address and registry username. Follow the current Rails guide and Kamal documentation for the exact fields expected by your installed versions.
  4. Keep secrets out of committed configuration. Kamal’s Rails deployment inputs include KAMAL_REGISTRY_PASSWORD and RAILS_MASTER_KEY. Provide them through the documented secret mechanism for your setup; do not commit credentials to source control. Consult the Kamal documentation for current setup and secret-handling details.

Configure your domain and HTTPS

If you want to serve the app from a domain, create the appropriate DNS record so the hostname resolves to your VPS. Then set the hostname in the Kamal proxy configuration and enable SSL as shown in the current Rails deployment guide. The guide says Kamal uses Let’s Encrypt to issue the certificate after DNS points to the server. Allow for DNS changes to take effect, and verify the hostname resolves correctly before troubleshooting certificate issuance.

Deploy the app

  1. Run bin/kamal setup for the first deployment. This performs the initial server setup and deployment in the guide’s flow. Make sure the server address, registry credentials and Rails secrets are in place first.
  2. Run bin/kamal deploy for later releases. Use the current guide and Kamal documentation if your application’s configuration or installed Kamal version differs from the example.
  3. Verify the live application. Open the configured hostname over HTTPS and check the app’s core user flows. If needed, Kamal documents bin/kamal console for opening a remote Rails console; restrict production console access to authorized operators.

Check the production work that deployment does not decide

A successful deploy does not settle your database topology or ongoing operating practices. Choose whether the database runs on the same VPS, on a separate server or through a managed service based on cost, operational effort, network dependency, backup responsibility and the recovery time your app requires. The Rails walkthrough does not prescribe one topology for every workload.

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  • Data and releases: confirm database connectivity and migration behavior, and decide how you will recover if a release fails.
  • Persistent files and background work: check where user uploads live and whether background jobs run and complete as intended.
  • External services: test outbound mail and other integrations your app relies on.
  • Backups and recovery: arrange backups, define retention, and test restoration rather than assuming a VPS deployment configures these for you.
  • Operations: review logs and errors, monitor the service, apply security updates, rotate secrets when needed, and maintain a recovery plan.

The official deployment material explains deployment mechanics and secret inputs, but it does not establish universal backup schedules, monitoring products, database sizing or recovery guarantees. Set these according to your application and provider’s current terms.

When a manual Puma setup makes sense

You can install and run the app directly on the host instead of using Kamal, but that is a broader operations project. Puma’s systemd documentation describes systemd as a common Linux init system that can monitor Puma and restart it, with a sample service unit. That solves process supervision, not the whole deployment.

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A manual setup also requires a controlled Ruby and app installation, environment and secret handling, a reverse proxy and TLS, database configuration, asset builds, migrations and release strategy, logs, backups and rollback. Use this route if you are prepared to design and maintain those pieces; systemd alone is not a complete Rails hosting recipe.

Choose a VPS and deployment model

Decision What to weigh
Deployment model Kamal provides the Rails-documented Docker deployment flow; a direct Puma setup gives you more host-level responsibility. Consider repeatability, familiarity with containers and how much server configuration you want to maintain.
Database location Compare cost, operating burden, network dependency, backup and restore responsibility, and the recovery objectives your app needs for a same-server, separate-server or managed database.
VPS provider and plan Compare region, CPU, memory, storage, included networking, snapshot and backup options, support and total current cost. The Rails guide names providers as examples but does not rank them.
DNS and TLS Kamal Proxy with a configured hostname and the guide’s automated certificate flow is one route; a manual reverse proxy and certificate setup is another. Choose according to the deployment model you can operate reliably.

Before choosing a plan, check the provider’s current prices, resource limits, region availability and backup terms. Those vary by provider and change over time.

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