Getting Started with WatchDeck Self-Host
This page is a preview. The self-host distribution is being prepared — the steps below describe the intended shape, not the final, supported flow. Use WatchDeck Cloud if you need something production-ready today.
This guide will walk you through running the WatchDeck check engine on your own server.
Before you start
You’ll need:
- A Linux host (or container runtime) with outbound network access to the endpoints you want to check.
- A Postgres database for check history.
- Basic familiarity with environment variables and
docker compose.
Quick start
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/watchdeck/watchdeck.git
cd watchdeckConfigure environment
Copy the example env file and fill in your Postgres connection string and any notification channel credentials.
cp .env.example .envStart the stack
docker compose up -dThis brings up the check engine, the dashboard UI, and the scheduler.
Add your first endpoint
Open the dashboard at http://localhost:3000 and add an endpoint to check. The configuration surface mirrors WatchDeck Cloud — same check types, same alert wiring.
Verify it’s running
Within one minute the endpoint card should flip to Healthy. If it doesn’t, check the engine logs with docker compose logs check-engine.
What’s next
- Persist data outside the container — point Postgres at a managed database for backups.
- Front the dashboard with TLS — terminate at your reverse proxy of choice.
- Wire up alerts — Slack, email, generic webhooks.
Each of these will get its own page once the self-host distribution stabilises.