Deploy OpenCodeHub on cPanel Hosting

Difficulty: Intermediate | Time: 45-60 minutes | Method: Manual Node.js + PostgreSQL

cPanel is widely used on shared hosting and VPS. While cPanel doesn't natively support Docker, you can deploy OpenCodeHub using Node.js Selector (if CloudLinux is available) or Passenger + PM2.

Prerequisites

• cPanel hosting with SSH access (essential)
• Node.js 20+ available (check via cPanel → Software → Select Node.js Version)
• PostgreSQL or ability to install it (via cPanel → PostgreSQL Databases)
• Minimum 2 CPU cores, 4GB RAM
• A domain/subdomain pointed to your hosting (e.g., git.yourdomain.com)

Step 1: Prepare Your cPanel Account

1.1 Enable SSH Access

1. Log into cPanel
2. Go to Security → SSH Access
3. Click Manage SSH Keys → Generate a New Key
4. Download the private key and authorize it
5. Connect via terminal:

   ssh [email protected] -p 22
   

1.2 Set Up Domain/Subdomain

1. In cPanel, go to Domains → Create a New Domain
2. Enter: git.yourdomain.com
3. Document Root: public_html/git (or just public_html)
4. Enable SSL (Let's Encrypt) in SSL/TLS Status

Step 2: Install PostgreSQL

Option A: cPanel PostgreSQL (Shared Hosting)

1. In cPanel, go to Databases → PostgreSQL Databases

2. If not available, ask your host to enable it, OR use SQLite (not recommended for production):

   # SQLite is file-based, no server needed
   # Set DATABASE_DRIVER=sqlite in .env later
   

3. Create a database:

   • Database name: cpaneluser_opencodehub
   • Username: cpaneluser_och
   • Password: <strong-password>

4. Note the connection details. The host is usually localhost.

Option B: Self-Install PostgreSQL (VPS with cPanel)

If you have root access on a VPS:

# Install PostgreSQL
sudo dnf install postgresql16-server postgresql16-contrib  # AlmaLinux/Rocky
sudo /usr/pgsql-16/bin/postgresql-16-setup initdb
sudo systemctl enable --now postgresql-16

# Create database
sudo -u postgres psql -c "CREATE USER opencodehub WITH PASSWORD 'strongpassword';"
sudo -u postgres psql -c "CREATE DATABASE opencodehub OWNER opencodehub;"
sudo -u postgres psql -c "GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE opencodehub TO opencodehub;"

Step 3: Install Node.js and Bun

3.1 Check Node.js Version

In cPanel:

1. Go to Software → Select Node.js Version (if CloudLinux)
2. Select Node.js 20.x or higher
3. Click Set as Current

If cPanel doesn't have Node.js selector:

# SSH into your account
ssh [email protected]

# Install nvm
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.0/install.sh | bash
source ~/.bashrc

# Install Node.js 20
nvm install 20
nvm use 20
node -v  # Should show v20.x.x

3.2 Install Bun

curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash
source ~/.bashrc
bun -v

Step 4: Deploy OpenCodeHub

4.1 Clone Repository

cd ~
git clone https://github.com/swadhinbiswas/OpencodeHub.git
cd OpenCodeHub

4.2 Create Production Environment File

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Edit .env with your cPanel settings:

# Database
DATABASE_DRIVER=postgres
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://cpaneluser_och:YOUR_PASSWORD@localhost:5432/cpaneluser_opencodehub

# For SQLite fallback (if PostgreSQL unavailable)
# DATABASE_DRIVER=sqlite
# DATABASE_URL=file:./data/opencodehub.db

# Secrets (generate with: openssl rand -hex 32)
JWT_SECRET=your-64-char-hex-secret
SESSION_SECRET=your-64-char-hex-secret
INTERNAL_HOOK_SECRET=your-64-char-hex-secret
CRON_SECRET=your-64-char-hex-secret
RUNNER_SECRET=your-64-char-hex-secret
WORKFLOW_SECRET_ENCRYPTION_KEY=your-64-char-hex-secret

# Site URL (MUST be HTTPS in production)
SITE_URL=https://git.yourdomain.com
NODE_ENV=production

# Storage (local is fine for single-server cPanel)
STORAGE_TYPE=local
STORAGE_PATH=./data/storage
REPOS_PATH=./data/repos

# Redis (skip if not available, use file sessions)
# REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379

# Skip Redis check during build
SKIP_REDIS_CHECK=1

IMPORTANT: On cPanel shared hosting, you likely don't have Redis. OpenCodeHub will work without it using in-memory sessions (restart clears sessions) or you can use SQLite for sessions.

4.3 Install Dependencies

# Install dependencies (with retry in case of network issues)
for i in 1 2 3; do
  bun install --frozen-lockfile && break
  echo "Attempt $i failed, retrying in 10s..."
  sleep 10
done

If bun install fails due to native modules:

# Some cPanel environments lack build tools
# Install with npm instead for better compatibility
npm install

4.4 Build the Application

export SKIP_REDIS_CHECK=1
bun run build

This creates the dist/ directory with the production build.

4.5 Initialize Database

# Push schema to database
bun run db:push

# Or generate and run migrations
bun run db:generate
bun run db:migrate

4.6 Create Admin User

bun run scripts/seed-admin.ts

Enter username, email, and password when prompted.

Step 5: Set Up Process Manager (PM2)

cPanel doesn't keep Node.js apps running by default. Use PM2:

5.1 Install PM2

npm install -g pm2

5.2 Create PM2 Config

cat > ~/OpenCodeHub/ecosystem.config.cjs << 'EOF'
module.exports = {
  apps: [{
    name: 'opencodehub',
    script: './dist/server/entry.mjs',
    cwd: '/home/cpaneluser/OpenCodeHub',
    instances: 1,
    exec_mode: 'fork',
    env: {
      NODE_ENV: 'production',
      PORT: 3000,
      HOST: '127.0.0.1'
    },
    error_file: '/home/cpaneluser/logs/opencodehub-error.log',
    out_file: '/home/cpaneluser/logs/opencodehub-out.log',
    log_date_format: 'YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm:ss Z',
    merge_logs: true,
    max_memory_restart: '1G',
    restart_delay: 3000,
    max_restarts: 5,
    min_uptime: '10s',
    watch: false,
    autorestart: true
  }]
};
EOF

Replace cpaneluser with your actual cPanel username.

5.3 Create Log Directory

mkdir -p ~/logs

5.4 Start with PM2

cd ~/OpenCodeHub
pm2 start ecosystem.config.cjs
pm2 save
pm2 startup

The startup command will output a command to run with sudo (if you have root). On shared hosting without root, add PM2 to your .bash_profile:

echo 'pm2 resurrect' >> ~/.bash_profile

Step 6: Configure Reverse Proxy

6.1 Using .htaccess (Apache - Most Common)

In your public_html directory, create/edit .htaccess:

<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteBase /

  # Redirect HTTP to HTTPS
  RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off
  RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://%{HTTP_HOST}/$1 [R=301,L]

  # Proxy all requests to Node.js app
  RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
  RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
  RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://127.0.0.1:3000/$1 [P,L]
</IfModule>

# Enable proxy modules (host must have these enabled)
<IfModule mod_proxy.c>
  ProxyPass / http://127.0.0.1:3000/
  ProxyPassReverse / http://127.0.0.1:3000/

  # WebSocket support
  RewriteCond %{HTTP:Upgrade} websocket [NC]
  RewriteCond %{HTTP:Connection} upgrade [NC]
  RewriteRule ^/?(.*) "ws://127.0.0.1:3000/$1" [P,L]
</IfModule>

# Increase limits for Git operations
<IfModule mod_reqtimeout.c>
  RequestReadTimeout header=20-40,minrate=500
  RequestReadTimeout body=10,minrate=500
</IfModule>

LimitRequestBody 104857600

Note: Some shared hosts disable mod_proxy. If .htaccess proxy doesn't work, ask your host to enable it, OR use the Node.js Selector method below.

6.2 Using cPanel Node.js Selector (CloudLinux)

If your host has CloudLinux with Node.js Selector:

1. In cPanel, go to Software → Setup Node.js App
2. Click Create Application
3. Configuration:

   Node.js Version: 20.x
   Application Mode: Production
   Application Root: /home/cpaneluser/OpenCodeHub
   Application URL: git.yourdomain.com
   Application Startup File: dist/server/entry.mjs
   

4. Click Create
5. In Environment Variables, add all variables from your .env
6. Click Save
7. Click Restart

6.3 Using Nginx Reverse Proxy (VPS with cPanel + Nginx)

If your cPanel server uses Nginx:

# In cPanel → Nginx Manager → Custom Configuration
# OR via SSH in /etc/nginx/conf.d/opencodehub.conf

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name git.yourdomain.com;
    return 301 https://$server_name$request_uri;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    server_name git.yourdomain.com;

    ssl_certificate /path/to/ssl.crt;
    ssl_certificate_key /path/to/ssl.key;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        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;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }

    location ~ ^/[^/]+/[^/]+\.git/ {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_read_timeout 600s;
        proxy_send_timeout 600s;
        client_max_body_size 100M;
    }
}

Step 7: Verify Deployment

7.1 Check App is Running

pm2 status
pm2 logs opencodehub

7.2 Test Health Endpoint

curl http://127.0.0.1:3000/api/health

7.3 Test from Browser

Visit https://git.yourdomain.com and log in.

Step 8: Git SSH Access (Advanced)

cPanel shared hosting typically doesn't allow custom SSH ports. For Git over SSH, you have options:

Option A: Use Git over HTTPS (Recommended for cPanel)

OpenCodeHub supports Git over HTTP(S) out of the box. Users can:

git clone https://git.yourdomain.com/username/repo.git

Option B: Use a Different Port for SSH Git

If your host allows additional ports:

# In .env
GIT_SSH_PORT=2222

# Start SSH git server
bun run git:start

Add to PM2 config:

apps: [
  {
    name: 'opencodehub',
    script: './dist/server/entry.mjs',
    // ... main app config
  },
  {
    name: 'opencodehub-ssh',
    script: './scripts/ssh-server.ts',
    cwd: '/home/cpaneluser/OpenCodeHub',
    interpreter: 'bun'
  }
]

Note: Most shared hosts block non-standard ports. HTTPS Git is the safest option.

Maintenance

Update OpenCodeHub

cd ~/OpenCodeHub
git pull origin main

# Rebuild
export SKIP_REDIS_CHECK=1
bun install
bun run build
bun run db:push

# Restart
pm2 restart opencodehub

Backup

# Database backup (PostgreSQL)
pg_dump $DATABASE_URL > ~/backups/opencodehub-$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

# File backup
cd ~
tar czf backups/opencodehub-files-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz OpenCodeHub/data

Set up a cron job in cPanel → Cron Jobs:

# Daily at 2 AM
0 2 * * * /home/cpaneluser/.nvm/versions/node/v20.x.x/bin/node /home/cpaneluser/scripts/backup.js

Troubleshooting

Limitations on cPanel Shared Hosting

For full functionality, consider upgrading to a VPS or using Coolify/Docker deployment instead.

Next Steps

• Configure Email (SMTP)
• Enable Branch Protection
• Troubleshooting Common Issues