Open the server Apps tab
Select your VPS, open the Apps tab, and start a new app deployment. Keep sensitive server details hidden before capturing or sharing screenshots.


Flexible CMS for websites and online applications
Add your server credentials to Server Compass
Choose from our template library
Fill in settings and click Deploy
Use the Joomla template in Server Compass to deploy a self-hosted flexible content management system on your VPS, then verify the Joomla install wizard in a browser.
Select your VPS, open the Apps tab, and start a new app deployment. Keep sensitive server details hidden before capturing or sharing screenshots.

Click New App and choose the template deployment path so Server Compass can load the built-in catalog.

Use the template picker search to find Joomla in the Server Compass template catalog.

Choose the Joomla template. Server Compass fills the Joomla image, MySQL service, persistent site volumes, database settings, and required secret value.

Confirm the app name and compose services. In this run, the app was named joomla-demo and used host port 8080.

Review the generated environment values, keep the database password masked, confirm the port is available, and click Deploy Now.

Keep the deployment modal open while Server Compass uploads the compose file, pulls the Joomla and MySQL images, starts the containers, and verifies the stack.

After deployment finishes, return to the Apps tab and confirm the Joomla app is marked Running with its application URL available.

Click Open Application or open the application URL in a browser. The Joomla install wizard confirms the deployed app is reachable and ready for the database credentials.

The Joomla app loaded successfully in a browser and displayed the install wizard.
It deploys Joomla with a MySQL 8.0 database and persistent application and database volumes.
The tutorial used host port 8080, which maps to the Joomla Apache web server on container port 80.
A fresh Joomla deployment is considered reachable when the install wizard loads. Continuing further would require entering generated database credentials, so the public guide verifies the safe pre-install wizard.
No. The deployment guide should live on the Joomla template detail page and be linked from the reusable template deployment docs page.
For terminal enthusiasts: deploy Joomla manually with these simple steps.
Open a terminal session and log into your VPS. Replace the placeholder with your actual IP.
# Connect via SSH
ssh root@your-vps-ip
# Alternative with key file
ssh -i /path/to/key root@your-vps-ipFirst time? Make sure Docker is installed on your VPS. Run: curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh
Create a workspace for your deployment files.
# Create and navigate to project directory
mkdir -p ~/apps/joomla
cd ~/apps/joomlaConfigure your containers with this Docker Compose setup:
services:
joomla:
image: joomla:latest
ports:
- "8080:80"
environment:
- JOOMLA_DB_HOST=db
- JOOMLA_DB_USER=joomla
- JOOMLA_DB_PASSWORD=<your-db-password>
- JOOMLA_DB_NAME=joomla
volumes:
- joomla_data:/var/www/html
restart: unless-stopped
depends_on:
db:
condition: service_healthy
db:
image: mysql:8.0
environment:
- MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=<your-db-root-password>
- MYSQL_DATABASE=joomla
- MYSQL_USER=joomla
- MYSQL_PASSWORD=<your-db-password>
volumes:
- mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql
restart: unless-stopped
healthcheck:
test: ["CMD-SHELL", "mysqladmin ping -h localhost -u root -p$$MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD || exit 1"]
interval: 10s
timeout: 5s
retries: 5
start_period: 30s
volumes:
joomla_data:
mysql_data:
PORTHost port(default: 8080)DB_PASSWORDDB passwordDB_ROOT_PASSWORDRoot passwordSpin up the containers and verify the deployment.
# Start all services
docker compose up -d
# List running containers
docker compose ps
# Watch the logs
docker compose logs -fAllow incoming traffic on the application port.
# Allow the application port through firewall
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
sudo ufw reload
# Access your app at:
# http://your-server-ip:8080Deploy Joomla without touching the command line. Server Compass gives you a clean UI for one-click deployments.
After deploying Joomla with Server Compass, complete these steps to finish setup
Complete installation wizard
Remove installation directory
Install extensions
Need help? Check out our documentation for detailed guides.
Common questions about self-hosting Joomla
Simply download Server Compass, connect to your VPS, and select Joomla from the templates list. Fill in the required configuration and click Deploy. The entire process takes under 3 minutes.
Joomla requires a minimum of 512MB RAM. We recommend a VPS with at least 1024MB RAM for optimal performance. Any modern Linux server with Docker support will work.
Yes! Server Compass provides volume mapping that allows you to import existing data. You can also use standard Joomla backup and restore procedures.
Server Compass makes updates easy. Simply click the Update button in your deployment dashboard, and the latest Joomla image will be pulled and deployed with zero downtime.
Joomla is open-source software. You only pay for your VPS hosting (typically $5-20/month) and optionally Server Compass ($29 one-time). No subscription fees or per-seat pricing.
Download Server Compass and deploy Joomla to your VPS in under 3 minutes. No Docker expertise required.
Download Server Compass