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Step 1Open the server Apps tab
Select the tutorial-vps VPS, open the Apps tab, and start a new app deployment. Keep sensitive server details hidden before capturing or sharing screenshots.
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Postal
Infrastructure2048MB+ RAM
Mail delivery platform for transactional emails
emailtransactionalsmtp
Deploy Postal in 3 Steps
1
Connect Your VPS
Add your server credentials to Server Compass
2
Select Postal
Choose from our template library
3
Deploy & Configure
Fill in settings and click Deploy
No Docker knowledge required
Step-by-step deployment guide
Deploy Postal on a VPS with Server Compass
Use the Postal template in Server Compass to deploy the web, worker, SMTP, MariaDB, and RabbitMQ services, then verify the Postal login page.
About 10 minutesBrowser verified
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Step 2Choose an app template
Click New App and choose the template deployment path so Server Compass can load the built-in catalog.
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Step 3Search for Postal
Use the template picker search to find Postal in the Server Compass template catalog.
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Step 4Select the Postal template
Choose the Postal template. Server Compass fills the Postal web, worker, SMTP, MariaDB, RabbitMQ, setup service, configuration, signing key, and required secrets.
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Step 5Review the Postal settings
Confirm the app name, Postal hostname, initial admin credentials, generated secrets, web port, and SMTP port. In this run, the app was named postal-demo and used host web port 5000.
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Step 6Deploy Postal
Review the generated compose settings, confirm the Postal web and SMTP ports are available, and click Deploy.
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Step 7Watch the deployment progress
Keep the deployment modal open while Server Compass uploads the compose file, generates Postal config, initializes the database, creates the first admin user, and starts the web, worker, SMTP, MariaDB, and RabbitMQ services.
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Step 8Confirm Postal is running
After deployment finishes, return to the Apps tab and confirm the Postal app is marked Running with its application URL available.
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Step 9Open Postal in the browser
Open the application URL in a browser. The Postal login page confirms the admin web service is reachable before you configure real DNS and mail delivery.
After Postal Opens
- Log in with the initial Postal admin credentials created during deployment.
- Replace the tutorial sslip.io hostname with a real mail hostname before sending production mail.
- Configure HTTPS, MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and rDNS before adding real sending domains.
- Create an organization and mail server in Postal, then follow the DNS records Postal shows for that domain.
- Back up MariaDB and the Postal configuration directory before relying on the instance.
Verified Result
The Postal login page loaded through the configured sslip.io hostname, and the web logs showed Puma listening on port 5000.
Postal deployment questions
What does the Postal template deploy?
It deploys Postal web, worker, SMTP, MariaDB, RabbitMQ, a one-shot database/admin bootstrap service, and generated configuration/signing-key files.
Which port did the tutorial use?
The tutorial used host web port 5000, which maps to the Postal web service on container port 5000.
Does Postal need setup after deployment?
Yes. The deployment creates the first admin account, but production mail delivery still requires real DNS records, rDNS, HTTPS, and Postal organization/mail-server configuration.
Should this become a blog post?
No. The deployment guide should live on the Postal template detail page and be linked from the reusable template deployment docs page.
Manual Setup Guide
Set Up Postal from Terminal
Get your hands dirty: manual Postal deployment guide for developers.
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Connect to Your VPS via SSH
Fire up your terminal application and establish a connection to your remote server.
terminal
# Access your VPS
ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP
# With SSH key authentication
ssh -i ~/.ssh/your-private-key root@YOUR_SERVER_IPFirst time? Ensure Docker is installed first: curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh
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Initialize Project Folder
Create a folder to house your Docker Compose configuration.
terminal
# Create and navigate to project directory
mkdir -p ~/apps/postal
cd ~/apps/postal3
Create Docker Configuration
Define your services in a docker-compose.yml file:
docker-compose.yml
services:
postal:
image: ghcr.io/postalserver/postal:3.3.4
ports:
- "5000:5000"
- "25:25"
environment:
- POSTAL_FNAME=Postal
- POSTAL_LNAME=Admin
- [email protected]
- MAIN_DB_HOST=mysql
- MAIN_DB_USERNAME=root
- MAIN_DB_PASSWORD=<your-db-root-password>
- MESSAGE_DB_HOST=mysql
- MESSAGE_DB_USERNAME=root
- MESSAGE_DB_PASSWORD=<your-db-root-password>
- RABBITMQ_HOST=rabbitmq
volumes:
- postal_config:/config
- postal_storage:/storage
restart: unless-stopped
depends_on:
- mysql
- rabbitmq
mysql:
image: mariadb:10.11
environment:
- MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=<your-db-root-password>
- MYSQL_DATABASE=postal
volumes:
- mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql
restart: unless-stopped
rabbitmq:
image: rabbitmq:3-management
restart: unless-stopped
volumes:
postal_config:
postal_storage:
mysql_data:
Environment Variables
PORTWeb port(default: 5000)SMTP_PORTSMTP port(default: 25)DB_ROOT_PASSWORDRoot password4
Execute the Deployment
Start your containers and verify they're running correctly.
terminal
# Launch the stack
docker compose up -d
# Verify container status
docker compose ps
# Follow the logs
docker compose logs --follow5
Allow Network Access
Update UFW rules to allow traffic on the application port.
terminal
# Allow the application port through firewall
sudo ufw allow 5000/tcp
sudo ufw reload
# Access your app at:
# http://your-server-ip:5000Skip the Terminal
Don't want to type commands? We've got you.
Why type commands when you can click? Deploy Postal the easy way with Server Compass.
- No terminal required
- Point-and-click setup
- Auto SSL certificates
- Rolling deployments
- Health monitoring
- Instant rollbacks
Download Server Compass$29 one-time • Lifetime license
After Deployment
After deploying Postal with Server Compass, complete these steps to finish setup
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Run postal initialize
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Create admin user
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Configure DNS records
Need help? Check out our documentation for detailed guides.
Postal FAQ
Common questions about self-hosting Postal
How do I deploy Postal with Server Compass?
Simply download Server Compass, connect to your VPS, and select Postal from the templates list. Fill in the required configuration and click Deploy. The entire process takes under 3 minutes.
What are the system requirements for Postal?
Postal requires a minimum of 2048MB RAM. We recommend a VPS with at least 4096MB RAM for optimal performance. Any modern Linux server with Docker support will work.
Can I migrate my existing Postal data?
Yes! Server Compass provides volume mapping that allows you to import existing data. You can also use standard Postal backup and restore procedures.
How do I update Postal to the latest version?
Server Compass makes updates easy. Simply click the Update button in your deployment dashboard, and the latest Postal image will be pulled and deployed with zero downtime.
Is Postal free to self-host?
Postal 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.
Ready to Self-Host Postal?
Download Server Compass and deploy Postal to your VPS in under 3 minutes. No Docker expertise required.
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