Documentation
Getting started with Simplewala
From signup to a live application in under 5 minutes.
1. Create a server
After signing up, click New Server in the portal. Choose your cloud provider (DigitalOcean or Hetzner), region, and plan. Give the server a name and click Create.
Simplewala provisions the server and runs the baseline installer automatically. The baseline installs: UFW firewall, fail2ban, unattended-upgrades, SSH key configuration, Nginx Front Door, and the monitoring stack.
Your server will be in active status within 60–90 seconds.
2. Install software
From the server sidebar, navigate to the section for what you want to install:
- Apps — WordPress, Node.js, Git deployments, Docker
- Databases — MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, Redis, MongoDB, Kafka, Memcached
- Email — Full mail server with DKIM, SPF, DMARC, and webmail
- Stack — Additional services and runtime environments
Each installer runs fully unattended. Progress is visible in the command log. Most installs complete in 2–5 minutes.
3. Add a domain
Go to Front Door in the server sidebar. Click Add Route and enter your domain name. Simplewala provisions a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate automatically.
Point your DNS A record to the server’s IP address (visible in the server header). DNS propagation typically takes 1–60 minutes.
# DNS record to add at your registrar yourdomain.com. A <server-ip>
4. SSH access
Add your SSH public key in the server’s Access section. Connect with:
ssh root@<server-ip>
You have full root access. Everything Simplewala installs is standard Linux software — no proprietary agents or lock-in.