> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.hired.tools/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Self-host on Railway

> Five minutes, one variable, no terminal. The app provisions itself on first boot.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create the project">
    Go to [railway.com](https://railway.com) → **New Project** → **Deploy from GitHub
    repo** → pick the Hired repository. Railway starts building immediately.

    The build will succeed, but the app will not start yet — it has nowhere to store
    anything, so you will see it crash and retry. That is expected; the next two steps fix
    it, and Railway redeploys on its own.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a database">
    In the same project: **+ Create** → **Database** → **Add PostgreSQL**.

    Railway names the service **Postgres**. Leave it alone; you never have to configure it.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Point the app at it">
    Click your **app service** — not the Postgres one — then **Variables** → **New
    Variable**:

    | Variable       | Value                        |
    | -------------- | ---------------------------- |
    | `DATABASE_URL` | `${{Postgres.DATABASE_URL}}` |

    Type it exactly as shown, `${{ }}` included — Railway autocompletes it. It is a
    *reference*, so if the database credentials ever rotate, your app follows
    automatically.

    That is the only variable. Everything else is configured inside the app.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Give it a web address">
    **Settings** → **Networking** → **Generate Domain**. You will get something like
    `hired-production.up.railway.app`.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Get your password from the logs">
    On first boot the app creates your owner account and prints the credentials once.

    Open the **Deploy Logs** tab on your app service and scroll to the top of the latest
    deploy. Copy the password, sign in, then change your email and password from
    **Settings**.

    Database tables are created automatically on every boot — there is no migration step
    for you to run, now or after any future update.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect your AI">
    Open **Settings** in the app. It opens on **Connections**, because this is the step
    that makes everything else work. You already have one waiting; hit **Set up**, pick
    whichever assistant you use, and the exact steps appear with the config already filled
    in with your URL.

    [Per-client setup →](/connect)
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Optional variables

| Variable               | What it does                                                                                                   |
| ---------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `ADMIN_EMAIL`          | Use this address for the owner account instead of `owner@localhost`.                                           |
| `APP_PASSWORD`         | Use this as the owner's first password instead of a generated one.                                             |
| `RESET_OWNER_PASSWORD` | Set to `1` and redeploy to generate a fresh owner password and print it again. Remove the variable afterwards. |

`RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN` is set by the platform, and the app uses it for the sign-in address
it prints in the deploy log. Invitation links need no public URL either — the app falls back
to the address the request came in on — but set **Public URL** in **Admin → Configuration** once
a custom domain or a proxy sits in front of the app.

## Deploy configuration

The repository carries a `railway.json`, so there is nothing to configure in the
dashboard. It builds with Nixpacks, starts with `prisma migrate deploy && next start`, and
health-checks `/login` with a 120-second timeout.

<Warning>
  **One-click PDF export does not work on a stock Railway deploy.** Nixpacks' image has no
  headless browser, so the **PDF** button reports that and points at the fallback:
  **⋯ → Open print view**, then your browser's **Save as PDF** with margins set to
  **None**. Same document, one more step.

  [How to get one-click PDF anyway →](/self-hosting/pdf)
</Warning>