Levelrail by GLINR STUDIOS
Docs GitHub Install
Levelrail

Use cases

Compare

Migrate from

Star on GitHub Docs Install

Use case: One cheap server

Levelrail runs several side projects on one small Linux VPS. The control plane and the agent run together in one process, so there is nothing extra to install, and the only bill is the server you already rent. A single node is the best-tested setup.

curl -fsSL https://levelrail.com/install.sh | sudo sh
Quickstart Source on GitHub
The dashboard home page showing All systems normal, tiles for 5 of 5 apps running, requests, error rate, 6 deploys in 24 hours and 1 of 1 nodes online, a recommended next steps list and a list of recent deploys. The dashboard home page showing All systems normal, tiles for 5 of 5 apps running, requests, error rate, 6 deploys in 24 hours and 1 of 1 nodes online, a recommended next steps list and a list of recent deploys.
5 of 5 apps running
  • 2 binaries: control plane and agent
  • 15 s metrics resolution, kept on the node
  • 1 vCPU, 1 GB starting size, not a benchmarked minimum
  • None license key or paid tier

How it works

Many projects, one server you already rent

One server runs the control plane and the agent in a single process, with three projects behind it. An idle app sleeps and wakes on the next request.

What you get

Everything this use case leans on

  • Two binaries

    One binary is the control plane and one is the agent. On a single server they run together.

    Docs Source

  • Built-in observability

    Metrics at 15 second resolution and searchable logs stay on the node, so there is no Grafana or log shipper to set up.

    Docs

  • Sleep when idle

    An app with no requests for a time you choose stops, frees its memory and wakes on the next request. Setup is in sleep when idle.

    Docs Source

  • Template catalog

    Pick the database or tool a project needs from the template catalog, including one-click Postgres and Redis.

  • No license key

    Levelrail is Apache 2.0 licensed, with no license key and no paid tier. See pricing.

In the product

What it looks like

  • The Metrics page of an app named marketing-site with time range buttons and charts for CPU, memory, network I/O and disk I/O, with dashed lines marking deploys. The Metrics page of an app named marketing-site with time range buttons and charts for CPU, memory, network I/O and disk I/O, with dashed lines marking deploys.
    Per-app metrics are stored on the node, with no separate monitoring stack. Read the docs
  • The Service templates page with starter kits such as Node.js API plus PostgreSQL, Redis Cache Starter and Next.js plus PostgreSQL, each with an estimated RAM figure and a Deploy button, and a search box for 358 templates. The Service templates page with starter kits such as Node.js API plus PostgreSQL, Redis Cache Starter and Next.js plus PostgreSQL, each with an estimated RAM figure and a Deploy button, and a search box for 358 templates.
    Starter kits and a template catalog for the database or tool a project needs.
  • The Deploy history page of an app named marketing-site, with a Sleep when idle card marked Ready to turn on, explaining that an idle app is stopped and the next visitor starts it again and waits for a cold start. The Deploy history page of an app named marketing-site, with a Sleep when idle card marked Ready to turn on, explaining that an idle app is stopped and the next visitor starts it again and waits for a cold start.
    Sleep when idle is switched on per app. The first visitor after a sleep waits for a cold start. Read the docs

Get started

From zero to running

  1. Install on a VPS

    Rent a small Linux VPS and run the install command.

  2. Create apps

    Create an app from a repository or an image, then point a domain at the server.

  3. Enable sleep

    Turn on sleep when idle for the projects that get little traffic.

Go deeper

Read it, run it, or read the code

Source

glincker/levelrailApache 2.0, open source

Docs

Related use cases

Weighing it against something else? Compare Levelrail with the tools below, or migrate an existing setup.

Good to know

Scope and maturity, stated plainly so you can plan around them.

  • A 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM server is enough to boot the control plane. Builds and several running apps are more comfortable with 2 vCPU and 2 GB. No minimum has been benchmarked, so treat both as starting points.
  • A sleeping app takes seconds to wake, mostly the time your app needs to boot, and the first visitor waits for it. Leave sleep off for anything that must answer instantly.
  • The idle footprint figures come from a development build and vary with hardware. Read the benchmarks before you size a server.

Maturity differs by feature. Feature status lists what is stable, beta or behind a flag, with the evidence for each.

FAQ

Questions

How big a VPS do I need to self-host side projects?

A 1 vCPU, 1 GB server runs the control plane, and 2 vCPU with 2 GB is more comfortable once builds and apps run. These are starting points, not benchmarked minimums.

Can I run several projects on one VPS?

Yes. Each project is its own app with its own domain, environment variables, logs and rollback history, and single-node installs are the best-tested setup. If the server sits at home instead of in a data center, see the homelab use case.

Does Levelrail cost anything?

No. There is no license key and no paid tier, so your cost is the server itself.

Run it on a server you own

One command installs the control plane. Apache 2.0, no license key and no paid tier.

curl -fsSL https://levelrail.com/install.sh | sudo sh
Install guide Quickstart