Linkwarden with Docker Compose

What Linkwarden needs

Only figures Linkwarden's own documentation publishes, each linked to the page it is on. Where the project gives no number, this page does not invent one.

On top of this, Caddy (the reverse proxy in the file) is a single small container. Linkwarden itself runs as 3 containers: linkwarden-postgres, linkwarden, linkwarden-meilisearch.

Which hardware Linkwarden has images for

Read from each image's manifest list in its registry (anonymous, read-only) when this page was built. An app counts for a CPU only if every one of its images lists it.

• x86-64 PC or NAS (linux/amd64): every image has a build.
• Raspberry Pi 4/5, 64-bit OS (linux/arm64): every image has a build.
• Raspberry Pi 3 or Zero 2 W, 32-bit OS (linux/arm/v7): no image for linkwarden, meilisearch. No image for this hardware; the builder leaves the app out.

A manifest says an image exists for a CPU, not how well Linkwarden runs on it: a build for arm64 or arm/v7 can still be too slow or need more memory than the board has. The RAM and disk Linkwarden publishes are in the table above and, for a whole set of apps against a Raspberry Pi, on Will it run on my machine?. A tag like latest can move to a new digest after the date checked.

docker-compose.yml

This is exactly what the builder writes for Linkwarden alone on example.org: the official definition with its published ports removed and Caddy added in front. Every ${VARIABLE} is defined in the .env below.

# docker-compose.yml built at dankhost.com for: Linkwarden
# Each app block is its official compose definition. Only the names were prefixed with
# the app slug (services, containers, volumes, bind folders, .env variables) so any set of
# apps can share one file; other differences are listed under "Changed:" in each block.
# Only Caddy publishes ports. Secrets live in .env next to this file.

services:
  # ---- Caddy: the one reverse proxy, HTTPS certificates from Let's Encrypt ----
  # Source: https://caddyserver.com/docs/running (checked 2026-09-23)
  # Source: https://github.com/dani-garcia/vaultwarden/wiki/Using-Docker-Compose (checked 2026-09-23)
  # Caddyfile goes in ./caddy/Caddyfile. Fixed address 172.30.0.2 so apps can trust it exactly.
  caddy:
    image: "caddy:2"
    container_name: "caddy"
    restart: "unless-stopped"
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
      - "443:443/udp"
    volumes:
      - "./caddy:/etc/caddy"
      - "caddy-data:/data"
      - "caddy-config:/config"
    networks:
      proxy:
        ipv4_address: "172.30.0.2"

  # ---- Linkwarden (links.example.org) ----
  # Source: https://github.com/linkwarden/linkwarden/blob/main/docker-compose.yml (checked 2026-10-03)
  # Source: https://docs.linkwarden.app/self-hosting/setup (checked 2026-10-03)
  # Source: https://docs.linkwarden.app/self-hosting/upgrading/how-to-upgrade (checked 2026-10-03)
  # Source: https://docs.linkwarden.app/self-hosting/reverse-proxy (checked 2026-10-03)
  # Source: https://docs.linkwarden.app/self-hosting/environment-variables (checked 2026-10-03)
  # Changed: Removed the documented '3000:3000' port; Caddy reaches linkwarden:3000 on the proxy network.
  #          The file's env_file: .env lines are replaced by the variables the setup page calls required, written under environment: (this .env holds every app's variables): NEXTAUTH_SECRET, POSTGRES_PASSWORD and MEILI_MASTER_KEY are generated, all three different as the page asks. Postgres and Meilisearch get only their own password or key.
  #          The Reverse Proxy page's values for a public address: NEXTAUTH_URL is https://links.example.org/api/v1/auth and BASE_URL is https://links.example.org.
  linkwarden-postgres:
    image: "postgres:16-alpine"
    container_name: "linkwarden-postgres"
    restart: "always"
    environment:
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: "${LINKWARDEN_POSTGRES_PASSWORD}"
    volumes:
      - "./linkwarden/pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data"
    networks:
      linkwarden-backend:
        aliases:
          - "postgres"
  linkwarden:
    environment:
      DATABASE_URL: "postgresql://postgres:${LINKWARDEN_POSTGRES_PASSWORD}@postgres:5432/postgres"
      NEXTAUTH_URL: "https://links.example.org/api/v1/auth"
      NEXTAUTH_SECRET: "${LINKWARDEN_NEXTAUTH_SECRET}"
      MEILI_MASTER_KEY: "${LINKWARDEN_MEILI_MASTER_KEY}"
      BASE_URL: "https://links.example.org"
    restart: "always"
    image: "ghcr.io/linkwarden/linkwarden:latest"
    container_name: "linkwarden"
    volumes:
      - "./linkwarden/data:/data/data"
    depends_on:
      - "linkwarden-postgres"
      - "linkwarden-meilisearch"
    networks:
      proxy: {}
      linkwarden-backend: {}
  linkwarden-meilisearch:
    image: "getmeili/meilisearch:v1.13.3"
    container_name: "linkwarden-meilisearch"
    restart: "always"
    environment:
      MEILI_MASTER_KEY: "${LINKWARDEN_MEILI_MASTER_KEY}"
    volumes:
      - "./linkwarden/meili_data:/meili_data"
    networks:
      linkwarden-backend:
        aliases:
          - "meilisearch"

networks:
  # Pinned so the trusted-proxy address given to each app (172.30.0.2) is exact.
  # If "docker compose up" reports "Pool overlaps", change 172.30.0 here, in Caddy's
  # ipv4_address and in every trusted-proxy value to a free 172.x.0 range.
  proxy:
    ipam:
      config:
        - subnet: "172.30.0.0/24"
          ip_range: "172.30.0.128/25"
          gateway: "172.30.0.1"
  linkwarden-backend:
    internal: true

volumes:
  caddy-data:
  caddy-config:

Caddyfile save as caddy/Caddyfile

Caddy gets and renews the HTTPS certificate for links.example.org by itself once the DNS record points at your server and ports 80 and 443 reach it.

# Caddyfile built at dankhost.com. Save it as ./caddy/Caddyfile next to docker-compose.yml.
# Caddy gets and renews a Let's Encrypt certificate for each name below by itself,
# once the DNS records point at this server and ports 80 and 443 reach it.

# Linkwarden
links.example.org {
	reverse_proxy linkwarden:3000
}

Already running nginx, Nginx Proxy Manager, Caddy or Traefik? The reverse-proxy settings Linkwarden needs, for all four, each cited to Linkwarden's own docs.

.env

The secrets are left blank here on purpose: a password printed on a public page is the same for everyone who copies it. The builder fills them with random letters and digits made in your browser.

# .env for Linkwarden, from dankhost.com/app/linkwarden/. Fill the blank secrets before starting.
# Keep this file private (chmod 600).

# Linkwarden
# 32 random letters and digits: the builder fills this in your browser
LINKWARDEN_POSTGRES_PASSWORD=
# 48 random letters and digits: the builder fills this in your browser
LINKWARDEN_NEXTAUTH_SECRET=
# 48 random letters and digits: the builder fills this in your browser
LINKWARDEN_MEILI_MASTER_KEY=

Changes from the official file

Besides prefixing every service, container, volume, folder and variable with linkwarden (so any set of apps can share one file), these are all the differences from what the project documents:

• Removed the documented '3000:3000' port; Caddy reaches linkwarden:3000 on the proxy network.
• The file's env_file: .env lines are replaced by the variables the setup page calls required, written under environment: (this .env holds every app's variables): NEXTAUTH_SECRET, POSTGRES_PASSWORD and MEILI_MASTER_KEY are generated, all three different as the page asks. Postgres and Meilisearch get only their own password or key.
• The Reverse Proxy page's values for a public address: NEXTAUTH_URL is https://links.example.org/api/v1/auth and BASE_URL is https://links.example.org.

Notes for Linkwarden behind the proxy

• Open https://links.example.org and register: the first account is yours. Registration stays open to anyone who reaches the address until you set NEXT_PUBLIC_DISABLE_REGISTRATION=true under linkwarden's environment (Environment Variables page) and run docker compose up -d.
• The first start takes a few minutes while the database is prepared.

Back it up

Linkwarden's upgrade page says what to copy before any upgrade: a pg_dump of the database, and the data folder (the preserved pages) with the configuration.

Below is the BACKUP.md the builder writes next to the compose file above: which of its folders and volumes hold data, the dump command the project documents, rewritten for this file's service names, what to copy with which container stopped, and a restore check. Pick more apps in the builder and it covers them all in one file.

# BACKUP.md built at dankhost.com for: Linkwarden

What to copy from the docker-compose.yml built with this file, the database dump each project documents (rewritten for the service names in that file), what to copy with which container stopped, and how to check the result. Run every command in the folder that holds docker-compose.yml.

The folders are owned by the containers' users: put sudo in front of tar if it says "Permission denied". Named volumes live under /var/lib/docker/volumes, not next to the compose file, so they are copied through a throwaway ubuntu container (Docker's documented --volumes-from method). tar makes a full copy each run; for large folders an incremental tool (restic, borg, rsync) saves time and space.

Never run "docker compose down -v" on this file: it deletes the named volumes of every app in it.

## Before you start

    BACKUP=/mnt/backup/selfhost   # change this: a disk or machine other than this server's system disk
    mkdir -p "$BACKUP"

## Every time: the three stack files

    tar czf "$BACKUP/stack-files.tar.gz" docker-compose.yml .env caddy

.env holds the database passwords and secret keys the apps were set up with; keep this archive as private as the data.

## Caddy (the reverse proxy)

Caddy's docs: 'The data directory must not be treated as a cache.' It holds the TLS certificates and their private keys; without it Caddy has to ask Let's Encrypt for every certificate again.

- caddy-data (named volume, /data in caddy)
  BACK UP: TLS certificates, private keys, OCSP staples.
- caddy-config (named volume, /config in caddy)
  SKIP: the last active configuration, kept for 'caddy run --resume', which this setup does not use: it starts from the Caddyfile.
- ./caddy (/etc/caddy in caddy)
  IN stack-files.tar.gz: the Caddyfile, copied with the stack files above.

Copy (Caddy keeps serving while you copy):

    docker run --rm --volumes-from caddy -v "$BACKUP":/backup ubuntu tar cvf /backup/caddy-data.tar /data

Restore check:

    tar tf "$BACKUP/caddy-data.tar" > /dev/null && echo OK
    docker run --rm --volumes-from caddy -v "$BACKUP":/backup ubuntu bash -c "cd /data && tar xvf /backup/caddy-data.tar --strip 1"

Sources:
- Caddy docs: Conventions, Data directory: https://caddyserver.com/docs/conventions#data-directory (checked 2026-09-24)
- Docker docs: Volumes, Back up, restore, or migrate data volumes: https://docs.docker.com/engine/storage/volumes/#back-up-restore-or-migrate-data-volumes (checked 2026-09-24)

## Linkwarden

Linkwarden's upgrade page says what to copy before any upgrade: a pg_dump of the database, and the data folder (the preserved pages) with the configuration.

What this compose mounts:
- ./linkwarden/pgdata (/var/lib/postgresql/data in linkwarden-postgres)
  COVERED BY THE COMMAND BELOW: PostgreSQL's data files: users, links, collections and tags. The pg_dump below is the copy to keep.
- ./linkwarden/data (/data/data in linkwarden)
  BACK UP: the preserved copies of every link: screenshots, PDFs, readable and HTML archives.
- ./linkwarden/meili_data (/meili_data in linkwarden-meilisearch)
  SKIP: the Meilisearch search index, rebuilt from the database.

1. Database dump for linkwarden-postgres:

    docker compose exec -T linkwarden-postgres pg_dump -U postgres postgres > "$BACKUP/linkwarden-db.sql"

   The upgrade page's command, with this file's service name.

2. Copy (Linkwarden keeps running):
   pg_dump is consistent while the app runs: the dump is a snapshot of the database at the moment it started (PostgreSQL docs).

    tar czf "$BACKUP/linkwarden-data.tar.gz" ./linkwarden/data

Restore check:

    grep -c 'PostgreSQL database dump complete' "$BACKUP/linkwarden-db.sql"   # 1 means pg_dump finished
    tar tzf "$BACKUP/linkwarden-data.tar.gz" > /dev/null && echo OK

Put a copy back (with Linkwarden stopped):

    tar xzf "$BACKUP/linkwarden-data.tar.gz"   # recreates ./linkwarden/data; move the old folder aside first

Into a fresh database, before Linkwarden starts against it:

    docker compose up -d linkwarden-postgres
    docker compose exec -T linkwarden-postgres psql -U postgres postgres < "$BACKUP/linkwarden-db.sql"

Put ./linkwarden/data back, then:

    docker compose up -d

Sources:
- Linkwarden docs: How to Upgrade (back up first: pg_dump and the data folder; pull, up -d, logs; pinning a version): https://docs.linkwarden.app/self-hosting/upgrading/how-to-upgrade (checked 2026-10-03)
- Docker docs: Volumes, Back up, restore, or migrate data volumes: https://docs.docker.com/engine/storage/volumes/#back-up-restore-or-migrate-data-volumes (checked 2026-10-03)

Update it

What docker compose pull does depends only on how each image line in the compose file above is tagged. For Linkwarden as this page writes it:

What Linkwarden's docs say about updating

Linkwarden's upgrade page: back up first, because migrations change the database and cannot be undone. Then, from the folder holding the compose file:

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d
docker compose logs -f linkwarden

• Pending migrations run on the first start, so you can go from any older release straight to the newest. The tag here is latest; the page suggests a version tag (such as v2.16.3) if you want to choose when to move, which is also what makes a rollback possible.

Source: Linkwarden docs: How to Upgrade (back up first: pg_dump and the data folder; pull, up -d, logs; pinning a version) checked 2026-10-03

The steps

1. Back up first, as in Back it up above. An update can migrate Linkwarden's data on its first start and its database with it; the copy is the way back.
2. Download the new images. Running containers are not touched yet:

   docker compose pull

3. Recreate the containers whose image changed. Volumes and bind-mounted folders stay as they are:

   docker compose up -d

4. Watch Linkwarden start (Ctrl+C stops following the log, not the app):

   docker compose logs -f linkwarden

5. Optional: remove the old images the pull left without a tag. This covers every stack on the machine, not only this one:

   docker image prune

Docker's reference for these commands: Docker docs: docker compose pull checked 2026-09-30; Docker docs: docker compose up (recreates changed containers, keeps volumes) checked 2026-09-30; Docker docs: docker image prune checked 2026-09-30

Sources

Every page below was fetched on the date shown.

• Linkwarden on GitHub (repository description) checked 2026-10-03 (what it does)
• Linkwarden docs: Setup (hardware requirements, Docker Compose, required environment variables) checked 2026-10-03 (hardware requirements, compose definition and proxy settings)
• Linkwarden: docker-compose.yml (postgres, linkwarden, meilisearch; .env) checked 2026-10-03 (compose definition and proxy settings)
• Linkwarden docs: How to Upgrade (back up first: pg_dump and the data folder; pull, up -d, logs; pinning a version) checked 2026-10-03 (compose definition and proxy settings, backup plan, update notes)
• Linkwarden docs: Reverse Proxy (NGINX example, NEXTAUTH_URL and BASE_URL) checked 2026-10-03 (compose definition and proxy settings)
• Linkwarden docs: Environment Variables (NEXT_PUBLIC_DISABLE_REGISTRATION) checked 2026-10-03 (compose definition and proxy settings)
• Caddy docs: Keep Caddy running (Docker Compose section) checked 2026-09-23 (Caddy)
• Vaultwarden wiki: Caddy with HTTP challenge (uses the caddy:2 image) checked 2026-09-23 (Caddy)
• Docker docs: Volumes, Back up, restore, or migrate data volumes checked 2026-10-03 (backup plan)
• Caddy docs: Conventions, Data directory checked 2026-09-24 (backup plan)
• PostgreSQL docs: Upgrading a PostgreSQL Cluster checked 2026-09-30 (database upgrade)
• Docker docs: docker compose pull checked 2026-09-30 (update steps)
• Docker docs: docker compose up (recreates changed containers, keeps volumes) checked 2026-09-30 (update steps)
• Docker docs: docker image prune checked 2026-09-30 (update steps)

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