Self-Hosting Unpod: Complete Open Source Guide

Last updated: July 22, 2026 · Product version: v2 (self-hosted OSS) · 12 min read

Unpod is fully open source under the MIT license. This means you can run the entire platform - frontend, backend, voice pipeline, and all infrastructure - on your own servers. This guide covers everything from local setup to a production-hardened deployment.

Why Self-Host?

Data sovereignty: Call recordings and transcripts never leave your infrastructure
Compliance: Meet HIPAA, GDPR, or SOC 2 requirements with full control over data residency
Cost at scale: For high call volumes, self-hosting can significantly reduce per-minute costs
Customization: Modify the source, add integrations, and white-label the platform

Architecture Overview

Unpod is a monorepo with these key services:

Service	Tech	Port
Frontend	Next.js	3000
Backend Core	Django (Python)	8000
API Services	FastAPI	9116
Real-time	Centrifugo	8100
Database	PostgreSQL	5432
Cache / Queue	Redis	6379
Storage	MongoDB	27017

All services are containerized and orchestrated via Docker Compose.

Prerequisites

Install these before you start:

# Check versions
node --version      # v20+
python3 --version   # 3.11+
docker --version    # 24+
docker compose version  # v2.20+
git --version

Quick Start (Development)

The fastest path to a running instance:

git clone https://github.com/unpod-ai/unpod.git
cd unpod
make quick-start    # installs deps, starts Docker, runs migrations
make dev            # starts all dev servers

Access points after startup:

Service	URL
App	http://localhost:3000
API	http://localhost:8000/api/v1/
Admin	http://localhost:8000/unpod-admin/
API Docs	http://localhost:9116/docs

Default credentials: admin@unpod.ai / admin123

Environment Configuration

Copy the example env file and set your values:

cp .env.example .env

Critical variables to configure:

# Django
SECRET_KEY=your-long-random-secret-key
DEBUG=False
ALLOWED_HOSTS=your-domain.com,www.your-domain.com

# Database
POSTGRES_DB=unpod
POSTGRES_USER=unpod
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=strong-password-here
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://unpod:password@postgres:5432/unpod

# Redis
REDIS_URL=redis://redis:6379/0

# Centrifugo (real-time)
CENTRIFUGO_SECRET=centrifugo-secret-token
CENTRIFUGO_API_KEY=centrifugo-api-key

# AI Providers (at least one required)
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
GROQ_API_KEY=gsk_...

# Voice Providers
LIVEKIT_URL=wss://your-livekit-instance.com
LIVEKIT_API_KEY=API_KEY
LIVEKIT_SECRET=SECRET

Production Deployment with Docker Compose

Use the production compose file:

docker compose -f docker-compose.yml up -d --build

Run Database Migrations

docker compose exec backend python manage.py migrate --no-input
docker compose exec backend python manage.py collectstatic --no-input

Create Admin User

docker compose exec backend python manage.py createsuperuser

Reverse Proxy Setup (Nginx)

Put Nginx in front of the app for SSL termination and routing:

server {
    listen 443 ssl;
    server_name your-domain.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/privkey.pem;

    # Frontend
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    }

    # Backend API
    location /api/ {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:8000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    }

    # WebSocket (Centrifugo)
    location /connection/websocket {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:8100;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

Use Certbot for free SSL: certbot --nginx -d your-domain.com

Production Hardening Checklist

Before going live:

Change all default passwords and secret keys
Set DEBUG=False in all environments
Configure ALLOWED_HOSTS to your domain only
Enable PostgreSQL SSL connections
Set up automated database backups (pg_dump to S3 or equivalent)
Configure log rotation for Django and Nginx logs
Set up health check endpoints for uptime monitoring
Restrict Redis to internal network only (no public exposure)
Use Docker secrets or a vault for API keys (not plain .env in production)

Updating Unpod

git pull origin main
docker compose -f docker-compose.yml up -d --build
docker compose exec backend python manage.py migrate --no-input

Check the GitHub releases for breaking changes before pulling.

What’s Next

Configuration Reference

All environment variables and their defaults.

Architecture Docs

Monorepo structure, service dependencies, and data flow.

Developer Quickstart

Step-by-step local setup with all three setup methods.

Dev Platform Guide

Configure agents and telephony after setup.

​Why Self-Host?

​Architecture Overview

​Prerequisites

​Quick Start (Development)

​Environment Configuration

​Production Deployment with Docker Compose

​Run Database Migrations

​Create Admin User

​Reverse Proxy Setup (Nginx)

​Production Hardening Checklist

​Updating Unpod

​What’s Next

Configuration Reference

Architecture Docs

Developer Quickstart

Dev Platform Guide

Why Self-Host?

Architecture Overview

Prerequisites

Quick Start (Development)

Environment Configuration

Production Deployment with Docker Compose

Run Database Migrations

Create Admin User

Reverse Proxy Setup (Nginx)

Production Hardening Checklist

Updating Unpod

What’s Next