Can I use MySQL instead of PostgreSQL?

Rails Stack installs PostgreSQL by default, the recommended Rails production database. You can install MariaDB or MySQL alongside it, but PostgreSQL is the better choice for Rails: JSONB, full-text search, and the Active Record adapter are all first-class.

What is the minimum recommended RAM?

2 GB for a single Rails application with PostgreSQL. Add 1–2 GB if you run Sidekiq workers. Puma workers use approximately 200–400 MB each in Rails; start with 2 workers and adjust based on observed memory usage.

Can I deploy multiple Rails apps on the same VPS?

Yes. Create one Puma Unix socket per project (configured in config/puma.rb), one Nginx server block per domain, and one systemd unit per Puma process. Each app uses its own PostgreSQL database and Redis namespace — they do not interfere.

Kick off a software project quickly.

Rails Stack

Production-ready Ruby environment — Rails, Puma, Nginx, PostgreSQL.

2 GB RAM 1 vCPU Available

Tech stack

Ruby 3.2PumaNginxPostgreSQLRedisBundler

Minimum RAM2 GB

Minimum CPU1 vCPU

Compatible OSubuntu-24.04

Rails Stack provisions your VPS with everything a Ruby on Rails application needs in production: Ruby 3.2 from Ubuntu 24.04 packages, Bundler, Puma as the application server, Nginx as the reverse proxy, PostgreSQL as the database, and Redis for caching and background jobs.

Rails 7 and Rails 8 both run without changes. Propshaft and importmap are supported out of the box for asset management without a complex Node.js build pipeline. Sidekiq or Solid Queue can be added to the same VPS to handle background jobs — all managed by systemd, no container overhead.

The stack targets developers who want to self-host their Rails SaaS or internal tool on a predictable fixed-cost VPS rather than paying per dyno. You control the Puma thread count, the Sidekiq concurrency, the PostgreSQL connection pool — and you keep the full stack visible and auditable.

Key features

Ruby 3.2 from Ubuntu 24.04 packages — stable release ready for Rails 7 and Rails 8, installed from official repos without PPA delays.

Bundler pre-installed — run bundle install after cloning your repository and all gems are ready.

Puma application server — multi-threaded WSGI-equivalent for Ruby; configure WEB_CONCURRENCY and RAILS_MAX_THREADS to match your VPS RAM.

Nginx reverse proxy — serves public/assets directly, handles TLS termination via Let's Encrypt, passes dynamic requests to Puma's Unix socket.

PostgreSQL preconfigured — the recommended production database for Rails; JSONB, full-text search and the pg gem work out of the box.

Redis pre-installed — enables Sidekiq background workers, Rails.cache, and Action Cable without any additional setup.

Sidekiq and Solid Queue ready — add either to your Gemfile and create a systemd unit; both work on the same VPS alongside Puma.

When to use this solution?

1

Rails SaaS self-hosted

Clone your Rails repository into /var/www/your-app, create a .env file with DATABASE_URL, REDIS_URL and SECRET_KEY_BASE, run bundle install, db:migrate and assets:precompile, then point Puma at a Unix socket and Nginx at that socket — your SaaS is live on a fixed-cost VPS.

2

API backend with Active Record

Rails makes an excellent JSON API server — Active Record, strong params and serializers are production-ready. Deploy the API mode stack (no asset pipeline) on a 1 GB VPS; Nginx rate-limits and handles CORS headers before requests reach Puma.

3

Background job processing with Sidekiq

Rails Stack includes Redis, so adding Sidekiq is a Gemfile entry and a systemd unit away. Run email delivery, image processing and report generation in background workers on the same VPS — no separate dyno, no extra billing.

Deploy Rails Stack on your VPS

Guide optimized for ServOrbit Cloud VPS.

01

Order a ServOrbit VPS

Choose 2 GB RAM on Ubuntu 24.04 as a minimum for a single Rails application with PostgreSQL. Use 4 GB if you plan to run Sidekiq workers or a memory-intensive Redis cache. The Rails Stack template is available in the marketplace order form.

02

Deploy from the marketplace

Go to Marketplace → Development → Rails Stack and click Deploy. The provisioning script installs Ruby 3.2, Bundler, Rails, Puma, Nginx, PostgreSQL and Redis — no manual SSH session required for the base setup.

03

Clone your project and configure

SSH into the VPS, clone your repository into /var/www/your-app, run gem install bundler if needed, then bundle install --without development test. Create a .env file or export SECRET_KEY_BASE, DATABASE_URL and RAILS_ENV=production.

04

Run migrations and precompile assets

Activate your environment and run RAILS_ENV=production bin/rails db:migrate then RAILS_ENV=production bin/rails assets:precompile. Nginx is already configured to serve public/assets and public/packs directly.

05

Start Puma and enable HTTPS

Start Puma: bundle exec puma -C config/puma.rb. Configure a systemd unit to keep it alive after reboots. Run certbot --nginx -d your-domain.com to get a free Let's Encrypt certificate — Nginx is already installed and running.

Frequently asked questions

Ruby 3.2 from Ubuntu 24.04 official packages. Rails 7 and Rails 8 both run on 3.2 without any compatibility issue. If you need a different version, install rbenv or asdf alongside the system Ruby and manage multiple versions per project.

Redis is already installed by the template. Add gem 'sidekiq' to your Gemfile, run bundle install, create config/sidekiq.yml, and set up a systemd unit that runs bundle exec sidekiq -e production. Rails Stack is designed to host both Puma and Sidekiq on the same VPS.

Embed the deploy button

Maintaining a project that uses Rails Stack? This button lets your readers deploy it on a VPS in one click, without reading Docker documentation.

Markdown

[![Deploy Rails Stack on ServOrbit](https://servorbit.com/brand/deploy/button.svg)](https://servorbit.com/vps-cloud?template=rails-stack&utm_source=deploy-badge&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=rails-stack)

HTML

<a href="https://servorbit.com/vps-cloud?template=rails-stack&utm_source=deploy-badge&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=rails-stack"><img src="https://servorbit.com/brand/deploy/button.svg" alt="Deploy Rails Stack on ServOrbit" height="40"></a>

The button points to a VPS order with the template preselected. The image is served from servorbit.com — nothing to host on your side.

Complementary solutions

Development

Activate Rails Stack on your infrastructure.

Dedicated Cloud VPS — IPv4 included, European datacenter, support included. Your data never leaves your server.

Recommended configuration: 2 GB RAM · 1 vCPU