Run it yourself

One Node process and one SQLite file.

Gitupcms is an Astro SSR app (@astrojs/node, standalone) with a SQLite database (better-sqlite3). It needs Node 22+ and pnpm.

cms/
- src/
  - lib/ (detection, GitHub, workspaces, media, SEO, comments)
  - components/ (React islands and Bejamas UI)
  - pages/ (Astro pages and API routes)
- kit/i18n/ (the language kit copied into sites)
- widget/ (the comments embed)
- .env.example
docs/ (this site)

Local

Create a GitHub OAuth app

Callback URL: http://localhost:4321/api/auth/callback/github.

Configure

cd cms
cp .env.example .env   # GitHub OAuth app + BETTER_AUTH_SECRET

Run

pnpm install
pnpm dev               # http://localhost:4321

SQLite tables are created on boot.

Production build

pnpm install --frozen-lockfile
pnpm build                       # also builds the comments widget
node ./dist/server/entry.mjs     # HOST and PORT from the environment

Docker

cms/ has a Dockerfile and a docker-compose.yml, so the CMS runs the same on any machine with Docker: no Node, pnpm or build tools on the host.

cd cms
cp .env.example .env               # GitHub OAuth app + BETTER_AUTH_SECRET
docker compose up -d --build       # http://localhost:4321

The SQLite database and preview checkouts live in the gitupcms-data volume (/data in the container). Updating is git pull and docker compose up -d --build; the data stays.
The port is bound to 127.0.0.1. On a server, put Caddy or another proxy in front for HTTPS, as in Server.
With PREVIEW_RUNNER=1, previews run inside the CMS container, as the same user. Turn it on only for sites you trust; leave PREVIEW_DOCKER unset, the container has no Docker.

See Environment for every variable and Server for a full Linux setup.