Focalboard Self-Hosted, Deploy in One Click
Focalboard is an open-source project management tool. Automatio deploys it to a dedicated server with HTTPS in one click for total data ownership.
Focalboard
Collaboration & ProductivityOpen source project management for technical teams
What you get when you deploy Focalboard
The server we rent for it, what it costs, and what the installer will ask you.
- Server
- CX23 · 2 vCPU · 4 GB RAM
- From
- $9/month
- Setup
- No configuration required
Included with every deployment
- Dedicated server, one app per machine
- HTTPS certificate issued automatically
- Free subdomain, custom domain optional
- Restart, resize, snapshot and restore
The project
Everything this page links to outside Automatio.
Deploy Focalboard in one click
On your own server, with your own data. No terminal, no Docker commands, no certificate setup.
- 1
Pick a size
Start on the smallest server that fits the app. Resize later without reinstalling.
- 2
Press deploy
We rent the server, install the app with Docker, and point a subdomain at it.
- 3
Watch it come up
Provisioning runs unattended and takes a few minutes. When the HTTPS certificate lands, the app is live and your login details are on the deployment page.
Server size
Billed monthly with your Automatio subscription. Destroy the server any time and the charge stops.
Key Capabilities
Explore what Automatio can do for this use case
Kanban Board Management
Organize tasks using a drag and drop interface designed for speed. You can create custom columns for workflow stages like In Progress or Blocked and move cards between them to track project velocity.
- 1Supports card tagging
- 2Drag and drop prioritization
- 3Custom column headers
- 4Card cover images
- 5Filter and sort views
Key Capabilities
- Kanban Board Management
Organize tasks using a drag and drop interface designed for speed. You can create custom columns for workflow stages like In Progress or Blocked and move cards between them to track project velocity.
- Supports card tagging
- Drag and drop prioritization
- Custom column headers
- Card cover images
- Filter and sort views
- Multi-View Dashboards
Switch between different ways of looking at your data depending on the context. Use the Table view for bulk editing, the Calendar view for tracking deadlines, or the Gallery view for visual assets.
- Kanban board view
- Spreadsheet style table view
- Monthly calendar view
- Image gallery view
- Saved filtered views
- Property Customization
Define exactly what data each task should hold by adding custom properties. You can track assignees, due dates, checkboxes, or multi-select tags without being forced into a specific methodology.
- Multi-select tags
- User assignment
- Date and time pickers
- URL and email fields
- Numerical estimates
- Built-in Templates
Start projects quickly using pre-made templates for common workflows. The app includes structures for software development, content calendars, and personal todo lists.
- Project task template
- Meeting agenda template
- Content pipeline template
- Personal goals template
- Custom user templates
Why self-host Focalboard
What to know first
Managed, DIY, or One-Click?
The three realistic ways to run {name}, compared honestly.
| Aspect | Managed SaaS | DIY on a VPS | Automatio one-click |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to running | Instant | 30-60 minutes | A few minutes |
| Server patching | Handled by provider | Manual updates | Automated |
| SSL Certificates | Included | Manual Certbot setup | Automated Let's Encrypt |
| Cost shape | Per-user subscription | Flat VPS fee | Flat server fee |
| Data ownership | Third-party cloud | 100% Yours | 100% Yours |
Time to running
Server patching
SSL Certificates
Cost shape
Data ownership
Who this is for
People who actually run Focalboard on their own server, and what changes when they do.
a solo founder
Tired of expensive monthly subscriptions for simple roadmap tracking.
They get a professional project tracker with zero monthly per-user fees and total control over their data.
- Track bug reports
- Organize weekly sprint goals
- Share a public read-only roadmap
a two-person agency
Needs to coordinate with many outside contractors without paying for extra seats.
They can invite unlimited external help to specific boards without increasing their monthly hosting costs.
- Group boards by client project
- Assign tasks to contractors
- Manage content production queues
a technical team
Frustrated by slow load times and complex configuration menus in enterprise Jira setups.
Provides a fast, dev-first interface that handles agile workflows without the administrative overhead.
- Run lean agile boards
- Estimate task hours in tables
- Filter by high-priority blockers
a homelab tinkerer
Wants to keep personal project data local, private, and offline-accessible.
Allows for a local-first management tool that works without a constant internet connection.
- Log server upgrade history
- Plan hardware purchases
- Organize personal learning goals
About This App
What this app does and where it fits.
What is Focalboard?
Focalboard is an open-source project management tool originally built by the team at Mattermost. It was designed to fill the gap for teams that need the visual simplicity of Trello combined with the structure of a self-hosted server. While it started as a desktop app and a plugin for the Mattermost chat platform, the Personal Server edition provides a standalone web interface that anyone can use for multi-user collaboration. It serves as a privacy-focused alternative to Notion and Asana, keeping all project data on your own hardware.
How it Works
The software is built with Go on the backend and React on the frontend, making the interface feel significantly faster than many cloud-heavy competitors. When you first log in, you are greeted with a clean workspace where you can create multiple boards. Each board can have its own set of views, allowing one person to look at a project as a Kanban board while another views it as a detailed table or a calendar. This "single source of truth" model ensures everyone stays aligned regardless of their preferred visualization style.
Getting Started
For technical teams, Focalboard provides a developer-friendly experience. It supports properties like estimates and priorities out of the box, and you can extend these with your own custom fields. The data is stored in SQLite by default, which is perfect for smaller teams and personal use, but it can also be configured to use PostgreSQL for those who need more concurrency and scaling.
In the first hour, you will likely set up your first board from a template, invite your team members, and start populating cards. The drag and drop experience is fluid, and the ability to switch views instantly helps you find blockers without digging through complex menus. While it may lack the complex automation engines of Jira or the deep document nesting of Notion, its strength lies in its focus on being a reliable, private, and fast place to get work done. As noted on Hacker News, it is a faithful alternative for those specifically seeking a self-hosted Kanban solution.
Community Feedback
See what the community thinks about Focalboard
“I specifically chose Focalboard because it's made by the company Mattermost, it's a great kanban board to track my homelab-related projects.”
“It looks great and is much quicker than using Notion!”
“I have a problem, i cant change the password of the users, im trying to change using the database (SQLite) and is not working.”
“The performance is much better than most of the other self-hosted Trello clones I've tried.”
“I hope the community keeps this alive because the standalone server is exactly what I need for my small agency.”
“Focalboard is missing a lot of features compared to Notion, but for a simple Kanban it works well.”
Related Videos
Watch tutorials, reviews, and discussions about Focalboard
“It really looks like a agile sprint board, honestly, at the end of the day where you can, you know, move tasks to and from completed.”
“You can create a new one and you can, you know, set priorities, set assignees for whoever's in there, estimate a time in hours.”
Supercharge your workflow with AI Automation
Automatio combines the power of AI agents, web automation, and smart integrations to help you accomplish more in less time.
Pro Tips
Expert tips to help you get the most out of Focalboard and achieve better results.
PostgreSQL for teams
If you plan to have more than five people using the server simultaneously, configure the app to use PostgreSQL to avoid SQLite lock-up issues during heavy writing.
Leverage Board Archives
Use the .focalboard archive format to regularly back up specific boards independently of the full database dump for easy migration between instances.
Customize Properties Early
Set up your Priority and Status tags before inviting the team to ensure data consistency and better filtering capabilities later in the project.
Testimonials
What Our Users Say
Join thousands of satisfied users who have transformed their workflow
Jonathan Kogan
Co-Founder/CEO, rpatools.io
Automatio is one of the most used for RPA Tools both internally and externally. It saves us countless hours of work and we realized this could do the same for other startups and so we choose Automatio for most of our automation needs.
Mohammed Ibrahim
CEO, qannas.pro
I have used many tools over the past 5 years, Automatio is the Jack of All trades.. !! it could be your scraping bot in the morning and then it becomes your VA by the noon and in the evening it does your automations.. its amazing!
Ben Bressington
CTO, AiChatSolutions
Automatio is fantastic and simple to use to extract data from any website. This allowed me to replace a developer and do tasks myself as they only take a few minutes to setup and forget about it. Automatio is a game changer!
Sarah Chen
Head of Growth, ScaleUp Labs
We've tried dozens of automation tools, but Automatio stands out for its flexibility and ease of use. Our team productivity increased by 40% within the first month of adoption.
David Park
Founder, DataDriven.io
The AI-powered features in Automatio are incredible. It understands context and adapts to changes in websites automatically. No more broken scrapers!
Emily Rodriguez
Marketing Director, GrowthMetrics
Automatio transformed our lead generation process. What used to take our team days now happens automatically in minutes. The ROI is incredible.
Jonathan Kogan
Co-Founder/CEO, rpatools.io
Automatio is one of the most used for RPA Tools both internally and externally. It saves us countless hours of work and we realized this could do the same for other startups and so we choose Automatio for most of our automation needs.
Mohammed Ibrahim
CEO, qannas.pro
I have used many tools over the past 5 years, Automatio is the Jack of All trades.. !! it could be your scraping bot in the morning and then it becomes your VA by the noon and in the evening it does your automations.. its amazing!
Ben Bressington
CTO, AiChatSolutions
Automatio is fantastic and simple to use to extract data from any website. This allowed me to replace a developer and do tasks myself as they only take a few minutes to setup and forget about it. Automatio is a game changer!
Sarah Chen
Head of Growth, ScaleUp Labs
We've tried dozens of automation tools, but Automatio stands out for its flexibility and ease of use. Our team productivity increased by 40% within the first month of adoption.
David Park
Founder, DataDriven.io
The AI-powered features in Automatio are incredible. It understands context and adapts to changes in websites automatically. No more broken scrapers!
Emily Rodriguez
Marketing Director, GrowthMetrics
Automatio transformed our lead generation process. What used to take our team days now happens automatically in minutes. The ROI is incredible.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about Focalboard