Getting started

Welcome to MicroApps. This guide takes you from "I just heard about this" to "I have a pod running on the internet" in about five minutes.

What MicroApps is

MicroApps is a container-based cloud hosting platform built for indie developers, students, and small teams. You get real Linux containers (we call them pods), real SSH access, custom domains with free SSL, optional email hosting, snapshots, backups, networks, and firewalls, all from one console, and all billed by the hour.

Billing is prepaid credit. The minimum top-up is $3, and the smallest pods are priced to cost about a dollar a month. See the pricing page for the current numbers.

What you'll need

• An email address
• A credit or debit card
• About five minutes

Step 1 - Create an account

1. Head to console.microapps.io/register.
2. Fill in your name, username, email, and password.
3. Click the activation link we email you.

Step 2 - Add credit

MicroApps runs on prepaid credit. You top up an amount you are comfortable with, and we deduct usage hourly. Nothing recharges automatically.

1. In the console, open Billing.
2. Click Add credit.
3. Enter any amount from $3 upward.
4. Pay through Stripe's secure checkout.

Your credit appears as soon as the payment clears.

Step 3 - Deploy your first pod

1. Open Pods, then New.
2. Pick a Workload and a Version - Ubuntu 24.04 is a good default. (MySQL is here too if you want a database pod.)
3. Pick a Compute size - Tiny is fine for experimenting.
4. Pick a Region.
5. Optionally add an SSH key, a Network, and a Firewall.
6. Pick a Storage size - Tiny (5 GB) is plenty to start.
7. Click Create Pod.

Your pod is running in under a minute. If you did not add an SSH key, a one-time login password is shown right after creation, so copy it then and there. It is not shown again.

Step 4 - Connect

Two ways in:

• SSH - use the connection details on the pod's page. See Connecting via SSH.
• Browser console - click Shell for a terminal in your browser, no client required. See Web console.

What next?

• Map a custom domain and enable SSL.
• Set up snapshots and backups so you never lose data.
• Lock things down with networks and firewalls.
• Invite your team and hand out scoped access.
• Read about the billing model so you know exactly what you are paying for.

That's it. Welcome aboard.