Databases

Database Overview

Managed and external instances for PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB and Redis, TLS and history.

The database center gives every database you run one place for status, connections, queries, users and backups, whether VPSPilot created it or it was already there.

Supported engines

Engine	Managed versions	Default port	Admin user
PostgreSQL	17, 16	5432	`postgres`
MySQL	8.4	3306	`root`
MariaDB	11	3306	`root`
Redis	7	6379	`default`

MongoDB, SQLite and SQL Server are planned.

Managed instances

A managed instance is a container VPSPilot creates on a server: vpdb-<name> on the private vpspilot network, with its data in a Docker volume of the same name. A strong admin password is generated and stored encrypted.

Apps on the same server reach it at vpdb-<name>:<port>.
It isn’t published on the server’s public interfaces. Set a local port to also expose it on 127.0.0.1, for an SSH tunnel or a tool running on the host.
Start, stop and restart it from the dashboard.

Removing an instance

Removing a managed instance deletes the container. Its data volume is kept unless you also choose to delete the data, so an accidental removal can be undone by creating it again with the same name.

External instances

An external instance is a database you already run: installed with apt, in your own container, or a hosted service. Register it with its host, port and credentials, and pick which server should reach it. That server’s agent connects with a throwaway client container on the host network, so no database client has to be installed on the server.

http

POST /api/v1/databases/external{  "name": "legacy-mysql",  "server_id": "c1f0…",  "engine": "mysql",  "host": "127.0.0.1",  "port": 3306,  "user": "vpspilot_monitor",  "password": "…"}

Tip

Give VPSPilot a dedicated, least-privileged login for an external database rather than the admin account. Read-only grants are enough for monitoring and the data browser.

A database installed on the server itself

Use host 127.0.0.1. On Ubuntu, the postgres user has no password by default; give it one (or create a dedicated login) so VPSPilot can connect over TCP:

bash

sudo -u postgres psql -c "ALTER USER postgres PASSWORD 'a-strong-password';"

Apps in Docker containers can't reach it as localhost; see Applications. Moving the data into a managed instance is described in Import and export.

Connection security

Mode	Behaviour
Verify certificate (default)	Encrypted, and the certificate must match the host. Uses the public CAs, or a CA certificate you paste (e.g. your provider's bundle).
Encrypt, don't verify	Encrypted, any certificate accepted. For self-signed certificates.
No TLS	Plain connection. Chosen automatically for `127.0.0.1`; use only on the server itself or a private network.

Change it later under the database's Settings → Connection security; saving tests the connection again. The same settings apply to queries, backups and imports.

Addresses VPSPilot won't connect to

Link-local addresses (such as the 169.254.169.254 cloud metadata service), unspecified, multicast and reserved addresses are refused, both when you register the database and again on the server after resolving its name. The agent then connects to the address it checked, so a DNS change can't redirect it.

History

Every five minutes, VPSPilot samples each running database: connections and size on disk for SQL engines; memory, keys and operations per second for Redis. The Overview tab charts the last 6 hours, 24 hours or 7 days.

Connection strings

The connection panel builds a ready-to-paste URL for the instance. Viewing it is audited because it contains a password.

postgresql://app_user:••••@vpdb-main:5432/appmysql://app_user:••••@vpdb-shop:3306/shopredis://worker:••••@vpdb-cache:6379/0