Applications

An Application is one kind of Service; the others are databases and Compose stacks. Each Application has a kind (web, worker, web-private, cron or static) that decides whether it gets an address, and a Size that caps its CPU and memory.

What you can do

• Build from GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Gitea, any git URL, a ready-made Docker image, or a .zip of your files.
• Choose how it is built: Nixpacks, Railpack, Dockerfile, Static files, Heroku buildpacks or Paketo buildpacks.
• Deploy on every push, or only when you press Deploy.
• Set size, replicas, ports, mounts, run command, redirects and the container health check.
• Deploy, restart, stop, start and delete it.

Add an Application

1. Create it

   Open the Environment, for example storefront / production, then Services > Add an Application. Enter a name such as web, an optional description, and the Server it runs on. It is not deployed yet: set where its code comes from, then deploy.

2. Set its source

   On the Application’s Overview, the Source card has Change source. Choose one:

   • GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket or Gitea: pick the repository, the Branch and the Build path (the folder to build). Turn Deploy automatically on to build on every push, and choose Deploy on a push or a tag. These need a connected git provider.
   • Any git URL: a Clone URL over SSH or HTTPS, the Branch, an SSH key for a private repository, and Clone submodules.
   • Docker image: the Image with its tag and, for a private one, the Registry and its credentials (Test connection checks them). Nothing is built.
   • Uploaded files: a .zip Archive and its Build path. The CLI uploads a folder for you, sending only the files that changed since the last upload.

   cloudgate.octabyte.app/applications/…

   

   cloudgate.octabyte.app/settings/git-providers

   

3. Pick a builder

   On the Build card, choose the Builder:

   Builder	Use it when
   Nixpacks (default)	You want Cloudgate to detect the language and build it.
   Railpack	You prefer Railpack’s detection; you can pin its version.
   Dockerfile	Your repository has a Dockerfile. Set the Dockerfile, context and target stage.
   Static files	It is a built site. Set the Publish directory and Single-page app.
   Heroku buildpacks	Your app already builds on Heroku.
   Paketo buildpacks	You use Cloud Native Buildpacks.

   Push the image to sends the built image to a connected registry, or keeps it on the build Server.

4. Deploy

   Press Deploy. A Deployment is queued and its log streams live. A web Application on a Server gets a generated sslip.io Domain you can open at once. See Deployments.

Choose the kind of Application

The kind is set in the Project config with kind:.

Kind	What it is	Address
web	A web app answering HTTP; default port 3000.	Domains, and a generated sslip.io one on a Server
worker	Always running, no port: a queue consumer or bot.	None, and no previews
web-private	Answers HTTP only to other Services; port required.	An internal address, such as http://api:4000 on a Server
cron	Runs a command on a timetable, in a fresh container each run.	None
static	A built site of files.	Domains

Changing the kind of an existing Application deletes it and creates it again; the Plan asks you to confirm by typing its name. More in Workers, private web services and cron.

Set its size and replicas

A Size caps how much CPU and memory each copy may use:

Size	CPU	Memory
xsmall	0.25	512 MB
small	0.5	1 GB
medium	1	2 GB
large	2	4 GB
xlarge	4	8 GB
2xlarge	8	16 GB

You can also give a custom CPU and memory pair. On a Server a size is a cap only; it reserves nothing. Change it on the Advanced tab, Resources card (the config owns it when the config sets a size). Replicas sets how many copies run; zero stops it without deleting anything. Replicas are kept per Environment in the console, never in the config.

Set the port and published ports

The Container port is the port your app listens on inside the container (Advanced > Routing). On a Server, saving a new port moves the Domains on the old port with it. To expose a port directly on the Server, outside the Domains, use Published ports > Publish a port.

Set a health check

The container’s own HEALTHCHECK lives under Advanced > Docker Swarm, with the other Swarm settings. Google Cloud Run never runs an image’s HEALTHCHECK. An Uptime check, which calls your Domain from outside and opens an Incident when it is down, is separate and set on the Health tab.

Other settings

The Advanced tab also holds the Runtime run command (command and arguments), redirects and basic-auth users under Routing, volumes and mounts (Add a mount), and the Danger zone. Other tabs: Variables, Domains, Logs, Shell, Schedules (commands on a cron inside the running container), Volume backups, Rollbacks, Previews and Patches (replace, create or remove a file before the build).

Restart, stop or delete it

The header holds Deploy, Redeploy (builds the source it already has), Restart on a Server or Reload in a cloud, and Stop / Start. Stopping in a cloud warns what still bills.

What you cannot do

• An Application cannot move to another Server or cloud.
• A worker cannot have a Domain or previews; a web-private cannot have a public Domain.
• A Docker image source is never built, so it has no previews or patches.
• In a Cloud account there is no Shell tab.
• Uploading files is refused while a build of that Application is running.
• An Application on uploaded files is never built before files reach it: a Deployment is refused with “no files have been uploaded” until the first upload.

Related pages

• Deployments and rollbacks: the queue, the log and going back.
• Domains and HTTPS: give the Application your own address.
• Environment variables, including wired variables from a database.
• Databases to give the Application a PostgreSQL or Redis.
• Features for the full list of builders and Service kinds.

Questions

Which builder should I choose?

Start with Nixpacks, the default: it detects most languages without configuration. Use Dockerfile when your repository already has one, and Static files for a site that is only HTML, CSS and JavaScript.

Can I move an Application to another Server?

No. Its Server or Cloud account is fixed when it is created. Create a new Application on the other Server and delete the old one.

How do I run more than one copy?

Set Replicas on the Advanced tab, in the Resources card. The count is kept per Environment in the console, never in cloudgate.yaml. Zero stops it without deleting anything.

Is a health check the same as an uptime check?

No. The health check is the container's own HEALTHCHECK, set under Advanced. An Uptime check is a request from outside, set on the Health tab.