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Quickstart with Docker Compose

The easiest way to deploy OTT on your own server is to use Docker Compose. This method will run OTT in production mode with Redis and PostgreSQL.
This setup doesn’t include a reverse proxy, so you’ll need to configure that separately. See the Reverse Proxy Setup guide.
1

Install Docker and Docker Compose

Ensure you have Docker and Docker Compose installed on your server.
2

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/dyc3/opentogethertube.git
cd opentogethertube
3

Copy the example configuration

cp env/example.toml env/production.toml
4

Edit the configuration file

Open env/production.toml and configure your instance:
  • Set your hostname (e.g., example.com:8080)
  • Add a YouTube API key from Google Cloud Console
  • Generate secure secrets for api_key (≥40 characters) and session_secret (≥80 characters)
See the Configuration guide for all available options.
5

Start the services

docker-compose up -d
This starts three containers:
  • opentogethertube - The main application (port 8080)
  • opentogethertube_redis - Redis cache
  • opentogethertube_postgres - PostgreSQL database

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Manual Deployment

For more control over your deployment, you can install OTT manually without Docker.

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Requirements

  • Node.js: Version matching the specification in package.json (currently 20-22)
  • Redis: Required for session management and caching
  • Database: PostgreSQL (recommended) or SQLite (not recommended for production)
  • YouTube API Key: Obtain from Google Cloud Console

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Installation Steps

1

Clone and configure

git clone https://github.com/dyc3/opentogethertube.git
cd opentogethertube
cp env/example.toml env/production.toml
Edit env/production.toml with your configuration.
2

Install dependencies

corepack enable
yarn set version stable
yarn install
3

Run database migrations

For PostgreSQL:
NODE_ENV=production yarn workspace ott-server run sequelize-cli db:migrate
For SQLite (not recommended):
NODE_ENV=production DB_MODE=sqlite yarn workspace ott-server run sequelize-cli db:migrate
4

Build the client

yarn run build
5

Start the server

NODE_ENV=production yarn start
You must run the database migrations and build steps every time you update OTT to a new version.

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Docker Compose Configuration

The default docker-compose.yml sets up the following services: 
services:
  opentogethertube:
    image: dyc3/opentogethertube:latest
    environment:
      - PORT=8080
      - REDIS_HOST=redis_db
      - REDIS_PORT=6379
      - POSTGRES_USER=opentogethertube
      - POSTGRES_DB=opentogethertube
      - POSTGRES_HOST=postgres_db
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres
    volumes:
      - ./env:/app/env
    ports:
      - 8080:8080

  redis_db:
    image: redis
    volumes:
      - db-data-redis:/data

  postgres_db:
    image: postgres:15-bullseye
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_DB=opentogethertube
      - POSTGRES_USER=opentogethertube
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres
    volumes:
      - db-data-postgres:/var/lib/postgresql/data

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Environment Variables

Key environment variables that can override configuration:
  • NODE_ENV - Set to production for production deployments
  • PORT - Server port (default: 3000)
  • OTT_HOSTNAME - Your domain name
  • YOUTUBE_API_KEY - YouTube Data API v3 key
  • SESSION_SECRET - Secret for session encryption (≥80 characters)
  • OPENTOGETHERTUBE_API_KEY - Admin API key (≥40 characters)
  • DATABASE_URL - Full PostgreSQL connection URL
  • REDIS_URL - Full Redis connection URL

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Next Steps

Configuration

Learn about all available configuration options

Reverse Proxy

Set up HTTPS with nginx or other reverse proxy

Database

Configure PostgreSQL or SQLite for your deployment

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