Where To Install
The options
For testing, you can install locally on your computer. However, if you don't have experience managing a server or aren't confident in your ability to keep it online 24/7, we recommend using a cloud/hosting provider. It's worth noting that your university IT might already have its own cloud environment setup or contracts, so you should probably check with them first.
| Feature | Self Host | University Managed | Cloud Managed | VPS (Virtual Private Server) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Management | You | University IT | You (limited) / Managed Service | You |
| Availability | Dependent on your setup | Dependent on University IT setup | High | Medium to High |
| Cost | Hardware + Electricity | Possibly Free | Subscription Fee (Pay-as-you-go) | Fixed Monthly Fee |
| Experience Needed | High | Low | Medium | Medium |
| Examples | Your own hardware | N/A | AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean | Many Examples |
| Considerations | Requires technical expertise, less reliable | Dependent on university policies and capabilities | Can be expensive, complex pricing | Fixed hardware for a fixed price, good for predictable budgets |
Minimum Requirements
We use Microsoft Azure, and it works quite well. Based on our experience, here are our suggested minimum and recommended specifications for a server.
| Component | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Linux | Ubuntu LTS |
| CPU | 4 Cores | 4+ Cores |
| RAM | 5 GB | 16 GB |
| Storage | 15 GB | 50+ GB |
| Bandwidth | 500 mb/s | 10 gb/s |
| Software | Linux with Docker & Docker Compose | Ubuntu 22 with Docker & Docker Compose |