> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://skyvern.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Self-Hosted Overview

> Deploy Skyvern on your own infrastructure with Docker or Kubernetes. Configure LLM providers, browsers, proxies, and storage.

Self-hosted Skyvern runs entirely on your infrastructure: your servers, your browsers, your LLM API keys. This guide helps you decide if self-hosting fits your needs and which deployment method to choose.

## Architecture

Self-hosted Skyvern has four components running on your infrastructure:

```mermaid theme={null}
flowchart LR
    subgraph Your Infrastructure
        API[Skyvern API Server<br/>+ Embedded Browser]
        UI[Skyvern Web UI]
        DB[(PostgreSQL)]
    end

    LLM[LLM Provider]
    Sites[Target Websites]

    UI <--> API
    API <--> DB
    API <--> LLM
    API <--> Sites
```

| Component              | Role                                                                                                                                                                            |
| ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Skyvern API Server** | Orchestrates tasks, processes LLM responses, stores results. Includes an embedded Playwright-managed Chromium browser that executes web automation.                             |
| **Skyvern Web UI**     | Browser-based dashboard for building agents, running tasks, viewing recordings, and managing credentials. Docker Compose starts it alongside the API server.                    |
| **PostgreSQL**         | Stores task history, workflows, credentials, and organization data                                                                                                              |
| **LLM Provider**       | Analyzes screenshots and determines actions. You provide the API key (OpenAI, Anthropic, Azure OpenAI, Google Vertex AI, Amazon Bedrock, Groq, OpenRouter, or local via Ollama) |

### How a task executes

Skyvern runs a perception-action loop for each task step:

1. **Screenshot**: The browser captures the current page state
2. **Analyze**: The screenshot is sent to your LLM, which identifies interactive elements and decides the next action
3. **Execute**: Skyvern performs the action in the browser (click, type, scroll, extract data)
4. **Repeat**: Steps 1-3 loop until the task goal is met or the step limit (`MAX_STEPS_PER_RUN`) is reached

This loop is why LLM choice and browser configuration are the two most impactful self-hosting decisions. They affect every task step.

## What changes from Cloud

| You gain                                                             | You manage                                        |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- |
| Full data control: browser sessions and results stay on your network | Infrastructure: servers, scaling, uptime          |
| Any LLM provider, including local models via Ollama                  | LLM API costs: pay your provider directly         |
| No per-task pricing                                                  | Proxies: bring your own provider                  |
| Full access to browser configuration and extensions                  | Software updates: pull new Docker images manually |
| Deploy in air-gapped or restricted networks                          | Database backups and maintenance                  |

<Note>
  The most significant operational difference is **proxies**. Skyvern Cloud routes browser traffic through managed residential proxies to avoid bot detection. Self-hosted deployments need you to configure your own proxy provider.
</Note>

## Prerequisites

Before deploying, ensure you have:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Docker and Docker Compose">
    Required for containerized deployment. [Install Docker](https://docs.docker.com/get-docker/)
  </Step>

  <Step title="4GB+ RAM">
    Browser instances are memory-intensive. Production deployments benefit from 8GB+.
  </Step>

  <Step title="LLM API key">
    From OpenAI, Anthropic, Azure OpenAI, Google Gemini, or AWS Bedrock. Alternatively, run local models with Ollama.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Proxy provider (recommended)">
    For automating external websites at scale. Not required for internal tools or development.
  </Step>
</Steps>

PostgreSQL 14+ is included in the Docker Compose setup. If you prefer an external database, configure `DATABASE_STRING` to point to your own instance.

For local server commands from PyPI, install the server extra: `pip install "skyvern[server]"`. The lightweight `pip install skyvern` package is for Skyvern Cloud / remote API SDK usage and does not include the local server stack. Guided quickstart and migrations currently require Docker Compose or a source checkout.

For a full self-hosted deployment with the web UI, use Docker Compose. The Compose stack starts the API server, browser runtime, Postgres, and the Skyvern web UI together.

For the source-checkout `pip install ".[server]"` path (Option A in the README), the default is a SQLite database at `~/.skyvern/data.db` — zero-config for local dev. To opt into Postgres for that path, run `skyvern quickstart --database-string=postgresql+psycopg://user:pass@host:5432/dbname`.

## Choose your deployment method

| Method             | Best for                                                                                    |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Docker Compose** | Getting started, small teams, single-server deployments                                     |
| **Kubernetes**     | Production at scale, teams with existing K8s infrastructure, high availability requirements |

Most teams start with Docker Compose. It's the fastest path to a working deployment. Move to Kubernetes when you need horizontal scaling or want to integrate with existing orchestration infrastructure.

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Docker Setup" icon="docker" href="/developers/self-hosted/docker">
    Get Skyvern running in 10 minutes with Docker Compose
  </Card>

  <Card title="Kubernetes Deployment" icon="dharmachakra" href="/developers/self-hosted/kubernetes">
    Deploy to production with Kubernetes manifests
  </Card>
</CardGroup>