Skip to content
Klutch.sh Docs

How to Deploy EGroupware

Introduction

EGroupware is an open-source groupware server for business collaboration. Deploying EGroupware on Klutch.sh provides scalable, secure infrastructure for your organization, with support for persistent storage and automated CI/CD.

This guide covers deploying EGroupware on Klutch.sh using a Dockerfile, configuring persistent storage, and best practices for production deployments.

Prerequisites

  • A Klutch.sh account (sign up here)
  • A GitHub repository for your EGroupware deployment (or fork of the EGroupware repo)
  • Basic knowledge of Docker and groupware concepts

1. Prepare your EGroupware repository

  • Fork or clone the EGroupware repository, or create a wrapper repo for your customizations.
  • Store large assets (such as configuration files, logs, or database files) outside the Git repo; use persistent volumes or object storage and mount or fetch them at runtime.

Refer to the Klutch.sh Quick Start Guide for repository setup and GitHub integration.

2. Sample non-Docker deployment (Klutch.sh build)

You can deploy EGroupware from your repo without a Dockerfile using Klutch.sh’s build system:

  1. Push your repo to GitHub. Include a start script (for example: start.sh) that installs dependencies and runs EGroupware.
  2. In Klutch.sh, create a new project and app, and connect your repository.
  3. Set the start command to the script or EGroupware’s start command (example: egroupware start).
  4. Attach persistent volumes for configuration, logs, or database files (see Volumes Guide).
  5. Set the app port to 8080 (or your configured port).
  6. Click “Create” to build and deploy.

Notes:

  • Configure runtime secrets (database credentials, API keys) as environment variables in Klutch.sh.
  • For advanced use, customize the start script to load assets from mounted volumes or object storage.

A Dockerfile ensures reproducible builds and full control over dependencies. Example:

FROM egroupware/egroupware:latest


# Optional: Add custom configuration or plugins
# COPY ./config /var/lib/egroupware


EXPOSE 8080

For custom assets, mount persistent volumes or fetch from object storage at startup.

4. Persistent storage & volumes

EGroupware requires persistent storage for configuration, logs, and database files:

  • Create a persistent volume in Klutch.sh and mount it to /var/lib/egroupware or your chosen path.
  • Configure EGroupware (or your startup script) to read/write from the mounted path.

Example mount mapping in Klutch.sh app settings:

/var/lib/egroupware  <- my-egroupware-storage

If using object storage (S3-compatible), store credentials in environment variables and fetch assets at startup.

5. Environment variables and secrets

  • Store database credentials, API keys, and other secrets in Klutch.sh environment variables (never in the repo).
  • Use the Klutch.sh UI to mark secrets and prevent them from being logged.

6. Scaling, monitoring, and best practices

  • Use health checks and readiness probes if supported by EGroupware.
  • Monitor CPU, memory, and latency; scale instances as needed.
  • Pin dependency versions and use multi-stage Docker builds for smaller images.
  • Use CI to build and publish images, or let Klutch.sh build from your repo and tag releases.
  • Restrict public access to endpoints; require authentication or place behind an API gateway.

Resources

Deploying EGroupware on Klutch.sh gives you a reproducible, scalable path to serve modern groupware applications. For advanced setups, you can add a startup script to fetch assets from S3, a multi-stage Dockerfile for smaller images, or CI/CD integration to automate builds and deployments.