# Self-Hosting

URL: https://docs.testvibe.com/self-hosting

Self-hosting runs the **whole TestVibe application** on infrastructure you control: the app, its database, object storage, and the test/generation engines all live inside your network. Nothing about your projects, tests, or results leaves your environment.

It is delivered as a **Docker bundle** — a versioned release containing a `docker-compose` stack and an `.env` template — so a single `docker compose up` brings up a complete, private TestVibe.

## Cloud, Private Runner, or Self-Hosted?

These three are easy to confuse. They sit on a spectrum of *how much you host* :

| | What you host | Where your data lives | Use it when | **Cloud (SaaS)** | Nothing | TestVibe's cloud | The default. Your site is reachable from the internet and you don't need to host anything. | **[Private runner](/runners/self-hosted-runners)** | Just the runner image | TestVibe's cloud (the app), your network (the test execution) | You use the hosted app but the *app under test* must never leave your network. | **Self-hosted** (this section) | The entire stack | Entirely your infrastructure | The whole product must run on-prem — air-gapped, data-residency, or compliance requirements. 

info
A **private runner** is a feature of the cloud SaaS — you still sign in to TestVibe's hosted app. **Self-hosting** is the opposite: you run the app itself. If you only need test execution to stay inside your network, a private runner or a [tunnel](/account-settings/tunnel-devices) is far less to operate.

## The Stack At A Glance

The bundle runs a handful of containers that together make a complete TestVibe:

| Service | Role | **web** | The TestVibe app (Wisej/.NET) — what users open in the browser. | **postgres** | The application database. | **migrate** | A one-shot job that applies the database schema, then exits. See [How It Works](/self-hosting/how-it-works) . | **blobserver** | Object storage for artifacts and run bundles (the on-prem replacement for cloud blob storage). | **runner** | Executes your Playwright **test runs** . | **browser** | A browser host the app drives for **AI feature generation** and the assistant. 

Data persists in named volumes, so it survives restarts and upgrades. The full picture is in [How It Works](/self-hosting/how-it-works) .

## What You Can Do

[Understand the stack
See the containers, how they fit together, and the startup order.](/self-hosting/how-it-works) [Install TestVibe
Prerequisites, quick start, data persistence, and upgrades.](/self-hosting/install) [Configure the instance
The environment-only config model, required values, and optional integrations.](/self-hosting/configuration) [Set up AI
Use hosted Claude/OpenAI keys or bring your own local model.](/self-hosting/ai-models) [Activate a license
The offline license model, the grace window, and how to activate.](/self-hosting/licensing)

## Related Help

- [Private runners](/runners/self-hosted-runners) — host only the runner, keep the cloud app
- [Where runs execute](/runners)
- [REST API](/rest-api)