Docmost on Google Cloud Run

Docmost is an open-source, real-time collaborative wiki and documentation platform (a Confluence/Notion alternative) built on NestJS. This module deploys Docmost on Cloud Run v2 on top of the App_CloudRun foundation, which provisions and manages the shared Google Cloud infrastructure.

This guide focuses on the cloud services Docmost uses and how to explore and operate them from the Google Cloud Console and the command line. For the mechanics common to every Cloud Run application — service identity, ingress and load balancing, scaling and concurrency, CI/CD, Cloud Armor, IAP, Binary Authorization, VPC Service Controls, backups, and the deployment lifecycle — refer to the App_CloudRun foundation guide rather than repeating them here.

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1. Overview

Docmost runs as a Node.js (NestJS) container on Cloud Run v2. The deployment wires together a focused set of Google Cloud services:

Capability	Google Cloud service	Notes
Compute	Cloud Run v2	NestJS service on port 3000, 1 vCPU / 1 GiB by default, serverless autoscaling; scale-to-zero supported
Database	Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15	Required — Docmost does not support MySQL or other engines
Cache & collaboration	Redis	Required for real-time editing and background queues; enabled by default
File storage	Filestore / NFS	Attachments written to the NFS-backed volume at /app/data/storage
Object storage	Cloud Storage	A data bucket provisioned automatically (unused by the default local driver)
Secrets	Secret Manager	Auto-generated APP_SECRET; database password
Ingress	Cloud Run URL / Cloud Load Balancing	Default run.app URL; optional external HTTPS load balancer + custom domain

Sensible defaults worth knowing up front:

• PostgreSQL 15 is mandatory. The database engine is fixed by the shared application layer; selecting any other engine breaks startup.
• Redis is required and on by default. Docmost uses Redis for real-time collaborative editing and background job queues. enable_redis = true is the default; leaving redis_host empty co-locates Redis on the NFS server VM.
• NFS is enabled by default (enable_nfs = true, nfs_mount_path = /app/data/storage). Docmost's local storage driver writes uploaded attachments there so they survive restarts and are shared across instances.
• APP_SECRET is generated automatically and stored in Secret Manager. It signs and encrypts sessions and sensitive data and must never be rotated after first boot without a maintenance window — rotating it logs everyone out and makes data encrypted under the old value unrecoverable.
• The database is reached over the private IP, not the socket. Docmost's postgres.js driver cannot use the Cloud SQL Unix socket path (its colons break URL parsing), so the entrypoint connects to the Cloud SQL private IP over TCP with sslmode=require. enable_cloudsql_volume = true still mounts the socket for the db-init job.
• Scale-to-zero is enabled by default (min_instance_count = 0, max_instance_count = 1). Cold starts add a few seconds of latency after idle; set min_instance_count = 1 to keep the collaboration endpoint warm.
• APP_URL is injected as the predicted service URL (via service_url_env_var_name = "APP_URL") and used to build absolute links and the editor collaboration WebSocket endpoint.
• First-run setup is via the UI. Docmost has no default credentials — the first visitor creates the initial workspace and administrator account.

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2. Google Cloud Services & How to Explore Them

All commands assume PROJECT and REGION are set. Service and resource names are reported in the deployment Outputs.

A. Cloud Run — the Docmost service

Docmost runs as a Cloud Run v2 service that autoscales by request load between the minimum and maximum instance counts. Each deployment creates an immutable revision; traffic can be split across revisions for safe rollouts.

• Console: Cloud Run → select the service for revisions, traffic, logs, and metrics.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services list --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run services describe <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run revisions list --service <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"

See App_CloudRun for scaling, concurrency, execution environment, and traffic splitting.

B. Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15

Docmost stores all application data (spaces, pages, comments, users, permissions) in a managed Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15 instance. On Cloud Run the running service connects to the Cloud SQL private IP over TCP with SSL (the postgres.js driver cannot use the Auth Proxy socket path); the db-init job connects through the mounted socket. On first deploy that Job creates the application database and user; Docmost then applies its own schema migrations automatically on boot.

• Console: SQL → select the instance for connections, backups, flags, metrics.
• CLI:

  gcloud sql instances list --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud sql instances describe <instance-name> --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud sql connect <instance-name> --user=<db-user> --database=<db-name> --project "$PROJECT"

The instance name, database, user, and password secret are in the Outputs. See App_CloudRun for the connection model, backups, and password rotation.

C. Redis (real-time collaboration & queues)

Redis is enabled by default and is required for Docmost's real-time collaborative editor and background job processing. When redis_host is left empty and enable_nfs is true, the NFS server VM's IP is used as the Redis endpoint; set redis_host (and optionally redis_auth) to point at a managed/external Redis instead.

• Console: Memorystore → Redis (if using a managed instance).
• CLI:

  redis-cli -h <redis-host> ping
  redis-cli -h <redis-host> info keyspace
  # Confirm the assembled REDIS_URL is present in the running revision:
  gcloud run services describe <service-name> --region "$REGION" \
    --format='value(spec.template.spec.containers[0].env)'

D. Cloud Storage & NFS file storage

Docmost writes uploaded attachments to its local storage driver at /app/data/storage, which is backed by the NFS volume so files persist and are shared across instances. A dedicated Cloud Storage data bucket is also provisioned automatically (available if you switch Docmost to an object-storage driver).

• Console: Cloud Storage → Buckets; Filestore → Instances.
• CLI:

  gcloud storage buckets list --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud filestore instances list --project "$PROJECT"

See App_CloudRun for NFS, GCS Fuse, and CMEK options.

E. Secret Manager

One cryptographic secret is generated automatically and stored in Secret Manager: APP_SECRET (used to sign and encrypt sessions and sensitive data). The database password is managed separately by the foundation.

• Console: Security → Secret Manager.
• CLI:

  gcloud secrets list --project "$PROJECT" --filter="name~docmost"
  gcloud secrets versions access latest --secret=<secret-name> --project "$PROJECT"

See App_CloudRun for injection and rotation details.

F. Networking & ingress

The service is reachable at its run.app URL by default (ingress_settings = "all"), which allows the public access needed to share wiki pages and reach the collaboration endpoint. An external HTTPS load balancer with a custom domain, Cloud CDN, and Cloud Armor can be layered on; ingress settings and VPC egress control connectivity.

• Console: Cloud Run (service URL); Network services → Load balancing.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services describe <service-name> --region "$REGION" --format='value(status.url)'
  gcloud compute addresses list --project "$PROJECT"

See App_CloudRun.

G. Cloud Logging & Monitoring

Container logs flow to Cloud Logging; Cloud Run and Cloud SQL metrics flow to Cloud Monitoring, with optional uptime checks and alert policies.

• Console: Logging → Logs Explorer; Monitoring → Dashboards / Alerting.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services logs read <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION" --limit 50

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3. Docmost Application Behaviour

• First-deploy database setup. An initialization Job runs db-init.sh using postgres:15-alpine. It connects through the Cloud SQL Auth Proxy socket and idempotently creates the application database and user and grants privileges. The job is safe to re-run.
• Migrations run automatically on start. Docmost runs its own schema migrations on every boot via its default pnpm start command, so upgrading the application version applies schema changes with no separate migration step.
• APP_SECRET is immutable after first boot. It is generated once and written to Secret Manager. Rotating it invalidates all existing sessions and makes data encrypted under the old value unrecoverable — only rotate in a planned maintenance window.
• APP_URL must match the real service URL. It is injected as the predicted run.app URL and used for absolute links and the collaboration WebSocket. If you put Docmost behind a custom domain, set APP_URL (via environment_variables) to that external URL. Inspect the running revision:

  gcloud run services describe <service-name> \
    --region "$REGION" --project "$PROJECT" --format='value(status.url)'

• Health path. Startup and liveness probes target /api/health — Docmost's public 200 endpoint. Allow ~2 minutes on first boot (60-second initial delay plus the retry window) while migrations run.
• First-run account creation. Docmost ships with no default credentials. Browse to the service URL and complete the setup form to create the first workspace and admin user. Do this promptly after deploy so no one else can claim the workspace.
• Inspect job execution:

  gcloud run jobs list --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run jobs executions list --job <job-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"

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4. Configuration Variables

Variables are grouped exactly as they appear on the deployment platform. Only settings specific to or notable for Docmost are listed; every other input is inherited from App_CloudRun with its standard behaviour.

Group 1 — Project & Identity

Variable	Default	Description
project_id	(required)	Target Google Cloud project.
region	us-central1	Region for the service and regional resources.

Group 2 — Deployment Environment

Variable	Default	Description
tenant_deployment_id	demo	Short suffix that makes resource names unique per environment.
support_users	[]	Emails granted project access and monitoring alerts.
resource_labels	{}	Labels applied to all resources.

Group 3 — Application Identity

Variable	Default	Description
application_name	docmost	Base name for resources. Do not change after first deploy.
display_name	Docmost	Human-readable name shown in the Console.
application_version	latest	Docmost image tag (mapped to the DOCMOST_VERSION build ARG); pin to a specific release in production.

Group 4 — Runtime & Scaling

Variable	Default	Description
deploy_application	true	Set false to provision infrastructure only.
cpu_limit	1000m	CPU per instance (1 vCPU).
memory_limit	1Gi	Memory per instance.
cpu_always_allocated	false	Request-based billing; CPU billed only while serving.
min_instance_count	0	0 enables scale-to-zero; set 1 to keep the collaboration endpoint warm.
max_instance_count	1	Increase only with Redis enabled (it is, by default).
container_port	3000	Docmost listens on port 3000.
execution_environment	gen2	Gen2 required for NFS and GCS Fuse mounts.
timeout_seconds	300	Maximum request duration (0–3600 seconds).
enable_cloudsql_volume	true	Mounts the Cloud SQL Auth Proxy socket (used by db-init).
enable_image_mirroring	true	Mirror the built image into Artifact Registry.

Group 5 — Access & Ingress Control

Variable	Default	Description
ingress_settings	all	all allows public access to shared pages and the collaboration endpoint.
vpc_egress_setting	PRIVATE_RANGES_ONLY	Route only RFC 1918 traffic via VPC.
enable_iap	false	Require Google sign-in in front of Docmost.
iap_authorized_users / iap_authorized_groups	[]	Who may access through IAP.

Group 6 — Environment Variables & Secrets

Variable	Default	Description
environment_variables	{}	Extra non-secret settings. Core values (NODE_ENV, STORAGE_DRIVER, APP_URL) are set automatically — do not set APP_SECRET, DATABASE_URL, or REDIS_URL here.
secret_environment_variables	{}	Map of env var → Secret Manager secret name.
service_url_env_var_name	APP_URL	Injects the predicted service URL as APP_URL.
secret_propagation_delay	30	Seconds to wait after secret creation before proceeding.
secret_rotation_period	2592000s	Secret Manager rotation notification frequency.

Group 11 — Storage & Filesystem

Variable	Default	Description
create_cloud_storage	true	Create the GCS buckets defined in storage_buckets.
enable_nfs	true	NFS is on by default — backs the /app/data/storage attachment path.
nfs_mount_path	/app/data/storage	Mount path matching Docmost's local storage driver.
storage_buckets	[{ name_suffix = "data" }]	Additional GCS buckets beyond the auto-provisioned data bucket.
gcs_volumes	[]	GCS Fuse volume mounts (requires gen2).

Group 12 — Database Backend

Variable	Default	Description
database_type	POSTGRES_15	Fixed — Docmost requires PostgreSQL 15.
db_name	docmost	PostgreSQL database name. Immutable after first deploy.
db_user	docmost	Application database user. Password auto-generated in Secret Manager.
database_password_length	32	Generated password length.
enable_auto_password_rotation / rotation_propagation_delay_sec	off	DB password rotation.

Group 14 — Observability & Health

Variable	Default	Description
startup_probe	HTTP /api/health 60s delay	Startup probe. Allow ~2 minutes on first boot.
liveness_probe	HTTP /api/health 60s delay	Liveness probe.
uptime_check_config	{ enabled = false, path = "/" }	Cloud Monitoring uptime check; disabled by default (when the endpoint is public).
alert_policies	[]	Metric alert policies.

Group 21 — Redis Cache & Queue

Variable	Default	Description
enable_redis	true	Required — Docmost uses Redis for real-time editing and queues.
redis_host	""	Redis endpoint. Leave empty to use the NFS server IP.
redis_port	6379	Redis port.
redis_auth	""	Optional Redis auth password (sensitive).

Group 22 — VPC Service Controls & Audit Logging

Variable	Default	Description
enable_vpc_sc	false	Enforce a VPC-SC perimeter (requires organization_id).
vpc_cidr_ranges / vpc_sc_dry_run	(set)	Access level CIDRs / dry-run mode.
enable_audit_logging	false	Detailed Cloud Audit Logs.

All other inputs follow standard App_CloudRun behaviour.

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5. Outputs

Returned on a successful deployment — the quickest way to locate and explore the running resources.

Output	Description
service_name	Cloud Run service name.
service_url	Default run.app URL of the service.
service_location	Region the service runs in.
stage_services	Stage-specific service URLs (Cloud Deploy).
load_balancer_ip / load_balancer_url	External HTTPS load balancer IP / URL (when enabled).
database_instance_name	Cloud SQL instance name.
database_name / database_user	Application database name / user.
database_password_secret	Secret Manager secret holding the DB password.
database_host / database_port	DB endpoint / port.
storage_buckets	Created Cloud Storage buckets.
network_name / network_exists / regions	VPC network, presence, regions.
container_image / container_registry	Deployed image and Artifact Registry repo.
monitoring_enabled / monitoring_notification_channels / uptime_check_names	Monitoring status, channels, uptime checks.
initialization_jobs	Names of the setup jobs.
deployment_id / tenant_id / resource_prefix	Naming identifiers.
project_id / project_number	Project identifiers.
cicd_enabled / github_repository_url / github_repository_owner / github_repository_name / cicd_configuration	CI/CD status and details.
artifact_registry_repository / cloudbuild_trigger_name / cloudbuild_trigger_id	Registry and build trigger.
vpc_sc_enabled / vpc_sc_perimeter_name / vpc_sc_dry_run_mode	VPC-SC status.
audit_logging_enabled / artifact_registry_cmek_enabled	Audit logging and CMEK status.

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6. Configuration Pitfalls & Sensible Defaults

Risk: Critical (data loss / outage / security) — High (service degraded) — Medium (cost or partial degradation) — Low (minor).

Inherited plan-time validation. This module passes its configuration through the App_CloudRun foundation engine, which validates values and combinations at plan time — a read replica without its primary, IAP with no authorized identities, a gen1 runtime with NFS/GCS mounts, a database_type that does not match an enabled extension, an out-of-range redis_port/backup_retention_days. Invalid configuration fails the plan with a clear, named error before any resource is created, so most mistakes below are caught up front rather than at apply or runtime.

Setting	Sensible value	Risk	Consequence if wrong
APP_SECRET (auto-generated)	Never rotate after first boot	Critical	Rotating it invalidates all sessions and makes data encrypted under the old value unrecoverable.
db_name / db_user	Set once	Critical	Immutable after first deploy; renaming recreates the DB/user and destroys all data.
database_type	POSTGRES_15	Critical	Docmost requires PostgreSQL 15; any other engine breaks startup.
enable_redis	true	Critical	Docmost's real-time editor and job queues need Redis; disabling it prevents the app from working correctly.
enable_nfs	true	High	With NFS off, uploaded attachments land on ephemeral disk and are lost on restart / not shared across instances.
APP_URL	Actual service / custom-domain URL	High	A wrong URL breaks absolute links and the collaboration WebSocket endpoint.
max_instance_count	Increase only with Redis	High	Multiple instances without shared Redis coordination degrade collaborative editing.
ingress_settings	all	High	internal blocks external sharing and the public collaboration endpoint.
enable_iap	only for private wikis	Medium	IAP blocks all unauthenticated access, including anonymous page views if you use them.
memory_limit	1Gi+	Medium	Very small limits risk OOM under concurrent editing/upload load.
min_instance_count	1 for latency-sensitive use	Medium	Scale-to-zero (0) adds a cold-start delay on the first request after idle.
backup_retention_days	7 (raise for prod)	Medium	Too short for compliance retention.

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For the foundation behaviour referenced throughout — service identity, scaling and concurrency, ingress and load balancing, CI/CD, Cloud Armor, IAP, Binary Authorization, VPC-SC, backups, and image mirroring — see App_CloudRun. Docmost-specific application configuration shared with the GKE variant is described in Docmost_Common.