Skip to main content

Homebox on Google Cloud Run

Homebox on Google Cloud Run

Homebox is an open-source, self-hosted home inventory and organization system with a Go REST API backend (Echo-style, Ent ORM) and a Vue 3/Nuxt frontend served embedded from the same binary — track items, attach photos, and organize by location. This module deploys Homebox 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 Homebox 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.

1. Overview​

Homebox runs as a single Go binary (API + embedded frontend) on Cloud Run v2. The deployment wires together a small, focused set of Google Cloud services:

CapabilityGoogle Cloud serviceNotes
ComputeCloud Run v2Go/Echo service, 1 vCPU / 512 MiB by default, scale-to-zero
DatabaseCloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15Homebox reads discrete HBOX_DATABASE_* env vars, not a constructed DSN
Object storageCloud StorageA data bucket is created for item photos/attachments and auto-mounted at /data
Cache & queuenoneHomebox has no Redis or queue dependency
SecretsSecret ManagerDatabase password plus HBOX_AUTH_API_KEY_PEPPER (a real, app-consumed secret)
IngressCloud Run URLDefault run.app URL; optional external HTTPS load balancer + custom domain

Sensible defaults worth knowing up front:

  • PostgreSQL 15 is the standardized engine. Homebox_Common fixes database_type = "POSTGRES_15" and sets HBOX_DATABASE_DRIVER=postgres explicitly — Homebox defaults to embedded SQLite otherwise, whose default DSN forces journal_mode=WAL, which is unsafe over NFS/gcsfuse.
  • No custom container build. Homebox's discrete Postgres env vars need no DSN construction, so the official prebuilt image (ghcr.io/sysadminsmedia/homebox) is used directly.
  • Open self-registration, not a default admin account. Unlike some apps in this catalogue, Homebox does not ship a hardcoded credential: the first person to submit the "Register" form on a fresh instance becomes the initial admin user. There is no default-credential security risk, but operators should set HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_REGISTRATION=false afterward to close public signups — see the Common guide for detail.
  • Item photos are persisted by default. Homebox_Common declares a gcs_volumes entry mounting the data GCS bucket at Homebox's /data path, so uploaded item photos and attachments survive a revision restart. Item metadata is unaffected either way (stored in PostgreSQL).
  • Request-based billing by default. cpu_always_allocated = false, min_instance_count = 0 — Homebox is a plain request/response app with no background scheduler or queue worker.

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 Homebox service​

  • 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"

See App_CloudRun for scaling, concurrency, and traffic splitting.

B. Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15​

Homebox stores all item, location, and user data in a managed Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15 instance, connected privately via the Cloud SQL Auth Proxy over a Unix socket. On first deploy, an initialization Job creates the application database and user.

  • Console: SQL → select the instance for connections, backups, flags, metrics.
  • CLI: 
    gcloud sql instances list --project "$PROJECT"
    gcloud sql connect <instance-name> --user=<db-user> --database=<db-name> --project "$PROJECT"

C. Cloud Storage​

A data bucket is provisioned automatically for item photos and attachments, and is mounted into the container at /data by default.

  • CLI: 
    gcloud storage buckets list --project "$PROJECT" --filter="name~homebox"

D. Secret Manager​

  • CLI: 
    gcloud secrets list --project "$PROJECT" --filter="name~homebox"
    gcloud secrets versions access latest --secret=<secret-name> --project "$PROJECT"

E. Networking & ingress​

  • CLI: 
    gcloud run services describe <service-name> --region "$REGION" --format='value(status.url)'

F. Cloud Logging & Monitoring​

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

3. Homebox Application Behaviour​

  • First-deploy database setup. An initialization Job runs create-db-and-user.sh using postgres:15-alpine, idempotently creating the application role and database.
  • Schema migrations on start. Homebox's Ent ORM applies its own internal migrations automatically on every startup — no separate migration job runs at the platform layer.
  • Open self-registration — no default admin credential. The first visitor to complete the "Register" form becomes the admin. There is no credential to retrieve, reset, or rotate — set HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_REGISTRATION=false once the admin account exists to close public signups.
  • Health path. Startup and liveness probes target /api/v1/status — Homebox's real, unauthenticated status endpoint, confirmed from the official Dockerfile's own HEALTHCHECK instruction.
  • Inspect job execution: 
    gcloud run jobs executions list --job <job-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"

4. Configuration Variables​

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

Group 3 — Application Identity​

VariableDefaultDescription
application_namehomeboxBase name for resources.
application_versionlatestHomebox publishes a genuine latest tag — no remapping needed.

Group 4 — Runtime & Scaling​

VariableDefaultDescription
container_image_sourceprebuiltNo custom build needed — discrete Postgres env vars require no DSN construction.
container_port7745Homebox's native default port.
cpu_always_allocatedfalseRequest-based billing.
min_instance_count / max_instance_count0 / 1Scale-to-zero default.

Group 11 — Storage & Filesystem​

VariableDefaultDescription
storage_bucketsone data bucketCreated and auto-mounted at /data for item photos.
gcs_volumes[]Empty means "use Homebox_Common's own /data mount"; a non-empty list replaces it.

Group 12 — Database Backend​

VariableDefaultDescription
database_typePOSTGRES_15Fixed by Homebox_Common.
db_host_env_var_nameHBOX_DATABASE_HOSTAliases the platform DB_HOST onto Homebox's expected name.
db_user_env_var_nameHBOX_DATABASE_USERNAMEAliases DB_USER.
db_password_env_var_nameHBOX_DATABASE_PASSWORDAliases DB_PASSWORD.
db_name_env_var_nameHBOX_DATABASE_DATABASEAliases DB_NAME.
db_port_env_var_nameHBOX_DATABASE_PORTAliases DB_PORT.

Group 14 — Observability & Health​

VariableDefaultDescription
startup_probe / liveness_probeHTTP /api/v1/status 30s delayProbes target Homebox's real status endpoint.

5. Outputs​

OutputDescription
service_name / service_urlCloud Run service name and default run.app URL.
database_instance_name / database_name / database_user / database_host / database_portCloud SQL connection details.
storage_bucketsThe data bucket for item photos and attachments.
deployment_id / tenant_id / resource_prefixNaming identifiers.
project_id / project_numberProject identifiers.

6. Configuration Pitfalls & Sensible Defaults​

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

SettingSensible valueRiskConsequence if wrong
application_database_name / application_database_userSet onceCriticalImmutable after first deploy; renaming recreates the DB/user and destroys all data.
container_image_sourceprebuilt (default)High"custom" triggers an unnecessary Cloud Build with no Dockerfile in this module — the build fails.
First registrationComplete promptly after deployMediumThe first person to register on a fresh, publicly reachable instance becomes the admin — until you register and set HBOX_OPTIONS_ALLOW_REGISTRATION=false, anyone who discovers the URL can claim the admin account.
gcs_volumes for item photosLeave empty (use the module's own /data mount)HighHomebox_Common already mounts the data bucket at /data. Supplying a non-empty gcs_volumes list replaces that mount entirely — if the replacement does not also cover /data, uploaded item photos and attachments fall back to Cloud Run's ephemeral filesystem and do not survive a revision restart. Item metadata is unaffected.
db_*_env_var_name variablesLeave at their Homebox-specific defaultsCriticalChanging/clearing these breaks Homebox's Postgres connection entirely — it reads HBOX_DATABASE_*, not DB_*.

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. Homebox-specific application configuration shared with the GKE variant is described in Homebox_Common.

By · Google Cloud certified: ACE · PCA · PCD · PDE · PSE · CDL

Last updated on