levelsio-vps-deploy

name

levelsio-vps-deploy

description

Set up a web app on a single cheap, hardened VPS the "levels.io" way — one Hetzner/DigitalOcean box running Next.js (or any Node app) on SQLite + Caddy (auto-HTTPS) + systemd, secured with Tailscale, put behind a Cloudflare domain, and set up to charge money with Stripe. The whole "idea → app that makes money on a cheap VPS" path. Offers TWO workflows the user picks between — Path A, develop on your own computer and deploy to the VPS for cheap hosting; Path B (the full levels.io way), develop ON the VPS itself with Claude Code running in tmux, connecting via Termius from laptop or phone over Tailscale, with edits going live in seconds. The domain (Cloudflare) and payments (Stripe) steps each offer full-auto (the agent creates everything with your API keys) or manual (you click the dashboard, the agent verifies) modes. Use when the user wants cheap single-server hosting, asks to provision a Hetzner/DigitalOcean VPS, wants to deploy a Next.js/Node app WITHOUT Vercel/Supabase/Kubernetes, wants to develop on a server / code from their phone / run Claude Code persistently on a VPS, wants to put a domain on their app / point Cloudflare DNS at a VPS / hide the origin behind Cloudflare, wants to charge users / add Stripe subscriptions / set up a paywall / take payments / "make money", mentions the "levels.io method" / "one big server" / "boring tech" / tmux / Tailscale / Termius, or asks how to self-host a small app for a flat ~$8/mo.

levelsio-vps-deploy

Run a web app on one cheap, hardened VPS — the levels.io way. No Kubernetes, no microservices, no managed PaaS. One box, boring tech, vertical scaling, ship fast.

The full arc is idea → app that makes money on a cheap VPS: provision + secure the box, deploy the app, put a domain on it (Cloudflare), and charge money (Stripe). The last two steps each let the user choose full-auto (hand the agent an API key, it creates everything) or manual (they click the dashboard, the agent verifies each step read-only). If they already have a domain and an activated Stripe account, going from a running app to taking payments is minutes.

First: pick the workflow (ask the user)

There are two ways to use this skill. Before doing anything, ask the user which they want — they are different setups:

Do you want to just deploy to the VPS (you develop on your own computer, the VPS only hosts), or do you want to develop AND host on the VPS itself the way levels.io does?

	Path A — host only	Path B — develop on the VPS (the levels way)
Where you code	your own laptop	on the VPS, via Claude Code in tmux
How code reaches prod	rsync + build-on-box (deploy.sh)	edited in place — already live (~3s restart)
Connect from	—	Termius (laptop and phone) over Tailscale
Good for	teams, staging boundary, regulated	solo / indie, cheapest always-on dev+host, code from anywhere
Read	this file's Phase 1 + 2	references/develop-on-vps.md

Both share the same hardened foundation below. They are not mutually exclusive — a solo dev can do Path B and still deploy.sh to a separate staging box. When unsure, Path B is "the full levels.io experience"; Path A is "the VPS is just my cheap host."

The stack (defaults — swap only with reason)

Layer	Choice	Why
Host	Hetzner CPX21 (~$8/mo) or DigitalOcean equivalent, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS	flat price, plenty for a small/medium app
Network/SSH	Tailscale — SSH locked to the tailnet	SSH invisible on the public internet; lets you connect from anywhere incl. phone
App	Next.js App Router, output: "standalone" (or any Node app)	single self-contained process
DB	SQLite via better-sqlite3, WAL mode + busy_timeout	one file, no DB server, fast
Proxy / TLS	Caddy, reverse-proxy to 127.0.0.1:3000	automatic HTTPS, 3-line config
Process mgmt	systemd unit, Restart=always	survives crashes and reboots
Dev (Path B)	Claude Code + tmux, Termius client	persistent on-box development from any device
Edge (optional)	Cloudflare in front	DNS, origin hiding, WAF, caching
Payments (optional)	Stripe subscriptions, webhook → SQLite entitlement	charge money; one account per product
Backups	Litestream → S3/R2	continuous offsite SQLite replication

Vertically scale the box (more RAM/CPU) long before you reach for distribution.

How the pieces fit

        Tailscale (private)                    Internet
   you ── laptop / phone ──┐               (Cloudflare) ↓ :443
                           ▼                            ▼
                    ┌──────────────────────────────────────────┐
                    │  VPS  │ SSH:22 tailnet-only │ Caddy :443  │
                    │       │ Claude Code in tmux │   ↓ :3000   │
                    │       │ (Path B dev)        │ Next.js     │
                    │                               (systemd)    │
                    │                                  ↓          │
                    │                            SQLite (WAL) ──► Litestream → R2
                    └──────────────────────────────────────────┘

Read references/architecture.md for the hosting diagram + rationale, references/security-tailscale.md for the network lockdown, and references/develop-on-vps.md for the on-VPS development workflow.

Shared foundation — Provision + secure (BOTH paths)

Phase 0 — Create the VPS (optional; agent can do this)

If the user doesn't already have a server, create one for them rather than making them click around a cloud console. scripts/create-hetzner-server.sh uses the hcloud CLI to spin up a fresh Ubuntu box with the user's SSH key installed as root — ready for Phase 1. Full walkthrough: references/provision-hetzner.md.

Steps for the agent:

1. Make sure the user has an SSH key (see "SSH keys" below — generate one if not).
2. Check hcloud is installed and authenticated: hcloud server list. If not, guide the user to create a Hetzner API token (Cloud Console → Security → API Tokens, Read & Write) and authenticate themselves so the token never passes through your tool calls — tell them to run, in-session, ! hcloud context create <name> and paste the token at the hidden prompt. The token is a secret (it can create/delete servers); never put it in a script, config, or command line.
3. Edit the CONFIG block in scripts/create-hetzner-server.sh (SERVER_NAME, SERVER_TYPE default cpx21, LOCATION, IMAGE, SSH_KEY_PUB) and run it. It prints the new server's IP and the exact Phase 1 command.
4. Second/Nth server: change SERVER_NAME (and DOMAIN/APP_NAME in provision.sh) and run again. The script refuses to clobber an existing name. Each box is independent and joins the same tailnet. If the user says "provision another server for <app> at <domain>", run this whole chain (create → provision → Tailscale lockdown → their path) for the new box.

If the user already has a box (any provider) with root SSH, skip to Phase 1.

Phase 1 — Provision (one time)

scripts/provision.sh is a template: review it, edit the CONFIG block, run it as root on a fresh VPS. It will:

1. Create a non-root deploy user with sudo + your SSH key.
2. Lock down SSH: disable password auth and root login.
3. Firewall with ufw: allow 22, 80, 443 (22 is locked to the tailnet later — see below — so you don't get locked out mid-provision).
4. Enable unattended-upgrades and fail2ban.
5. Install Tailscale (daemon only; you run tailscale up after).
6. Install Node LTS and Caddy.
7. Create app dirs (/srv/<app>, /srv/<app>-build, /var/lib/<app>) owned by deploy, and the secrets file /etc/<app>/env (mode 0640, root:deploy).
8. Write a Caddyfile (DOMAIN → reverse_proxy 127.0.0.1:3000) and a systemd unit for the app.

Steps for the agent:

1. Ask for APP_NAME, DOMAIN, DEPLOY_USER (default deploy), and the VPS IP / root access.
2. Set up the SSH key for the user (do this yourself — see "SSH keys" below — don't make them figure it out). The deploy user must trust a key before SSH is locked down.
3. Edit the CONFIG block at the top of scripts/provision.sh (paste the public key from step 2 into DEPLOY_SSH_PUBKEY).
4. Have the user copy it to the box and run as root: scp scripts/provision.sh root@SERVER:/tmp/ && ssh root@SERVER 'bash /tmp/provision.sh'.
5. Generate app secrets server-side (openssl rand -base64 32) into /etc/<app>/env. Transfer third-party creds out-of-band (see Secrets).

SSH keys — generate locally + install on the box (agent-driven)

Do this for the user. A public key is not a secret, so it's safe to read, paste into configs, and echo onto the box. (A private key never leaves the machine it was generated on.)

First device (the user's computer, where you're running):

1. Check for an existing key:

   ls ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub 2>/dev/null && cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
   

2. If there's none, generate one (no passphrase keeps phone/Termius login simple; offer a passphrase + ssh-agent if the user wants more security):

   ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 -N "" -C "<DEPLOY_USER>@<APP_NAME>"
   

3. Read the public key (cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub) and paste it into DEPLOY_SSH_PUBKEY in provision.sh. For Path A, point SSH_KEY in deploy.sh at the matching private key (~/.ssh/id_ed25519).

Adding another device later (e.g. the user's phone): you can't run commands on their phone, so the phone generates its own key in Termius (Keychain → New Key → Generate). Have the user paste that device's public key to you, then install it on the box yourself:

ssh <DEPLOY_USER>@<HOST> 'umask 077; echo "ssh-ed25519 AAAA...phone..." >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys'

<HOST> is the tailnet IP once Tailscale is up, otherwise the public IP. No private key is ever copied between devices.

Phase 1b — Tailscale lockdown (recommended, both paths)

This is what levels does on every new box: SSH only over the tailnet. Order matters or you lock yourself out — full detail in references/security-tailscale.md:

1. On the box: sudo tailscale up (follow the auth link), then tailscale ip -4.
2. Install Tailscale on your laptop/phone, same account.
3. Confirm ssh deploy@100.x.y.z works over the tailnet (new terminal, keep the old session open as a fallback).
4. Only then: bash scripts/lock-down-tailscale.sh on the box — restricts SSH 22 to the tailnet (and optionally 443 to Cloudflare IPs).

Path A — Deploy from your computer (host only)

scripts/deploy.sh is a template run from your dev machine. The key trick: build on the box so native modules (better-sqlite3) compile for the server. It rsyncs your tree → /srv/<app>-build, runs npm ci && npm run build on the box, assembles the standalone output (copying .next/static, public, and the better-sqlite3 .node binding), swaps it into /srv/<app>, restarts the service, and health-checks the domain.

Steps for the agent:

1. Confirm the app's next.config.* sets output: "standalone".
2. Edit the CONFIG block in scripts/deploy.sh (SSH_HOST, SSH_KEY, APP_NAME). If SSH is locked to the tailnet, SSH_HOST uses the tailnet IP.
3. Run it. On failure, consult references/troubleshooting.md.

Path B — Develop ON the VPS (the levels.io way)

The full levels workflow: code lives on the box, Claude Code runs in tmux, you connect from laptop or phone via Termius over Tailscale, and edits are basically already live. Read references/develop-on-vps.md for the end-to-end walkthrough.

Setup, after Phase 1 + Tailscale:

1. On the box: bash scripts/setup-dev-on-vps.sh — installs tmux + Claude Code and adds the tm "one tmux session per folder" helper to ~/.bashrc.
2. Put the code where it serves (clone the repo into /srv/<app> or a per-site folder like levels' /srv/http/<site>.com).
3. Log Claude Code in on the headless box: claude → /login → use the browser-link flow (open the link on any device, paste the code back) or an API key. See references/develop-on-vps.md.
4. Add a Termius host per site with startup snippet cd /srv/<app> && tm, on both laptop and phone, pointed at the tailnet IP.
5. Develop. Detach with Ctrl-b d — Claude keeps running; reattach from any device. The tmux mechanics are in references/remote-claude-code-tmux.md (also publishable on its own).

Phase 3 — Put a domain on it (Cloudflare)

Once the app serves on the box, give it a real domain with auto-HTTPS, DDoS protection, and a hidden origin. Requirement: a domain you own that's already an Active zone in a Cloudflare account (nameservers pointed at Cloudflare — that registrar step can't be scripted). Then it's one proxied A record → your VPS IP, plus SSL mode Full (strict).

Ask the user which mode they want:

• Full-auto — they give the agent a scoped Cloudflare API token; the agent runs scripts/setup-cloudflare-dns.sh to create the record and set SSL mode.
• Manual — they add the A record in the dashboard; the agent verifies with dig/curl that traffic resolves through Cloudflare.

Then lock the origin to Cloudflare only (set CLOUDFLARE_ONLY_443="true" in scripts/lock-down-tailscale.sh and run it — after confirming the site loads through Cloudflare). Full walkthrough: references/domain-cloudflare.md. A public domain is a prerequisite for the Stripe webhook in Phase 4.

Phase 4 — Charge money (Stripe)

Turn the app into one that takes payments: a product with monthly + annual prices, a webhook that writes subscription state into SQLite, and an entitlement gate that unlocks paid features only while paid-through. Requirement: an activated Stripe account (can accept live charges); an unactivated account can still build and test everything in test mode.

Ask the user which mode they want:

• Full-auto — they hand the agent a full-access live secret key (sk_live_…, read from a 0600 file); the agent runs scripts/setup-stripe.sh to create the product, both prices, and the webhook in one shot.
• Manual — they click through the Stripe dashboard; the agent verifies each price/webhook read-only (what most people did before automating).

Two gotchas the reference covers: grandfather existing users in the same migration that ships the paywall (or you lock everyone out), and give each product its own Stripe account under one Organization (not Connect) so the customer never sees the parent company at checkout. Always run a test-mode smoke (buy with 4242…, confirm unlock, cancel, confirm lock) before real money, then a one-time live smoke + refund. Full walkthrough: references/monetize-stripe.md.

Secrets — non-negotiable rules

• Secrets live only in /etc/<app>/env on the server (mode 0640, owner root:deploy). Never in the repo, the DB, or logs.
• Generate strong secrets server-side: openssl rand -base64 32.
• The deploy script / systemd unit sources / loads /etc/<app>/env — it never bakes secrets into the build or prints them.
• Transfer third-party credentials out-of-band: scp a temp file, extract into /etc/<app>/env, then shred -u the temp file. Never echo a credential on the command line (it lands in shell history and logs).
• An Anthropic API key used for Path B Claude Code login is a secret too — prefer the browser-link login, or keep the key out of the repo.

SQLite gotcha (read before first build)

Set busy_timeout before switching the database to WAL mode, or the first write during build/migration can fail with SQLITE_BUSY:

const db = require("better-sqlite3")(process.env.DATABASE_PATH);
db.pragma("busy_timeout = 5000"); // FIRST
db.pragma("journal_mode = WAL");  // THEN

The DB file lives outside the deploy target (e.g. /var/lib/<app>/data.db) so rsync --delete never wipes it.

References

• references/provision-hetzner.md — create the server itself with hcloud (API token, first + Nth server), plus a DigitalOcean (doctl) alternative.
• references/architecture.md — hosting diagram, per-layer rationale, scaling, backups (Litestream → R2).
• references/security-tailscale.md — Tailscale lockdown, lockout-safe ordering, recovery.
• references/develop-on-vps.md — Path B end to end: Termius, Claude Code login, the live-edit workflow, phone development.
• references/remote-claude-code-tmux.md — the tmux/persistent-Claude-Code module (self-contained; also published standalone).
• references/domain-cloudflare.md — Phase 3: put a domain on Cloudflare, proxied A record → VPS, Full (strict) SSL, origin lockdown. Full-auto or manual.
• references/monetize-stripe.md — Phase 4: Stripe subscriptions end to end — product/prices/webhook, entitlement gate, grandfathering, account-per-product, test + live smoke. Full-auto or manual.
• references/troubleshooting.md — SQLITE_BUSY, native bindings, Caddy certs, systemd env, /srv perms, plus Claude-login / tmux / Tailscale-lockout fixes.

Scripts

• scripts/create-hetzner-server.sh — create the VPS itself via hcloud (Phase 0).
• scripts/provision.sh — one-time server lockdown + install, incl. Tailscale.
• scripts/lock-down-tailscale.sh — restrict SSH to the tailnet (+ optional Cloudflare-only 443). Run after Tailscale is confirmed working.
• scripts/setup-dev-on-vps.sh — Path B: install Claude Code + tmux + tm helper.
• scripts/deploy.sh — Path A: repeatable build-on-box deploy.
• scripts/setup-cloudflare-dns.sh — Phase 3 full-auto: create the proxied A record + set SSL mode via the Cloudflare API.
• scripts/setup-stripe.sh — Phase 4 full-auto: create the product, monthly + annual prices, and the webhook endpoint via a live secret key.

All use set -euo pipefail, are commented, and have a clearly marked CONFIG block at the top. Review and edit before running.