Discourse Hosting

We support every actively maintained version of Discourse. Discourse uses a rolling release model with stable, beta, and tests-passed branches managed by the ./launcher script. The standard install tracks the stable branch by default; you can pin a specific branch in containers/app.yml if your plugin compatibility requires it.

No. Discourse requires Ruby on Rails, PostgreSQL 13+, Redis, Sidekiq workers, and Docker. Shared hosting cannot accommodate these services. Managed VPS at $49.95/mo and up is the minimum tier; small forums work fine at 2 GB RAM (with swap), active communities should plan for 4 GB or more.

Managed VPS at $49.95/mo (2 GB RAM with swap) is the entry point and works for small communities under ~50,000 pageviews per month using the single-container install. Active forums with sustained traffic, large user counts, or many custom plugins should plan for 4 GB+ RAM, and at high volume the multi-container layout (separate PostgreSQL / Redis containers) on a 4-8 GB plan or dedicated server. Contact us with your traffic estimates and we will recommend the right tier.

Yes. Our free migration service handles moves from Discourse-hosted (just a database restore plus uploads transfer), phpBB / vBulletin / Vanilla Forums / NodeBB / Flarum (via the official Discourse importers that ship in script/import_scripts), and other self-hosted Discourse installs. The migration includes posts, topics, categories, users, avatars, uploads, badges, and groups. Forum-specific data (vBulletin reputation, phpBB ranks, etc.) maps to Discourse's nearest equivalent.

Discourse plugins install through the containers/app.yml file as git repository references, then take effect after running ./launcher rebuild app. Themes install through the Discourse Admin UI (Customize, then Themes). Custom plugins your team writes deploy the same way as community plugins. SSH access on VPS gives you the developer workflow you would have on a laptop.

Standard single-container (the default) runs PostgreSQL, Redis, and the Ruby/Rails app inside one container. Fine for forums under ~50K monthly pageviews on 2-4 GB RAM. Multi-container splits PostgreSQL and Redis into separate containers on the same host (or different hosts), giving you independent scaling, easier backups, and better resource isolation. We help plan and provision either layout based on your traffic; multi-container typically makes sense at 4 GB+ plans or when you want to scale beyond a single VPS.

Yes. Every Managed VPS plan includes full root SSH access. You can run ./launcher rebuild app, edit containers/app.yml, install Discourse plugins, run rake tasks, attach a debugger, and tail container logs the same way you would on a local laptop. WHM and cPanel are also included for everything outside the Discourse container.

Discourse needs a working outbound SMTP relay for new-user signup confirmations, password resets, mention notifications, and daily digests. We help configure SMTP through your provider of choice: Mailgun, Postmark, Amazon SES, SendGrid, or any standard SMTP server. Inbound email replies via POP3 or IMAP are also supported so users can reply to notifications from their inbox and have the response post back into the topic.