What SrvYard is and how it works

SrvYard is a control panel for servers you run. You give it a machine (one it creates at a cloud provider, or any Ubuntu box you already rent) and it installs the software, then lets you manage everything on that machine from a browser: sites, deployments, databases, certificates, scheduled jobs, background workers, firewall, backups and monitoring. It is built for people who deploy PHP and Laravel applications, and it also hosts WordPress, Next.js, Nuxt and static sites.

You still own the servers. Nothing runs "in SrvYard": your sites run on your machines, in your provider account, and SrvYard is the thing that logs in over SSH and does the work you would otherwise do by hand.

Before you begin#

Nothing is required to read this page. If you want to try SrvYard as you read, you need an email address and, for a real site, a server (or a cloud account to create one) and a Git repository.

1. The problem it solves#

Running your own server is cheap and flexible, and tedious: install Nginx and PHP, create users, write virtual host files, request and renew certificates, set up a firewall, schedule backups, keep queue workers alive, remember the commands for a deployment, watch disk space. Each step is simple and easy to get subtly wrong, and the knowledge lives in someone's head.

SrvYard turns each of those steps into a screen with sensible defaults, and records what it did. The same actions are also available through an API, so they can be automated from a pipeline.

1. The headline. Servers, sites, deployments, backups, a terminal and teams are the six areas the front page lists.
2. Get started free. Creates an account on the free Hobby plan (step 7).

2. How it works#

SrvYard has three parts that work together.

• The web app. The dashboard you see: forms, lists and live logs. It stores what you want (a site, a firewall rule, a scheduled job) in a database.
• The SSH engine. For every change, SrvYard logs in to the server with a key it generated for that server and runs a prepared script. It never shows you the key and, after provisioning, connects as its own user (srvyard) rather than as root.
• Background jobs. Remote work happens asynchronously: you press a button, the page shows a state such as Installing or Applying, and a job finishes the work and updates the page. That is why long operations never freeze the interface and why you can close the tab and come back.

Because the real state lives on the server, SrvYard also checks it regularly (connectivity, services, certificates) and flags drift, for instance a server that has become Disconnected.

3. The building blocks#

1. Quick actions. New server, New site and New recipe.
2. Servers. Machines, with a type (app, web, worker, database, cache, load balancer, Meilisearch) that decides what is installed.
3. Sites. Applications on a server, each with its own domains, certificate, environment, deployments and processes.

The pieces fit as follows. An organisation holds people, billing and connections; it owns servers; a server hosts sites. See Organisations, servers and sites: how they fit together.

1. Tabs. Sites, scheduler, daemons, runtimes, databases, services, firewall, SSH keys, monitoring, backups, heartbeats, activity, Nginx, packages and settings: each is a section of the machine.
2. Recent sites. Shortcuts to what runs on it.
3. Databases. The databases on the server, with a plus button to add one.

4. What you can do with it#

• Servers. Create one at DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Akamai (Linode), Vultr, AWS or Proxmox, or connect any Ubuntu 24.04 or 26.04 machine you can reach over SSH (Connect an existing server, Provision a server at a cloud provider).
• Sites. Laravel, Symfony, Statamic, WordPress, phpMyAdmin, plain PHP, Next.js, Nuxt, static HTML or anything else (Create a site on your server).
• Deployments. Deploy from GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket or any Git URL, manually, on push, from CI or through a deploy hook, with zero-downtime releases and a log of every command (Write and test a deploy script).
• HTTPS. Free Let's Encrypt certificates and your own (Get a free Let's Encrypt certificate).
• Databases, caches and search. MySQL, MariaDB and PostgreSQL, Redis, Memcached and Meilisearch.
• Background work. Scheduled commands, queue workers and other long-running processes (Scheduled commands on a server, Keep long-running processes alive with daemons).
• Protection. A managed firewall, SSH keys, database and file backups to your own storage, heartbeats and server monitoring with alerts.
• People. Members, roles and teams, and an API and webhooks for automation.

5. What it deliberately does not do#

SrvYard is not a host: it does not sell you computers, and it does not run your application on its own infrastructure. It does not hide Linux from you either. Every server stays an ordinary Ubuntu machine that you can log in to, and anything SrvYard does can be inspected there. If you stop using SrvYard, your sites keep running; you remove the server from SrvYard and the machine is untouched (see Rename, resize, delete or forget a server). Provisioning a machine that already hosts something can overwrite its configuration, so use a fresh machine when you can.

6. Where your data lives#

Credentials you give SrvYard (provider tokens, repository tokens, database passwords, environment values) are stored encrypted and are not shown again after you save them. Each server has its own SSH key pair. Backups go to storage you choose. You can read more in the Security articles of these docs.

7. Plans in one minute#

1. Hobby (free). 1 organisation, 1 server, 3 sites, 3 members per organisation and 100 deployments a month, with 7 days of history. It does not include the API, webhooks, teams and roles, database backups, server monitoring, the web terminal or AI explanations of failed deployments.
2. Pro (£5, €6 or $6 a month). Up to 3 organisations, 10 servers, unlimited sites and deployments, 10 members, 30 days of history, and the API, webhooks, database backups and server monitoring.
3. Business (£12, €14 or $15 a month). Up to 10 organisations, unlimited servers, sites and members, 90 days of history, and everything above plus teams and roles, the web terminal and AI explanations of failed deployments.

Prices are in pounds, euros or US dollars, whichever you choose, and limits are shown on Settings > Billing, where you can change plan at any time (changes are prorated) and see invoices. Plans and limits compared goes through them in detail.

8. Where to go next#

1. Create your account, verify your email and set up two-factor.
2. Deploy your first site in ten minutes.
3. A tour of the dashboard, sidebar and command search.
4. Before you go live: a launch checklist.

Troubleshooting#

• I cannot find a feature the docs mention. It may need a higher plan (backups, monitoring, API, teams) or a role with the right permission. Check Settings > Billing and ask an owner or admin.
• My server shows Disconnected. SrvYard cannot log in; see The server will not connect.
• Nothing happens after I press a button. Remote work is asynchronous. Look for a state such as Applying and watch the page, or open the server's Activity tab.
• Will SrvYard change a server that already has sites? Provisioning installs and configures software and can overwrite what is there. Use a fresh machine, or the Import / migrate page for a read-only scan first.
• Can I leave? Yes. Remove the servers from SrvYard; the machines and sites keep running.

Related#

• Deploy your first site in ten minutes: the shortest path to a live site.
• Organisations, servers and sites: how they fit together: the model in detail.
• Get help: docs search, the chat widget and support tickets: where to ask.
• Plans and limits compared: what each plan includes.