Joplin Server

Key Features

• Multi-user note synchronization with individual user accounts and authentication
• Web-based administration interface for user management and server configuration
• RESTful API for programmatic access to notes and synchronization endpoints
• Note and notebook sharing between users on the same server instance
• Support for Joplin's end-to-end encryption when configured in client applications
• PostgreSQL backend for reliable data storage and ACID transaction compliance
• Cross-platform client support for desktop, mobile, and terminal Joplin applications
• Markdown note rendering and search capabilities through the web interface

Common Use Cases

• 1Self-hosted note synchronization for privacy-conscious individuals and families
• 2Small team knowledge management with shared notebooks and collaboration
• 3Corporate environments requiring on-premises data storage for compliance
• 4Educational institutions providing note-taking infrastructure for students
• 5Development teams maintaining technical documentation and project notes
• 6Home lab enthusiasts building personal cloud services ecosystem
• 7Organizations migrating from commercial note-taking services to self-hosted solutions

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed with container orchestration support
• Minimum 1GB RAM for PostgreSQL database and Joplin server operations
• Port 22300 available for Joplin server web interface and API access
• Environment variable DB_PASSWORD configured for database authentication
• Basic understanding of Joplin client configuration for server synchronization
• Web browser access for initial server setup and user management

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  joplin: 
3    image: joplin/server:latest
4    container_name: joplin
5    restart: unless-stopped
6    ports: 
7      - "22300:22300"
8    environment: 
9      APP_BASE_URL: http://localhost:22300
10      APP_PORT: 22300
11      DB_CLIENT: pg
12      POSTGRES_HOST: db
13      POSTGRES_PORT: 5432
14      POSTGRES_DATABASE: joplin
15      POSTGRES_USER: joplin
16      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
17    depends_on: 
18      - db
19
20  db: 
21    image: postgres:15-alpine
22    container_name: joplin-db
23    restart: unless-stopped
24    environment: 
25      POSTGRES_USER: joplin
26      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
27      POSTGRES_DB: joplin
28    volumes: 
29      - joplin_db:/var/lib/postgresql/data
30
31volumes: 
32  joplin_db: 

.env Template

1DB_PASSWORD=changeme

Usage Notes

Individual Services(2 services)

Copy individual services to mix and match with your existing compose files.

joplin:
  image: joplin/server:latest
  container_name: joplin
  restart: unless-stopped
  ports:
    - "22300:22300"
  environment:
    APP_BASE_URL: http://localhost:22300
    APP_PORT: 22300
    DB_CLIENT: pg
    POSTGRES_HOST: db
    POSTGRES_PORT: 5432
    POSTGRES_DATABASE: joplin
    POSTGRES_USER: joplin
    POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
  depends_on:
    - db

db:
  image: postgres:15-alpine
  container_name: joplin-db
  restart: unless-stopped
  environment:
    POSTGRES_USER: joplin
    POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
    POSTGRES_DB: joplin
  volumes:
    - joplin_db:/var/lib/postgresql/data

Quick Start

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  joplin:
5    image: joplin/server:latest
6    container_name: joplin
7    restart: unless-stopped
8    ports:
9      - "22300:22300"
10    environment:
11      APP_BASE_URL: http://localhost:22300
12      APP_PORT: 22300
13      DB_CLIENT: pg
14      POSTGRES_HOST: db
15      POSTGRES_PORT: 5432
16      POSTGRES_DATABASE: joplin
17      POSTGRES_USER: joplin
18      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
19    depends_on:
20      - db
21
22  db:
23    image: postgres:15-alpine
24    container_name: joplin-db
25    restart: unless-stopped
26    environment:
27      POSTGRES_USER: joplin
28      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
29      POSTGRES_DB: joplin
30    volumes:
31      - joplin_db:/var/lib/postgresql/data
32
33volumes:
34  joplin_db:
35EOF
36
37# 2. Create the .env file
38cat > .env << 'EOF'
39DB_PASSWORD=changeme
40EOF
41
42# 3. Start the services
43docker compose up -d
44
45# 4. View logs
46docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

Run this command to download and set up the recipe in one step:

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/joplin-server/run | bash

Troubleshooting