Wiki.js with PostgreSQL

beginner

Powerful and extensible open source wiki with modern interface.

Overview

Wiki.js is a modern, lightweight, and powerful wiki engine built on Node.js that provides a clean, intuitive interface for creating and managing documentation. Originally created by Nicolas Giard, Wiki.js has become one of the most popular self-hosted wiki solutions, offering features like real-time collaboration, Git synchronization, advanced search capabilities, and support for multiple authentication providers. Unlike traditional wikis with dated interfaces, Wiki.js provides a contemporary editing experience with support for Markdown, visual editing, and extensible functionality through modules. This deployment combines Wiki.js with PostgreSQL as the database backend, creating a robust two-service architecture. The wikijs container runs the main application on port 3000, while the dedicated db container provides PostgreSQL 15 Alpine for data persistence. The services communicate over a private Docker network, with Wiki.js configured to connect to PostgreSQL using environment variables for database credentials and connection details. Both containers use persistent volumes to ensure data survives container restarts and updates. This configuration is ideal for organizations and individuals who need a reliable, feature-rich wiki solution with enterprise-grade database capabilities. PostgreSQL's advanced features like full-text search, JSON support, and ACID compliance make it an excellent choice for Wiki.js deployments that expect growth, complex content structures, or integration with existing PostgreSQL infrastructure. The combination provides excellent performance, data integrity, and scalability compared to lighter database options.

Key Features

Modern visual editor with live preview alongside traditional Markdown support
Git synchronization for version control and backup of wiki content
Advanced full-text search powered by PostgreSQL's search capabilities
Multiple authentication providers including LDAP, OAuth, and SAML
Page hierarchy and navigation with automatic breadcrumbs and tree structure
Real-time collaborative editing with conflict resolution
Asset management for images, documents, and media files
Extensible module system for custom functionality and integrations

Common Use Cases

1Corporate knowledge bases and internal documentation for growing teams
2Technical documentation for software projects with Git workflow integration
3Educational institutions managing course materials and collaborative research
4Open source projects requiring professional documentation sites
5IT departments creating runbooks, procedures, and system documentation
6Startups building internal wikis that need to scale with company growth
7Personal knowledge management for researchers and content creators

Prerequisites

Docker and Docker Compose installed on the host system
Minimum 1GB RAM available (512MB for Wiki.js, 512MB for PostgreSQL)
Port 3000 available for Wiki.js web interface access
Environment variable DB_PASSWORD configured for database authentication
Basic understanding of wiki markup and Markdown syntax
Approximately 2GB disk space for initial installation and content growth

For development & testing. Review security settings, change default credentials, and test thoroughly before production use. See Terms

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  wikijs: 
3    image: ghcr.io/requarks/wiki:2
4    container_name: wikijs
5    environment: 
6      - DB_TYPE=postgres
7      - DB_HOST=db
8      - DB_PORT=5432
9      - DB_USER=wiki
10      - DB_PASS=${DB_PASSWORD}
11      - DB_NAME=wiki
12    volumes: 
13      - wikijs-data:/wiki/data
14    ports: 
15      - "3000:3000"
16    depends_on: 
17      - db
18    networks: 
19      - wikijs-network
20    restart: unless-stopped
21
22  db: 
23    image: postgres:15-alpine
24    container_name: wikijs-db
25    environment: 
26      - POSTGRES_USER=wiki
27      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=${DB_PASSWORD}
28      - POSTGRES_DB=wiki
29    volumes: 
30      - postgres-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
31    networks: 
32      - wikijs-network
33    restart: unless-stopped
34
35volumes: 
36  wikijs-data: 
37  postgres-data: 
38
39networks: 
40  wikijs-network: 
41    driver: bridge

.env Template

.env

1# Wiki.js
2DB_PASSWORD=secure_wiki_password

Usage Notes

1Web UI at http://localhost:3000
2Complete setup wizard on first visit
3Supports Markdown, HTML, visual editor
4Git sync, search, and analytics
5Multiple auth providers supported

Individual Services(2 services)

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

wikijs

wikijs:
  image: ghcr.io/requarks/wiki:2
  container_name: wikijs
  environment:
    - DB_TYPE=postgres
    - DB_HOST=db
    - DB_PORT=5432
    - DB_USER=wiki
    - DB_PASS=${DB_PASSWORD}
    - DB_NAME=wiki
  volumes:
    - wikijs-data:/wiki/data
  ports:
    - "3000:3000"
  depends_on:
    - db
  networks:
    - wikijs-network
  restart: unless-stopped

db:
  image: postgres:15-alpine
  container_name: wikijs-db
  environment:
    - POSTGRES_USER=wiki
    - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=${DB_PASSWORD}
    - POSTGRES_DB=wiki
  volumes:
    - postgres-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
  networks:
    - wikijs-network
  restart: unless-stopped

Quick Start

terminal

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  wikijs:
5    image: ghcr.io/requarks/wiki:2
6    container_name: wikijs
7    environment:
8      - DB_TYPE=postgres
9      - DB_HOST=db
10      - DB_PORT=5432
11      - DB_USER=wiki
12      - DB_PASS=${DB_PASSWORD}
13      - DB_NAME=wiki
14    volumes:
15      - wikijs-data:/wiki/data
16    ports:
17      - "3000:3000"
18    depends_on:
19      - db
20    networks:
21      - wikijs-network
22    restart: unless-stopped
23
24  db:
25    image: postgres:15-alpine
26    container_name: wikijs-db
27    environment:
28      - POSTGRES_USER=wiki
29      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=${DB_PASSWORD}
30      - POSTGRES_DB=wiki
31    volumes:
32      - postgres-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
33    networks:
34      - wikijs-network
35    restart: unless-stopped
36
37volumes:
38  wikijs-data:
39  postgres-data:
40
41networks:
42  wikijs-network:
43    driver: bridge
44EOF
45
46# 2. Create the .env file
47cat > .env << 'EOF'
48# Wiki.js
49DB_PASSWORD=secure_wiki_password
50EOF
51
52# 3. Start the services
53docker compose up -d
54
55# 4. View logs
56docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

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

terminal

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/wikijs-complete/run | bash

Troubleshooting

Wiki.js shows database connection error: Verify DB_PASSWORD environment variable matches between wikijs and db services
Setup wizard not accessible at localhost:3000: Check that port 3000 is not blocked by firewall or used by another service
PostgreSQL container fails to start with data directory error: Ensure postgres-data volume has proper permissions or remove volume to reset
Wiki.js container restarts continuously: Check logs with 'docker logs wikijs' and verify all required environment variables are set
Git sync fails during Wiki.js operation: Ensure Wiki.js container has network access and valid Git credentials configured in admin panel
Search functionality not working properly: Restart wikijs container to rebuild search indices after PostgreSQL connection issues

Community Notes

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