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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.slipway.sh/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

This walkthrough takes a brand-new account from “sign up” to “my pull request has a live URL.” You need a GitHub repo with a working Dockerfile.

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1. Sign in

Go to your slipway dashboard and sign in with GitHub. slipway uses GitHub for identity only — no passwords. If this is your first time, you’ll land on /onboarding with a prompt to install the GitHub App.

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2. Install the GitHub App

Click Install Slipway GitHub App. GitHub will ask you which account and which repositories to grant access to.
You can scope the install to a single repository while you’re trying things out. Repositories you didn’t grant access to are invisible to slipway.
When you return, slipway creates a slipway organization for that GitHub account (named after the account login) and lists every repo from the installation under Repos.
One slipway org per GitHub account. Re-installing on the same GitHub account signs you back into the same slipway org. Installing on a different GitHub account creates a different slipway org.

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3. Add slipway.yaml

In the repository you want to deploy, create a file at the root called slipway.yaml. The smallest valid spec:
slipway.yaml
version: 1

services:
  web:
    build:
      context: .
    ports:
      - { port: 3000, public: true }
    resources:
      cpu: "500m"
      memory: "512Mi"
    healthcheck:
      readiness: { http: { path: /healthz, port: 3000 } }
This says: build the Dockerfile at the repo root, run it, expose port 3000 on the public internet, and gate the deploy on /healthz returning 2xx. Adjust port, healthcheck.readiness.http.path, and resources to fit your app. The Services reference covers every field.

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4. Enable the repo

In the slipway UI, go to Repos and find the repository. Click Enable. slipway re-reads your default branch and validates the slipway.yaml. If the file is missing or malformed, enable will fail with a precise error — fix and try again.

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5. Push or open a PR

Either trigger works:
  • Push to the default branch. Watch the deployment land in Deployments.
  • Open a PR. slipway picks it up from the GitHub webhook and starts building.
The phase ladder on the deployment detail page shows you exactly where you are: queued → building → deploying → healthy.

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6. Open your preview

When status flips to healthy, the deployment detail page shows the public URL — web-<deployment-id>.<your-apps-domain> for default-branch deploys, or web-pr-<n>.<your-apps-domain> for PR previews. If your repo has PR comments on (the default), slipway posts the URL into the PR thread automatically.

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Next steps

Secrets and variables

Wire DATABASE_URL, API_KEY, and friends into your env: block without committing them.

Custom domains

Serve previews under app.your-company.com instead of the default apps domain.

Preview authentication

Gate previews with a shared token, GitHub org membership, or per-deployment tokens.

Manual & ephemeral deploys

Deploy any commit on demand with a TTL.