caprover
DockNimbus vs CapRover
Similar to the Dokku comparison but CapRover adds clustering and a web UI:
| DockNimbus | CapRover | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Self-hosted cloud platform | Self-hosted PaaS on Docker Swarm |
| Built on | Docker Swarm + K3s | Docker Swarm |
| Primary interface | CLI + YAML manifests | Web UI + CLI |
| Deploy model | Docker images via CLI/manifest | Web UI upload, git push, Dockerfile, or image |
| Multi-node | Full multi-node with WireGuard mesh | Multi-node via Docker Swarm (manual join) |
| Node provisioning | Automated via SSH (installs everything) | Manual — install Docker + join Swarm yourself |
| Networking | WireGuard mesh, EasyHAProxy, dnsmasq | Docker Swarm overlay, Nginx, Let's Encrypt |
| SSL/TLS | Self-signed or custom certs | Automatic Let's Encrypt (one-click) |
| Storage | NFS volumes, MinIO S3 built-in | Docker volumes only |
| Kubernetes | K3s clusters built-in | Not supported |
| IaC | Built-in YAML manifests with drift detection | Not included — all via UI/CLI |
| One-click apps | Not included | App store with 100+ templates (WordPress, Postgres, etc.) |
| Databases | Deploy as containers manually | One-click deploy from app store |
| Persistent apps | Via NFS/S3 | Docker volumes (single-node persistence) |
| Compose support | Full Docker Compose via services | Not supported (single-container apps) |
| Auth | Multi-user IAM (HMAC + JWT + mTLS) | Single admin password |
| Monitoring | Basic heartbeat + metrics | NetData integration (optional) |
| ARM support | First-class (RPi + x86 mixed) | Limited |
| Minimum resources | Single RPi, ~256MB RAM | Single server, ~1GB RAM |
| License | Open source | Open source (Apache 2.0) |
When to use which
DockNimbus — You want full control over infrastructure: encrypted networking, K8s clusters, NFS storage, multi-user access, and declarative IaC. You prefer CLI and manifests over a web UI.
CapRover — You want the easiest path to self-hosting web apps with a nice UI, one-click app templates, automatic SSL, and don't need Kubernetes or advanced networking. Think "self-hosted Heroku with a dashboard."
Key philosophical difference
- CapRover is a self-hosted app store — browse templates, click deploy, get SSL. Optimized for ease of use
- DockNimbus is a self-hosted cloud builder — define your infrastructure as code, manage heterogeneous hardware, build clusters
CapRover wins on time-to-first-app. DockNimbus wins on infrastructure depth and control.