What hardware do I need to self-host?

A cheap VPS with 4 vCPUs and 8 GB of RAM is plenty. Docker and Docker Compose are the only dependencies.

Do I need an AI provider to self-host?

No. The built-in rule-based engine keeps all core features working without any external AI service. You can add an OpenAI-compatible router later if you want AI-powered diagnostics.

Is self-hosted AutoBrain free?

Yes — MIT licensed, no subscriptions, no artificial limits. Free forever.

Can I back up and restore my data?

Yes. Full deployment, backup and Kubernetes guidance is in the repo docs. You can also export your full profile as CSV or JSON at any time from the app.

What is the difference between self-hosted and hosted?

Self-hosted runs on your own infrastructure with full control and no subscription. The hosted service is managed by AutoBrain — secure, backed up, always on — with paid plans from $5.90/month including AI features and rego lookup.

Run it yourself — for free

AutoBrain is fully open source under MIT. You bring a cheap VPS, we bring the car intelligence: service reminders, fuel tracking, free rego lookup, logbook, mods tracker and diagnostics — all in one container stack. Four vCPUs and 8 GB of RAM is plenty.

Why run your own?

Your data stays yours — vehicles, records, receipts and backups never leave your server.
Free forever — MIT licence, no subscriptions, no artificial limits.
Full control — back up, restore and modify however you like.
No lock-in — export everything anytime.

Get the source — clone the public repository and copy the environment template:

git clone https://github.com/CannonFodder151/autobrain.git
cd autobrain
cp .env.example .env

Optional: plug in your own AI assistant — point the app at any AI service that works with OpenAI's format. Or skip this step entirely — the built-in rule-based engine keeps everything working without an external service.
Optional: unlock live data — rego lookup and fuel prices are paid data features on hosted plans. Self-hosters can add them by getting the relevant provider API keys and adding them to your environment. Without a key, these features stay clean and offline — every other feature keeps working.

Bring it up:

docker compose -f docker-compose.prod.yml up -d --build

Log in — the bootstrap admin is created from ADMIN_EMAIL / ADMIN_INITIAL_PASSWORD in .env. Create accounts for your users; there is no self sign-up.
Protect it — enable two-factor authentication in Settings & security, set a strong SECRET_KEY, and rotate the admin password.

Full deployment, backup and Kubernetes guidance is in the repo docs — or ask us and we'll help you set it up.