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How to connect a public domain to self-hosted Activepieces

A self-hosted Activepieces install serves its API and UI on port 8080. Getting it onto a public domain takes three things lined up: the app answering locally, a tunnel or reverse proxy forwarding to it, and `AP_FRONTEND_URL` set to the public address. If any one is off, the page fails to load or connections and webhook triggers break.

At a glance

  1. Check the app firstOn the server, run curl http://localhost:8080/api/v1/health.
  2. Check the tunnel or proxyThe tunnel or proxy must forward to the app on port 8080.
  3. Set AP_FRONTEND_URLSet AP_FRONTEND_URL in .env to the public address, then restart.

Check the app first

  • On the server, run curl http://localhost:8080/api/v1/health. If it does not respond, fix the containers before looking at the domain.
  • With Docker Compose, the app container serves port 8080 and the worker container runs flows. Platform Admin, Operations, Workers should list at least one worker.

Check the tunnel or proxy

  • The tunnel or proxy must forward to the app on port 8080.
  • A Cloudflare error page, such as Error 1033, comes from the tunnel, not from Activepieces. Cloudflare's page for 1033 asks you to make sure cloudflared is running and can reach the network.
  • For Nginx, Activepieces documents a server block that proxies to http://localhost:8080 with the Upgrade and Connection headers set.
  1. Check the app first
  2. Check the tunnel or proxy
  3. Set AP_FRONTEND_URL
The parts of this guide, in order.

Set AP_FRONTEND_URL

  • Set AP_FRONTEND_URL in .env to the public address, then restart.
  • It is used to build redirect and webhook URLs, and it must be reachable by third parties for webhooks and app triggers to work.
  • A tunnel such as ngrok is fine for testing. In production, point AP_FRONTEND_URL at your real domain.

Updated 2026-11-09. General guidance, not advice for your situation; we scope each project in writing before any work starts.

Questions people ask first

Where is my data?

In the `postgres_data` Docker volume, not in the activepieces folder. Back up the database, not just the folder.

Do separate workers need the public URL?

Yes. Workers reach the app only over `AP_FRONTEND_URL`.

Is there an HTTPS guide?

Yes. Activepieces documents terminating TLS in an Nginx reverse proxy that forwards to port 8080.

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Tell us the process and the tools involved, or call. We reply with questions or a written scope.

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