How to migrate Docker applications from Coolify to ArduMaker

Published on 2026-10-26 by frfrand

Migrating Coolify to ArduMaker VPS: Compose, volumes, DB, and HTTPS

Migrating Coolify to a managed VPS with ArduMaker can be quite straightforward for the code. The tricky part isn't the repository: it's the containers, volumes, databases, and secrets that live around it.

I propose a way to compare them that doesn't depend on who has the prettiest marketing: take a real project, write down what it needs to do, and test it in the appropriate environment. A landing page and a booking platform are two different problems.

Coolify vs ArduMaker: the main difference

Coolify. Coolify organizes deployments and services on a server that you manage.

ArduMaker. ArduMaker offers a VPS environment with integrated Git tools, Docker, databases, and domains.

That already marks an important separation. Before looking at the price, check if they are selling you a machine, a panel, a managed service, or a mix of those products. They do not have the same responsibilities.

An example to understand the difference

A client has a store, a Django backend, and a worker for emails. If you migrate only the Django container, the website may open but product photos or bookings will be missing if the database and volumes were not copied. Make the complete list before starting.

How I would compare them in practice

1. Inventory applications, Docker images, variables, networks, volumes, and domains in Coolify.
2. Prepare a VPS on ArduMaker and check CPU, RAM, disk, and SSH access.
3. Export data consistently: pg_dump for PostgreSQL where applicable and application volume backups.
4. Deploy code or Compose to the destination; load secrets through secure channels.
5. Test with a temporary domain, coordinate the write cutoff, and change DNS leaving the possibility of rollback.

Then test two situations that do not appear in most tutorials: what happens if you restart the process? and what happens if a migration goes wrong?. In both cases you need logs, backups, and a way to recover the application. A platform that publishes quickly but leaves you without diagnosis can complicate your life later.

Decision table

Mistakes worth avoiding

Don't definitively stop the source before testing reservations, payments, emails, and recurring tasks at the destination. A DNS migration does not replace a final data synchronization.

There are three other mistakes that repeat in almost all providers: uploading a password to the repository, leaving a database publicly accessible, and testing backups only by checking that a file exists. If the project handles money, reservations, or personal data, these checks are mandatory for a responsible operation.

What if you did it in ArduMaker?

ArduMaker can simplify the daily administration of VPS, Git, database, domains, and services; migration must preserve permissions and consistency. If the application is already organized in Compose, document what part you recreate and what part you take from a copy.

You can create a VPS, connect GitHub, configure services, associate domains, and work with PostgreSQL or Redis when the project requires it. The panel and the MCP help operate infrastructure components, but the application still needs good migrations, access control, backups, and monitoring.

What you gain and what you give up?

The VPS gives you flexibility to have an API and a worker that remain active. The trade-off is that you need to size CPU and RAM, update dependencies, and observe the system. If you prefer to delegate those responsibilities, a more managed platform can have real advantages.

Which one would I choose?

Migrating makes sense if you reduce maintenance or centralize teams. If Coolify covers your current need well, there is no reward for moving something that works without a clear reason.

I would also think about the second year of the project: who will manage the keys, what happens if a client wants to migrate, what cost do the extras have, and if another developer will be able to take over the application without depending on a configuration that only you know.

Useful resources

• Coolify Documentation
• ArduMaker Documentation
• Coolify vs ArduMaker

To wrap up: the good provider is not the one who promises to solve everything. It is the one with whom you can deploy, measure, update, and recover the real project you want to maintain.