This guide walks you through setting up Hydrodactyl using Dokploy, from initial deployment to a fully functional system.

Fresh Installation with Dokploy

Prerequisites

• A running Dokploy instance
• Access to a server/provider through Dokploy
• Domain name (recommended) or server IP address
• Basic understanding of Dokploys application deployment process

Panel Installation

1. Create a new project in your Dokploy dashboard

• Login to whatever host your using.
• Select Create Project name it whatever you want
• Click on that Project

2. Create Service:

• Click the Create Service button in the top right
• Select Template
• Search For Hydrodactyl
• Select Create
• Choose what server to install it to
• Select Confirm

3. Configuring Hydrodactyl

• The only thing you as a user need to change is the domain.
  1. Select the domains tab under the hydrodactyl panel service
  2. Click the edit domain button
  3. Change host to whatever you want it to be(You must have the domain configured at this point)
  4. Click update

4. Deploy the application:

• Click "Deploy" to start the build process
• Check the url you configured panel to be at, and it should be there.

5. Initial setup:

• Once deployed, visit the panel at the configured domain/IP
• With no accounts on the system yet, the panel's builtin initial admin creation suite will guide you through creating the first administrator account

Post-Installation Configuration

1. Panel setup:

   • Access your panel at the configured domain/IP
   • Login with your admin account
   • Navigate to Admin → Locations and create a new location
   • Navigate to Nodes and add your Wings instance

2. Email configuration (Admin → Settings):

   • Configure SMTP settings for user notifications
   • Recommended providers:
     • Resend
     • Mailgun
     • AWS SES

3. SSL configuration (recommended):

   • Use Dokploys's built-in Let's Encrypt integration
   • Or configure Cloudflare proxy for DDoS protection

Maintenance

1. Updating Hydrodactyl:
   • In Dokploy, trigger a rebuild of your panel application

Troubleshooting

Common issues and solutions:

• Build failures:
  • Check resource limits in Dokploy
  • Review build logs for specific errors

Additional Resources

• Dokploy Documentation
• Hydrodactyl GitHub
• Pterodactyl Wings Setup