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Adrienne Teicher

Category: Adri Tech

  • Self-hosting Logseq Sync locally using Docker & tailscale

    Special thanks to the Logseq developers, the Discord community and especially @yshalsager for creating the Docker for Logseq Sync and @zetashift for problem solving with me.

    This guide is intended for users who want to run a Logseq sync server from home–for instance on a laptop–and then access it remotely when they are away from their home network.

    Set up Tailscale

    • Install Tailscale on all devices (server + clients).
    • Note the Tailscale IP of the device that will host the sync server.

    Install Docker and Git

    • Install Docker Engine and the Compose plugin on the device that will host the Logseq sync server. On Linux, follow the official Docker installation guide; on macOS/Windows, Docker Desktop includes everything you need.
    • Install Git.

    Clone the repo and configure

    • Create a directory on your server device where you will store Dockers. From that directory:
    git clone https://github.com/yshalsager/logseq-selfhost.git
cd logseq-selfhost/images/sync
cp .env.example .env

    Edit the .env file

    • Change the line
    DB_SYNC_BASE_URL=https://sync.example.com
    • to
    DB_SYNC_BASE_URL=http://<your.tailscale.ip>:8787

    Start the server

    docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

    Verify the server is running

    curl http://localhost:8787/health   # should return {"ok":true}

    Connect Logseq clients to Your Local Sync Server

    • On Android it’s necessary to be a Logseq supporter in order for sync to work, so first log in with your Logseq credentials.
    • For Logseq Desktop go to Settings → General → Custom Sync Server URL
      For Logseq Android from the home menu, click on the hamburger icon, and look for sync settings.
      Change to http://YOUR_TAILSCALE_IP:8787

    Create or Sync an Existing Graph

    • On one device, go the “Graphs” page, create a new graph and check “Use Logseq Sync Beta” (optionally enable encryption).
    • Alternatively, sync an existing graph by clicking on “…” and selecting “Use Logeq Sync Beta”. If the graph is large, wait some time for the upload to finish.
    • On the other devices, go to the “Graphs” page and select the graph you just uploaded.