Choosing a deployment
There are three ways to run Plugboard, and only two of them are meant for production. Pick before you start, because moving later is possible but not free.
| Portable bundle | Self-hosted | Managed | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meant for | Evaluation, training, a demo | Production, on your hardware | Production, on ours |
| Prerequisites | None at all | Node and PostgreSQL, or Docker | A browser |
| Who patches it | You, by running one command | You, when you decide | Us, on a ring schedule |
| Where the data is | The folder you unzipped | Your server | The region you chose |
| Who holds the key | You | You | Us, escrowed per deployment |
| Private network systems | Direct | Direct | Via a connector agent |
| HTTPS | Your problem | Your certificate or Let’s Encrypt | Included |
| Backups | The folder | Your responsibility | Taken and tested for you |
Start with the portable bundle
Section titled “Start with the portable bundle”If you are evaluating, do not deploy anything. Download the archive for your
operating system, unzip it, double-click the launcher. It carries its own
PostgreSQL and, optionally, its own Node runtime, creates a database inside its
own folder, applies migrations, loads fictional sample data and opens at
http://localhost:3000.
Everything works: every module, every screen, and every connector in demo mode. You can decide whether the product fits before anyone has to provision a server.
See the portable bundle.
Self-hosted
Section titled “Self-hosted”You run it. This is the right answer when:
- Your data cannot leave your premises, by policy or by a departmental rule.
- The systems you most want connected (Active Directory, Synergetic on a local SQL Server, PaperCut, printers on SNMP) are on your network, and you would rather not run an agent.
- You already run servers and a backup regime, and adding one more service is routine.
- Your procurement prefers a perpetual or self-host licence to a hosted subscription.
What it asks of you, honestly:
- A server that stays up. Two Node processes and a PostgreSQL database. A small VM is enough for a school of a couple of thousand devices.
- A certificate. HTTPS is not optional for something handling student data. HTTPS and certificates covers the options, including an internal CA.
- Backups you have actually restored. The application takes encrypted backups; getting them off the machine is yours.
- Custody of
SECRETS_MASTER_KEY. This is the one genuinely unforgiving part. A database restored without that key cannot decrypt its own connector credentials. Keep a copy somewhere other than the server. - Running the update when a release lands. One command, but somebody has to decide to run it.
Start at install it yourself.
Managed
Section titled “Managed”We run it, on a host in a region you agreed during the sale. One stack per customer: your own containers, your own database, your own secrets, your own backups. Isolation is physical rather than a policy, so the answer to “is our data segregated from other schools” is “you have your own database, and here is its backup”.
This is the right answer when:
- You would rather not own a server, a certificate renewal, or a patch cycle.
- You want the update to have already run on somebody else’s instance first.
- The data residency answer you need is a named country, and you want it in writing.
What it asks of you:
- A DNS record, if you want your own hostname. See your own domain.
- A connector agent if you want systems on your network connected. It is a single install, dials out only, and no inbound firewall rule is needed.
- Confirmation of the onboarding page we send you, which is what triggers the deployment.
Start at what managed hosting is.
The questions procurement usually asks
Section titled “The questions procurement usually asks”Where is our data held? Self-hosted: wherever your server is. Managed: the region on your deployment record, and only that region. Backups replicate within the region and never out of it. See regions and data residency.
Who can see it? Vendor access to a managed deployment is off by default and can be disabled outright by you. Every access is audited. Self-hosted, nobody but you has any path in at all.
What happens if you go away? Self-hosted keeps running; the licence check is local and offline. Managed customers can export a portable per-tenant copy at any time from Admin, Backups.
Can we get our data out? Yes, and without asking. The export is a normal feature, not a support request.
Is it audited? There is an append-only audit log covering every action, with configurable retention. See audit and retention.
Moving between models
Section titled “Moving between models”Supported in both directions, and worth treating as a planned change rather than a surprise. It is an export, a provision, an import and a DNS change. The support page covers the sequence, including what to do about SSO redirect URIs, which are the part people forget.