UI Guide

Plugins & Apps

Discover, install, and manage plugins to extend FlatRun functionality.

The Plugins page allows you to browse available plugins, install them, and manage plugin configurations.

Plugins Overview

Plugins extend FlatRun with additional functionality:

  • Infrastructure — Database servers, caching, message queues
  • Monitoring — Metrics collection, alerting, logging
  • Security — Authentication providers, security scanners
  • Utilities — Backup destinations, file managers, admin tools

Plugin List

The main view shows available plugins:

  • Name — Plugin identifier
  • Category — Plugin type
  • Status — Available, installed, or running
  • Version — Plugin version
  • Description — Brief functionality overview

Filtering Plugins

Use the filter bar to narrow down plugins:

  • Category — Filter by plugin type
  • Status — Show installed, available, or all
  • Search — Search by name or description

Installing Plugins

  1. Find the plugin you want to install
  2. Click "Install" or the install icon
  3. Configure plugin settings (if required)
  4. Click "Install" to confirm

Plugins are deployed as Docker containers using FlatRun's standard deployment mechanism.

Note: Some plugins may require additional configuration like API keys or connection strings.

Plugin Configuration

Configure installed plugins:

  1. Click on the installed plugin
  2. Go to "Settings" tab
  3. Modify configuration options
  4. Save changes

Common Configuration Options

  • Port — External port mapping
  • Environment Variables — Plugin-specific settings
  • Resources — Memory and CPU limits
  • Persistence — Data storage location

Managing Installed Plugins

Starting/Stopping

Control plugin containers:

  • Click "Start" to run the plugin
  • Click "Stop" to halt the plugin
  • Click "Restart" to restart the plugin

Viewing Logs

  1. Click on the plugin
  2. Go to "Logs" tab
  3. View real-time log output

Uninstalling

  1. Stop the plugin if running
  2. Click "Uninstall"
  3. Choose whether to keep data
  4. Confirm removal

Available Plugin Categories

Infrastructure

Plugin Description
MySQL Shared MySQL database server
PostgreSQL Shared PostgreSQL database server
Redis In-memory cache and message broker
MongoDB NoSQL document database

Monitoring

Plugin Description
Prometheus Metrics collection and alerting
Grafana Metrics visualization dashboards
Loki Log aggregation system

Utilities

Plugin Description
phpMyAdmin MySQL web interface
pgAdmin PostgreSQL web interface
Portainer Docker management UI

Creating Deployments from Plugins

Some plugins can be used as templates for new deployments:

  1. Find the plugin
  2. Click "Deploy as App"
  3. Configure deployment settings
  4. Create the deployment

This creates a standalone deployment using the plugin's container configuration.

Docker Registry Credentials

Some plugins require private registry access. Configure credentials from the Registries section.

Adding Registry Credentials

  1. Go to Settings → Registries
  2. Click "Add Registry"
  3. Enter registry URL and credentials
  4. Test the connection
  5. Save

Supported Registries

  • Docker Hub
  • GitHub Container Registry (ghcr.io)
  • GitLab Container Registry
  • AWS ECR
  • Google Container Registry
  • Azure Container Registry
  • Custom registries

Plugin Updates

Check for and apply plugin updates:

  1. Go to the installed plugins view
  2. Plugins with updates show an update badge
  3. Click "Update" to upgrade
  4. Review changelog
  5. Confirm update
Tip: Create a backup before updating plugins that store data.

Plugin Networking

Plugins connect to deployments via Docker networks:

  • Plugins join the web external network
  • Deployments can access plugins by container name
  • Example: Connect to MySQL plugin at mysql:3306

Best Practices

  • Install only needed plugins — Each plugin consumes resources
  • Configure resource limits — Prevent plugins from consuming too many resources
  • Secure admin interfaces — Use strong passwords and limit access
  • Monitor plugin health — Check status regularly
  • Keep plugins updated — Apply security updates promptly

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut Action
/ Focus search
r Refresh plugin list