Installation
Lighthouse is available in two editions: Standalone and Server.
Which Version Should I Use?
Choose Standalone if:
- You want to try Lighthouse for the first time
- You are the only person using Lighthouse on this machine
- You want a simple, native desktop experience with built-in automatic updates
- You do not need to share your instance with other users or access it from another machine
- You are on macOS (the Server edition is not available for macOS)
Choose Server if:
- Multiple people need access to the same Lighthouse instance simultaneously
- You want to host Lighthouse centrally (on a server, VM, or container)
- You need features like PostgreSQL, custom certificates, or running as a background service
- You want to run Lighthouse via Docker
Standalone Edition
The Standalone edition is a native desktop application for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It installs and runs like any other app — no network configuration or server setup required. Updates are handled automatically in the background.
Constraints: The Standalone edition uses a local SQLite database stored on your machine. Only one Lighthouse database can exist per system, and the instance is not accessible from other machines or by other users.
See Standalone Installation for platform-specific downloads and instructions.
Server Edition
The Server edition runs as a web server accessible from any browser. It supports multiple simultaneous users, PostgreSQL, Docker, and advanced configuration options. It is available for Windows, Linux, and Docker.
See Server Installation for all options including Docker setup and running as a background service.
Configuration
Once you have successfully installed Lighthouse, check out the Configuration Options to see all configuration options (like using custom certificates).