Does Flowplan need a separate database server?
No. It keeps everything in SQLite under /app/data, so run exactly one container per data directory.
Keep documents, databases, whiteboards and a daily journal in one Notion-style page tree on your homelab, then share spaces with family or housemates through per-page permissions. Flowplan runs as a single container with SQLite, and its AI stays off until an admin switches it on.
How Flowplan stacks up against other productivity apps. Add or remove apps to change the comparison.
| Requirement | Flowplan | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free | Free + Paid | Free |
| Web UI | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Architecture | x86 + ARM | x86 + ARM | x86 + ARM | x86 + ARM |
| Min hardware | Not stated | Not stated | 4 cores · 2 GB RAM · 1.5 GB | Not stated |
| Containers | 1The app alone | 1The app alone | 3Plus Postgres, Redis | 1The app alone |
| Database | SQLite | SQLite | PostgreSQL | file only |
| Runtime | Node | Node.js | Node / Rust | Go |
| Docker | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Linux package | – | Yes | – | Yes |
| Windows | – | Yes | – | Yes |
| macOS | – | Yes | – | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | – | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | – | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes | Yes | – |
| Windows | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes | Yes | – |
| Full comparison | This app | Flowplan vs Trilium Notes | – | – |
Official client for phone and desktop.
No. It keeps everything in SQLite under /app/data, so run exactly one container per data directory.
Yes. AI is off until an admin enables it, and it can run entirely on your server with Ollama, which the Compose file starts with the ai profile. Keys for OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini or an OpenAI-compatible service are the alternative.
Yes. Flowplan imports from Notion, AppFlowy, Obsidian, Markdown, HTML, CSV, Jira and Trello, and exports Markdown with frontmatter, CSV and ZIP.
The quick start expects a domain with HTTPS in front, from a reverse proxy such as Caddy, Traefik or nginx, and APP_URL set to it.
More apps in Productivity.
Write docs, track work in databases and sketch on a whiteboard, with workspaces synced through your own server.
Sketch hand-drawn style diagrams on a virtual whiteboard, served as a static site from your own server.
Self-host the Excalidraw whiteboard with accounts, folders and live collaboration, and keep every drawing in your own Postgres database. Members get private spaces and a shared team space, and search looks inside the text of drawings.
Write markdown together in a browser-based editor and watch the edits land as they are typed. HedgeDoc keeps the notes on your server, renders diagrams and slides from the same text, and gives each note a permission level you pick before you share the link.
Manage the household's chores, shopping list and project plans in one self-hosted task manager, with the same tasks shown as a list, kanban board, table or Gantt chart. Repeat reminders, subtasks, share links and CalDAV sync sit on top. Vikunja imports what you already have in Todoist, Trello or Microsoft To-Do.
Baserow turns Postgres into a no-code database you edit in the browser, with typed fields, filters and forms. Every table gets a REST API.
Capture a thought in Blinko and it sits as a Markdown card you can tag, search and expand into a full note. The note app's AI search, tagging and chat run against Ollama on your own hardware, or a hosted model if you prefer.
CryptPad is an encrypted office suite you host yourself. Write a document, sheet or slide deck in the browser and it encrypts the copy on your machine before it reaches the server. Rich text, forms, kanban boards, diagrams and whiteboards use the same encryption. Shared drives, access lists, document history and guest links cover a household or a small group.
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