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This guide shows how to run a complete self-hosted Prefect server environment using Docker Compose. This setup includes the following services:
  • postgres: PostgreSQL database
  • redis: Redis message broker
  • prefect-server: Prefect server
  • prefect-services: Prefect background services
  • prefect-worker: Prefect worker

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Docker Compose file

Create a compose.yml file with the following contents: 
services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:14
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: prefect
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: prefect
      POSTGRES_DB: prefect
    volumes:
      - postgres_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U prefect"]
      interval: 5s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

  redis:
    image: redis:7
    volumes:
      - redis_data:/data
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "redis-cli ping"]
      interval: 5s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

  prefect-server:
    image: prefecthq/prefect:3-latest
    depends_on:
      postgres:
        condition: service_healthy
      redis:
        condition: service_healthy
    environment:
      PREFECT_API_DATABASE_CONNECTION_URL: postgresql+asyncpg://prefect:prefect@postgres:5432/prefect
      PREFECT_SERVER_API_HOST: 0.0.0.0
      PREFECT_MESSAGING_BROKER: prefect_redis.messaging
      PREFECT_MESSAGING_CACHE: prefect_redis.messaging
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_HOST: redis
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_PORT: 6379
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_DB: 0
    command: prefect server start --no-services
    ports:
      - "4200:4200"

  prefect-services:
    image: prefecthq/prefect:3-latest
    depends_on:
      postgres:
        condition: service_healthy
      redis:
        condition: service_healthy
    environment:
      PREFECT_API_DATABASE_CONNECTION_URL: postgresql+asyncpg://prefect:prefect@postgres:5432/prefect
      PREFECT_MESSAGING_BROKER: prefect_redis.messaging
      PREFECT_MESSAGING_CACHE: prefect_redis.messaging
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_HOST: redis
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_PORT: 6379
      PREFECT_REDIS_MESSAGING_DB: 0
    command: prefect server services start

  prefect-worker:
    image: prefecthq/prefect:3-latest
    depends_on:
      prefect-server:
        condition: service_started
    environment:
      PREFECT_API_URL: http://prefect-server:4200/api
    command: prefect worker start --pool local-pool

volumes:
  postgres_data:
  redis_data:

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Running the stack

  1. Save the compose.yml file to your local machine.
  2. From the directory containing the file, start the stack by running: 
docker compose up -d
  1. Wait for all services to start (it may take a few moments).
  2. Open your browser and navigate to http://localhost:4200 to access the Prefect UI.
  3. To stop the stack, run: 
docker compose down

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Notes

  • The PostgreSQL database is preconfigured with user and database prefect.
  • Redis is not strictly required but is recommended as the messaging broker when scaling a Prefect server installation.
  • The Prefect worker automatically registers a pool named local-pool.
  • The Prefect server exposes the API on port 4200; ensure this port is free.
  • Use docker compose logs -f to view live logs for all services.
  • This compose.yml does not configure authentication. See the authentication guide for more information.

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Troubleshooting

  • If the UI does not load, verify that port 4200 is not occupied by another process.
  • Check container logs for errors with:
docker compose logs -f
  • Make sure Docker and Docker Compose are installed and up to date.
For more information, see the official Prefect documentation.