Paperless-ngx Hosting

Allow a few minutes for initial startup; PikaPods recommends checking the pod logs for progress. Open your pod and, if the initial account-creation screen appears, create your administrator account before sharing the address. If it instead shows a login screen, use the account configured for your deployment rather than assuming a universal default login.

Upload a few PDFs or scans in the web interface, let processing finish and review their titles, tags and correspondents. See initial setup and the usage guide.

No. PikaPods sets up and runs Paperless-ngx for you, including OS and app updates and HTTPS. You won't touch Docker or a server. Your files and database stay accessible if you ever want to move them elsewhere.

Yes. Use the web interface in your browser or choose a third-party client that connects to your pod URL. The project lists Android and iOS clients and scanning integrations in Related Projects. Check the client’s supported Paperless-ngx versions, authentication requirements and any separate purchase before choosing it.

No external account is needed to upload PDFs and images and use built-in OCR. Optional mailbox imports require your own mail account. Office-document conversion and processing email files require additional services such as Apache Tika, so do not assume every upstream format works on the pod. Optional AI and remote OCR need separate providers or model services and may incur charges; basic archiving does not require them. See supported features and formats.

Set up incremental backups to S3 in your pod settings for automatic nightly snapshots, or download your files and database yourself. We keep whole-server backups for server failures, but they aren't a per-pod restore service, so your own backup is what protects your data.

You can use Paperless-ngx instead of DEVONthink. PikaPods runs it for you, and you can move your files and database elsewhere.

DEVONthink is a paid app for Apple devices that also manages notes and research. Paperless-ngx is a web-based document archive focused on scans, OCR and matching rules, reachable from any browser. It's narrower in scope, so choose it if paperwork is your main concern.

No. Paperless-ngx stores documents unencrypted on the server, so it is not a zero-knowledge archive. Only upload documents you are comfortable storing with your hosting provider. The project explains this in its security note.

No. You add prepaid credit and your pods are billed by the hour from that balance, rounded up to full hours. There are no contracts or minimum terms: delete a pod anytime and billing stops. Optional automatic top-ups keep your pods running without manual payments.

You do. And you're in full control. If you ever want to download, migrate, edit or delete your data, just enable file and database access for your pod and it will be right there.