A self-hosted restaurant POS should make its deployment shape easy to understand. In OrderRestro, the core stack is PostgreSQL, an API, and a web app, packaged for Docker Compose.
For one branch, the recommended setup is a local server on the restaurant’s LAN. Till devices, tablets, and kitchen screens connect over the local network. The same stack can run on a VPS if remote administration or multi-branch access is needed, and a tunnel or reverse proxy can provide HTTPS without exposing a port directly.
The application is the same in each setup, but the operator’s responsibilities change. A LAN installation needs a plan for power, backups, and physical access. A VPS needs hosting and network controls. A tunnel adds remote exposure, so the public endpoint, authentication, updates, and secure cookies matter.
One easily missed setting: when the app is reached over HTTPS, the project’s setup notes call for COOKIE_SECURE=true. On a plain HTTP LAN setup, that setting should remain false; browsers will not store a Secure cookie over ordinary HTTP. A setting copied without regard to the deployment can look like a broken login.
Self-hosting gives an operator control over where data runs, but it does not remove maintenance. Before going live, rehearse a backup restore, test an update on a copy, and confirm who owns the server.
The current deployment guide and Compose files are in the OrderRestro repository. More notes from my work are at RaktimRanjit.com.
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