Gitea Self-Hosted Git Server on Linux with HTTPS and Backups
- AuthorLiam K.
- Date
- Time18 minutes
Gitea is a lightweight, self-hosted Git service that feels familiar if you already use GitHub or GitLab. It runs well on a single VPS, supports issues and pull requests, and stays lean enough for teams that do not need a full DevOps platform. This guide installs Gitea behind Nginx with PostgreSQL, HTTPS, and backups you can actually restore.
Prerequisites
- Ubuntu 22.04+ or Debian 12 with at least 2 CPU and 2 GB RAM
- Domain DNS A/AAAA records for git.example.com
- Ports 22, 80, and 443 open; Gitea SSH can use a dedicated port if needed
- Root or sudo access
Step 1: Create the Gitea System User
bash
sudo adduser --system --shell /bin/bash --gecos 'Git Version Control' --group --disabled-password --home /home/git git
sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/gitea/{custom,data,log}
sudo chown -R git:git /var/lib/gitea/
sudo chmod -R 750 /var/lib/gitea/
sudo mkdir -p /etc/gitea
sudo chown root:git /etc/gitea
sudo chmod 770 /etc/giteaStep 2: Install PostgreSQL and Create the Database
bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y postgresql postgresql-contrib
sudo -u postgres psql <<'EOF'
CREATE USER gitea WITH PASSWORD 'change-me-strong';
CREATE DATABASE giteadb OWNER gitea;
\\q
EOFStep 3: Download and Install Gitea
bash
GITEA_VERSION=1.22.6
sudo wget -O /usr/local/bin/gitea https://dl.gitea.com/gitea/\${GITEA_VERSION}/gitea-\${GITEA_VERSION}-linux-amd64
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gitea
gitea --versionStep 4: Create the systemd Service
bash
sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/gitea.service >/dev/null <<'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=Gitea
After=network.target postgresql.service
Wants=postgresql.service
[Service]
Type=simple
User=git
Group=git
WorkingDirectory=/var/lib/gitea/
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/gitea web --config /etc/gitea/app.ini
Restart=always
Environment=USER=git HOME=/home/git GITEA_WORK_DIR=/var/lib/gitea
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now gitea
sudo systemctl status gitea --no-pagerStep 5: Initial Web Setup
Open http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:3000 and complete the installer. Choose PostgreSQL, set the database user and password from Step 2, set the domain to git.example.com, and keep HTTP listen on 127.0.0.1:3000 after the reverse proxy is in place.
bash
sudo sed -i 's/^HTTP_ADDR.*/HTTP_ADDR = 127.0.0.1/' /etc/gitea/app.ini
sudo systemctl restart giteaStep 6: Nginx Reverse Proxy with TLS
bash
sudo apt install -y nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx
sudo tee /etc/nginx/sites-available/gitea >/dev/null <<'EOF'
server {
listen 80;
server_name git.example.com;
location / {
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
client_max_body_size 512M;
}
}
EOF
sudo ln -sf /etc/nginx/sites-available/gitea /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/gitea
sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d git.example.com --non-interactive --agree-tos -m admin@example.com --redirectStep 7: Backup and Restore
bash
# Daily dump of database + repositories
sudo -u postgres pg_dump giteadb | gzip > /var/backups/giteadb-$(date +%F).sql.gz
sudo tar -czf /var/backups/gitea-data-$(date +%F).tar.gz -C /var/lib/gitea data
# Restore example
gunzip -c /var/backups/giteadb-2026-08-03.sql.gz | sudo -u postgres psql giteadb
sudo tar -xzf /var/backups/gitea-data-2026-08-03.tar.gz -C /var/lib/gitea
sudo chown -R git:git /var/lib/gitea/data
sudo systemctl restart giteaProduction Checklist
- Bind Gitea to localhost and expose only Nginx and SSH.
- Rotate the PostgreSQL password and store it in a secrets manager or sealed config.
- Enable 2FA for admin accounts and restrict registration if the instance is private.
- Test a restore at least once per quarter before you need it.
- Monitor disk growth under /var/lib/gitea/data and PostgreSQL.
"A Git server is only trustworthy when the database, repositories, and HTTPS edge are backed up and restorable as one unit."
