To import an existing database into Coolify, provision and start the destination database, stop application writes, make a safety backup, and open its Import Backup page. Choose an upload, an absolute path on the database server, or team S3 storage; confirm the detected format and scope; review replacement, ownership, and credential options; run the restore; validate the data and connection credentials; then resume writes and create a new backup. The same workflow can be automated with the Coolify CLI or API.
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What Coolify can import
Coolify’s built-in Import Backup workflow is designed for PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MongoDB, and SQLite. The accepted input depends on the engine and on whether the dump contains one database or every database on the source server.
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| Target engine | Accepted import input | Important scope or format notes |
|---|---|---|
| PostgreSQL | SQL dumps, custom archives, tar archives, and all-database dumps | Custom archives are normally made with pg_dump -Fc. A major-version migration may require plain SQL or tar instead. |
| MySQL | SQL dumps, including all-database backups | All-database restores can optionally include the mysql system database, users, passwords, and privileges. |
| MariaDB | SQL dumps, including all-database backups | The same user-and-privilege consideration applies when the dump includes the system database. |
| MongoDB | Archives and dump directories | Confirm that the selected input represents the databases and collections you intend to restore. |
| SQLite | A selected SQLite database file | You choose the destination file under Restore into. |
| Redis, Dragonfly, KeyDB, and ClickHouse | No built-in Import Backup workflow described for these engines | Use an engine-specific export and restore procedure rather than the database import screen. |
The destination must already exist as a Coolify database and must be running. Coolify also warns that the server needs enough free disk space for the input and the restored data. Compressed inputs are detected before changes are made, but detection does not make an incompatible dump safe: the engine, dump scope, and server version still need to match.
Plan the migration before touching the destination
Match the engine, version, and dump format
A PostgreSQL dump must be restored into PostgreSQL, a MySQL dump into MySQL, and so on. For PostgreSQL, the default Coolify expectation is a custom-format archive created with pg_dump and the -Fc option. A representative command is:
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docker exec pg-db pg_dump -U postgres -d postgres -Fc > example-database.sql.gzThe command shown by the documentation uses a .sql.gz filename, but the -Fc option produces PostgreSQL’s custom archive format; treat the filename as a name supplied by the operator and verify what the file actually contains. Custom format is sensitive to PostgreSQL version differences. For a move from an older PostgreSQL major version, use a plain SQL or tar-format dump when the compatibility plan calls for it, and use psql to load plain SQL.
Do not assume that a file extension identifies the format. Coolify displays detected file information and the detected backup format during import; use that information together with the tool and options used to create the dump.
Decide whether the dump is selective or all-database
A selected-database dump is usually safer when the Coolify server should contain only one application database. An all-database dump is appropriate when the migration includes several databases and, for MySQL or MariaDB, may also include system users and privileges. The choice changes which import options are relevant and how much of the destination can be replaced.
Schedule a write outage
Stop application writes before taking the final source dump or beginning the restore. Otherwise, records can change while the dump is being made or while the destination is being validated. Put the application into maintenance mode, stop workers that write to the database, or otherwise enforce a read-only window appropriate to your deployment.
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Protect the destination
Before importing, take a separate backup of the Coolify destination. An import can overwrite existing objects, data, and credentials. Keep that backup outside the operation you are about to run so it remains available if the migration must be rolled back.
Import through the Coolify web interface
Use this procedure for a one-time migration or when you want to inspect the generated restore command before execution.
- Provision and start the target. Create the destination database in Coolify and wait until it is running and healthy.
- Open the import screen. From the running target database, open Import Backup.
- Select the source location. Choose one of the available sources: upload the file from your computer, provide an absolute path on the database server, or select team S3 storage. For a server path, enter the absolute path and select Check file. For team S3, enter the object path and check the file.
- Inspect the detected file. Review the file information, detected backup format, and whether Coolify identifies it as a selected-database or all-database dump.
- Read the command preview. Coolify shows the generated import command. It is read-only; use it to verify that the intended engine, file, scope, and options are represented before starting.
- Set only applicable options. Enable replacement, owner preservation, user restoration, or a SQLite destination file only when those settings match the dump and migration plan.
- Start and confirm. Start the restore and complete Coolify’s confirmation prompt.
- Monitor output. Follow Database Restore Output until the operation finishes. Coolify rejects a concurrent start, restart, or import while another database operation is running.
Understand the options that can change or destroy data
| Option or decision | Use it when | Risk or consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Replace objects that already exist | A single-database PostgreSQL archive is intended to replace matching objects on the destination. | Existing objects can be replaced. It is off by default for a single-database PostgreSQL archive, so enabling it is an explicit destructive choice. |
| Keep owners and privileges | The source roles exist, or you have deliberately recreated them on the destination. | It is off by default because source roles may not exist in Coolify. Preserving ownership without matching roles can cause restore errors or unusable objects. |
| Restore users and privileges | An all-database MySQL or MariaDB backup must also recreate accounts and grants. | The restore can include the mysql system database, users, passwords, and privileges. Coolify’s saved credentials and health checks may then need updating. |
| Restore into (SQLite) | The SQLite backup must be placed into a particular database file in the target. | Choosing the wrong file can leave the application reading a different database than the one you restored. |
Coolify’s conservative defaults are intentional. A migration that needs replacement or source ownership should say so explicitly in its runbook, and the operator should retain the pre-import backup until application validation is complete.
Choosing a source: upload, server path, or S3
| Source | Best fit | Checks to make |
|---|---|---|
| Upload from your computer | A smaller dump available locally and a one-time interactive restore. | Confirm the browser upload completes, the server has room for the uploaded and restored data, and the file’s detected format is correct. |
| Absolute server path | A large dump already present on the database server or a mounted volume. | Use an absolute path, select Check file, and ensure the Coolify process can read the file. Server-path imports require the deploy permission in the API workflow. |
| Team S3 storage | A dump stored centrally for repeatable operations or access by more than one operator. | Enter the exact object path, check the file, and verify that the team storage configuration can read it. |
The source location does not remove the need to validate engine compatibility or to maintain a rollback backup. It only changes where Coolify reads the dump.
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Automate an import with the Coolify CLI
The CLI can start an import against a standalone database UUID and wait for completion:
coolify database import start <database-uuid> --file ./dump.sql.gz --waitUse the source form that matches your operational setup: a local file supplied with --file, a file uploaded in a prior step, team S3 storage, or a server path. The import command exposes flags for the decisions shown in the interface:
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For databases that belong to a service stack, use the corresponding service-database import command rather than the standalone database command. Keep the database UUID and the exact dump path in the deployment record so a later operator can identify what was restored.
Use the Coolify API for repeatable migrations
The API separates file upload, restore start, and status polling. For a standalone database, the endpoints are:
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| Purpose | Method and endpoint |
|---|---|
| Upload an import file | POST /databases/{uuid}/imports/uploads |
| Start the restore | POST /databases/{uuid}/imports |
| Read restore status | GET /databases/{uuid}/imports/{activity_id} |
Service databases use the same suffixes beneath /services/{uuid}/databases/{database_uuid}/imports. Upload and start operations require the write permission. A server-path import also requires deploy. After starting, retain the returned activity ID and poll the status endpoint until it reports completion or failure. Do not resume application writes merely because the start request was accepted; resume only after the activity result and database checks are successful.
Validate the restored database before reopening traffic
Validation should be a deliberate gate between the restore and the application cutover.
- Check service health. Confirm that the Coolify database is running and healthy, then review its logs for restore errors, missing roles, failed constraints, or filesystem problems.
- Connect independently. Use a database client, not only the application, to inspect the expected schemas, tables or collections, and representative records.
- Test application-critical data. Check a few high-value queries, recent records, indexes or collections, and any migration-specific objects your application requires.
- Verify credentials. If users, passwords, owners, or privileges were restored, test the credentials stored by the application and by Coolify’s health checks. Update saved credentials when the restored accounts do not match the destination configuration.
- Check SQLite’s mounted file. Confirm that the application is reading the file selected under Restore into, rather than another database file in the mounted volume.
- Re-enable writes last. Remove maintenance mode or restart workers only after the connection and data checks pass.
- Create a fresh backup. Once the restored database is serving validated traffic, take a new backup of the Coolify copy.
Common failure modes and the safest response
The file is detected as the wrong format
Stop before starting the restore. Recheck how the dump was created, its actual compression and archive type, and whether the target engine matches. For PostgreSQL, do not treat a custom archive as plain SQL; use the format-specific restore path shown by Coolify. If the source and destination major versions differ, recreate the dump in plain or tar format when the custom archive is not compatible.
The restore reports missing owners or roles
This commonly follows an attempt to preserve source owners when those roles do not exist on the destination. Restore again from the safety backup only after deciding whether to recreate the roles or leave Keep owners and privileges disabled. Do not silently grant broad privileges to make an error disappear.
MySQL or MariaDB credentials stop working
An all-database restore with user restoration can replace the system database’s users, passwords, and privileges. Update Coolify’s saved credentials and health checks to the restored accounts, then test an independent client connection before reopening application traffic.
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Coolify blocks a concurrent start, restart, or import while another operation is running. Wait for the current activity and inspect Database Restore Output. Starting a second restore does not create a parallel recovery path and can obscure which operation changed the destination.
There is not enough disk space
Free space is required for the source file and the restored database. Stop and expand or clean the destination before retrying; do not delete the only safety backup to make room. Recheck available space after an interrupted restore before deciding whether a fresh attempt is safe.
The application connects but shows old or empty data
Confirm the connection credentials, host, database name, schema or collection, and (for SQLite) the mounted file path. A successful restore into one file or database does not help an application still configured for another one.
CLI, API, and UI: which route should you use?
| Route | Advantages | Operational caution |
|---|---|---|
| Web UI | Shows detected format, dump scope, generated command, and restore output in one interactive flow. | Best suited to an operator who can review each destructive option; record the selected settings for repeatability. |
| CLI | Easy to place in a migration runbook and can wait for completion with --wait. |
Protect the database UUID and dump path, and pass only flags that match the dump. |
| API | Supports scripted upload, start, and status polling with explicit permissions. | Persist and poll the activity ID; enforce the write and, for server paths, deploy permissions. |
These interfaces invoke the same underlying import decisions. The safer choice is the one that preserves review, logging, and a clear rollback record for your team.
Importing an application database is not restoring Coolify itself
Coolify has a separate self-hosted instance-restore process for its control plane. That operation restores Coolify projects, resources, settings, saved credentials, and deployment history. It does not restore data stored inside your applications, databases, services, or volumes. An application database therefore needs its own dump and the database import or engine-specific restore procedure described above.
Keeping those two recovery plans separate prevents a common mistake: restoring Coolify’s configuration and assuming that the records used by an application have returned with it.
Quick Recap
Migration checklist
- Identify the target engine, source version, destination version, and dump scope.
- Create or select a running Coolify database and confirm free disk space.
- Stop application writes and take a separate destination backup.
- Verify the dump’s actual format; for PostgreSQL, choose custom, plain, or tar handling appropriate to the version move.
- Choose upload, absolute server path, or team S3 and check the file.
- Review detected format, selected-versus-all-database scope, generated command, and destructive options.
- Start the import once and monitor Database Restore Output or the CLI/API activity.
- Inspect health, logs, schemas, tables or collections, representative records, and credentials.
- Confirm the application uses the restored database or SQLite file, then resume writes.
- Create a fresh post-migration backup and retain the pre-import backup for rollback.
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