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To set up Paperclip on a Bluehost Self-Managed VPS, select Paperclip during VPS checkout, connect to the provisioned server over SSH, verify that its image meets Paperclip’s current requirements, then configure authenticated access behind HTTPS and bootstrap the first administrator. For an internet-facing server, do not copy Bluehost’s example of exposing port 3100 over plain HTTP: Paperclip’s current guidance says to keep that port bound to localhost behind a reverse proxy.
What Paperclip means in this setup
This guide is for Paperclip, the AI orchestration platform—not the unrelated Ruby on Rails file-attachment library described in outdated introductory text on Bluehost’s support page. Bluehost’s VPS application setup and Paperclip’s documentation establish the AI-platform context. Bluehost’s Paperclip VPS guide and Paperclip documentation cover different parts of the process: Bluehost explains its checkout and image, while Paperclip sets out current deployment and security requirements.
Choose and provision the Bluehost VPS
- Open Bluehost’s VPS hosting purchase flow and select a plan and data-center location.
- Configure the hardware, then open the Applications tab and select Paperclip.
- Complete checkout. Plan contents and prices can change, so review the current cart and renewal terms rather than relying on an older advertised price.
- After provisioning, find the server in the Bluehost Portal under Hosting. Retrieve or reset its root password there if needed.
Bluehost’s example image describes Ubuntu 24.04.4, UFW enabled, SSH on port 22, and Paperclip on port 3100. Treat those as properties of the image documented by Bluehost, not universal requirements. Confirm the operating system, firewall, service layout, and installed software on your own VPS.
Connect over SSH and check the installed image
Use the VPS IP address and root credentials shown in the Bluehost Portal to connect from a terminal:
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ssh root@SERVER_IPReplace SERVER_IP with the address shown in the portal. Before following update instructions or rebuilding the application, check the actual Paperclip release and Node.js runtime. Paperclip’s current installation guide requires Node.js 24 or later and pnpm; its version check specifies v24.11.0 or higher. Bluehost’s example README, by contrast, lists Node.js 20.x. That mismatch means you should verify the image rather than assume either version is installed or supported for your particular release.
Paperclip says a Linux VPS with 1 vCPU and 2 GB RAM is enough to get started. That is a starting floor, not a workload capacity guarantee. Actual needs depend on agent concurrency, model calls, and persistent data.
Secure public access before onboarding
Bluehost’s example wizard shows authenticated mode and public exposure, but its sample public base URL uses http://SERVER_IP:3100 and its example firewall allows port 3100 from the internet. Do not use those settings for an internet-facing deployment. Paperclip’s official VPS guidance explicitly says, “Do not open port 3100 to the internet.” Instead, bind Paperclip to 127.0.0.1:3100 and place Nginx or another reverse proxy in front of it.
Prepare the deployment
- Point a domain to the VPS and configure HTTPS at the reverse proxy.
- Run the service as a dedicated, non-root
paperclipuser, following Paperclip’s deployment guide. - Use authenticated mode and set the public base URL to the HTTPS address. Configure the allowed hostnames as directed by the guide; exact environment-variable names matter.
- Allow SSH, HTTP for certificate issuance or redirects, and HTTPS as needed. Keep port 3100 inaccessible from the public internet.
Paperclip distinguishes public access from HTTPS: an HTTPS address can be private to trusted users on a private network, while external webhook senders require a publicly reachable HTTPS callback. In either case, Paperclip can remain bound to localhost behind the proxy.
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Configure the service
Follow the current Paperclip VPS installation guide for the supported environment variables, service setup, and reverse-proxy configuration. The guide’s flow sets authenticated deployment mode, public exposure, the HTTPS public base URL, and allowed hostnames before onboarding. Do not substitute Bluehost’s HTTP sample URL or expose port 3100 to make the service reachable; the proxy should handle external traffic.
Bootstrap the first administrator
Once the service is configured for authenticated deployment, use Paperclip’s CLI to generate the first-user invite:
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paperclipai auth bootstrap-ceoOpen the generated invite in a browser and follow it to create the administrator account. Paperclip also documents paperclipai doctor and paperclipai env for diagnostics and environment inspection. A running VPS does not by itself enable agents to do model work: configure credentials for the model provider you intend to use. Protect Paperclip’s secrets master key; losing it means losing access to saved credentials.
Find the service and diagnose common problems
Bluehost’s documented example places the source at /opt/paperclip/app, the systemd unit at /etc/systemd/system/paperclip.service, and an environment override at /etc/systemd/system/paperclip.service.d/override.conf. These paths apply only if your installed image uses the same layout. Check service status, restart it, or follow its logs with:
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systemctl status paperclip
systemctl restart paperclip
journalctl -u paperclip -fIf those commands or paths do not match your server, inspect the installed service definition and use Paperclip’s documented diagnostics rather than assuming the example image is unchanged.
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Bluehost documents updating its source-checkout image with git pull, pnpm install, and a service restart. That sequence is for the documented checkout-style installation; do not apply it blindly to a different installation method. Paperclip’s GitHub installation document describes a managed install with atomic updates and rollback. Before updating, back up persistent data and secrets, and verify the runtime and release requirements for the installation you actually use.
Deployment choices differ in control and operational responsibility. Bluehost identifies this VPS as self-managed infrastructure: the customer manages the application environment. Paperclip’s separate VPS recipe discusses external PostgreSQL and persistent disk, while its getting-started path also describes embedded Postgres defaults. Match the database and persistence design to the installation path you select; there is no verified plan-to-agent-count benchmark in the cited documentation.
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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →| Approach | What to verify | Operational implication |
|---|---|---|
| Bluehost preinstalled Paperclip image | Actual Paperclip release, Node.js version, filesystem paths, firewall rules, and service configuration; Bluehost’s example runtime differs from Paperclip’s current Node.js requirement. | Bluehost provides the VPS infrastructure, but the product is self-managed and you maintain the application environment. |
| Manual Paperclip install or managed installer | Follow the selected installation method’s current requirements, database design, persistent storage, and update procedure. | Offers a distinct installation and update path; Paperclip’s managed installer documentation describes atomic updates and rollback. |
For either approach, choose resources based on expected concurrency and data needs, arrange backups, preserve the secrets master key, and use authenticated HTTPS access through a reverse proxy for public deployment.
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