Launch guides

Guides for launching your forum

Setup, hosting, members, moderation, and day-to-day operations. Scannable paths from install to launch.

Choose your hosting path

Same product either way. Pick managed infrastructure or run ForumForge on your own stack with source access.

Managed

From £139/mo

We run infrastructure, backups, updates, and monitoring. Best if you want launch speed without server work - from £139/month.

Source access

From £329/mo

Install ForumForge on your own VPS or server with PostgreSQL and get source code access. Priced higher for that reason - from £329/month.

Open a guide for step-by-step guidance. Use copy link to share a specific section with your team.

4 guides in setup

Get ForumForge running: connect PostgreSQL, create your first admin, and activate a license before going public.

Provision a server (or use ForumForge hosted) and point DNS at it when you are ready.
Self-hosted: sign in at forumforge.co.uk, download the install kit from your account, run ./scripts/install.sh with your license key, then open /setup.
Open /setup and complete the installer - it checks requirements and connects PostgreSQL.
Create the first administrator account so you can reach AdminCP immediately after install.
Activate your Monthly, Yearly, Lifetime, or development license before inviting members.
Confirm outbound email works (SMTP) so registration, password resets, and notifications deliver.
On self-hosted, verify file uploads, cron/workers if required, and that HTTPS is terminated correctly.

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