Self-hosted
On your hosting. With your data.
Wintertrace runs on standard web hosting with PHP 8.2 or higher and MySQL. No Docker. No root access. No special hardware. Installation runs through a browser assistant in roughly 10 minutes.
Why self-hosting
Winter service data is sensitive: driver movement profiles, customer addresses, photographs of private property, time records, and email traffic with clients. None of this belongs in a third-party cloud unless the operator made an explicit choice to put it there.
When the software lives on the operator's hosting, three things follow:
- Data ownership. The database is on the operator's server, in an open MySQL/MariaDB schema. Export and migration are possible at any time.
- No vendor lock-in. If the original maintainer disappears, the software keeps running. The code is public and the data format is open.
- No per-seat pricing. Add drivers, customers, or sites without changing the licence. The software is free.
Hosting requirements
Standard shared web hosting is enough. No specific provider is required.
- PHP
- 8.2 or higher
- Database
- MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.3+
- Background tasks
- One cron job, every minute
- Deployment
- FTP or SSH
- SSL / TLS
- Recommended (Let's Encrypt is fine)
- Root access
- Not required
The single cron job runs background tasks for weather fetching, PDF generation, and notifications. There is no permanently running daemon — shared hosting with cron support is enough.
Cloud vs. self-hosted
A sober comparison along the axes that matter for small and mid-sized winter service operators.
| Aspect | Typical cloud SaaS | Wintertrace (self-hosted) |
|---|---|---|
| Data control | With the provider | On your server |
| Cost model | Monthly per-seat subscription | Free; hosting only |
| Data format | Proprietary, export-limited | Open MySQL / MariaDB schema |
| Vendor disappears | Software stops or freezes | Software keeps running |
| Telemetry | Often opaque | None |
| Audit trail | Provider-defined | Inspectable in the codebase |
Ready to install?
The installation page covers requirements, the browser assistant, and the first steps after install.
Try Wintertrace.
Upload one small file to your web hosting, open it in your browser, and the installer puts the latest signed Wintertrace core on your webspace. About ten minutes — no FTP client needed.
install.php · Ed25519-signed core · GNU AGPLv3
Read the installation guide →