README.md

Environment variables

• DATABASE_URL: Database connection string (required).
• DOMAIN: Public URL used by Vaultwarden.
• ADMIN_TOKEN: Token for admin panel access.
• WEBSOCKET_ENABLED: Enables websocket notifications.
• ROCKET_PORT / PORT: Runtime port binding (platform-dependent).
• Shared SMTP inputs from deploy/vps/services/suite-manager/.env when enabled:
  • SMTP_ENABLED
  • SMTP_HOST
  • SMTP_FROM
  • SMTP_FROM_NAME
  • SMTP_USERNAME
  • SMTP_PASSWORD
  • SMTP_PORT
  • SMTP_SECURITY (starttls, force_tls, or off)

Service: vaultwarden-postgres

Environment variables:

• POSTGRES_USER
• POSTGRES_PASSWORD
• POSTGRES_DB

Volumes:

• Required: /var/lib/postgresql for PostgreSQL 18 and later.

Healthcheck:

• pg_isready --dbname=$POSTGRES_DB --username=$POSTGRES_USER

Required service wiring

• vaultwarden -> vaultwarden-postgres: set DATABASE_URL to postgresql://<user>:<pass>@vaultwarden-postgres:5432/<db>
• vaultwarden -> suite-manager: optional shared SMTP settings can be sourced from the shared suite env file for password-reset, verification, and invite-capable flows.

Optional SMTP behavior

• SMTP is fully optional and is intended for operators who already have access to an SMTP server.
• When SMTP_ENABLED is explicitly false, the MOS startup wrapper removes shared SMTP variables before Vaultwarden validates its mail configuration.
• When the shared SMTP values are present, Vaultwarden can use them for verification mail, welcome mail, master password hint mail, and similar account emails.
• The canonical setup and troubleshooting guide lives in the dedicated advanced SMTP doc: Optional email with SMTP.
• Some email-triggering actions may feel slow if the configured SMTP server is unreachable, because Vaultwarden sends those emails as part of the request flow.