Get PocketBase Up and Running: A Lightweight Go Backend in Minutes

Introduction

PocketBase is an open‑source backend platform written in Go. It combines an embedded SQLite database, user authentication, file storage, real‑time APIs and an admin dashboard into a single binary, enabling developers to set up a complete backend service in about five minutes.

Core Features

Embedded Database : Uses SQLite stored in a single file, eliminating the need for a separate database server.

Authentication : Supports email/password, OAuth2 providers (Google, Facebook, GitHub, etc.), JWT tokens and password‑reset flows.

File Storage : Offers local storage or S3‑compatible cloud storage with configurable access policies.

Real‑time Sync : Implements WebSocket and Server‑Sent Events for live subscriptions, allowing clients to listen for record creations, updates or deletions.

Admin UI : Built‑in visual interface for managing collections, users, files and API logs, with automatic API documentation generation.

Automatic API : Generates RESTful endpoints automatically from data models.

Frontend SDKs : Provides JavaScript and Dart SDKs for easy integration with frameworks such as Angular, React, Vue, Flutter, Svelte, etc.

Quick Start

Download the pre‑compiled binary for your platform from the official website or the GitHub Releases page, unzip it, and run the following command in a terminal: ./pocketbase serve The server starts, opens an installation page in the browser on first run, and guides you to create the initial admin account. After that, a fully functional backend (database, API, and admin UI) is available at http://127.0.0.1:8090.

Embedding PocketBase in a Go Application

If you prefer to use PocketBase as a library, the minimal Go example below demonstrates how to start it programmatically:

package main

import (
    "log"
    "github.com/pocketbase/pocketbase"
)

func main() {
    app := pocketbase.New()
    // Add custom routes or hooks here
    if err := app.Start(); err != nil {
        log.Fatal(err)
    }
}

User Interface Preview

The admin UI provides sections for user management, API configuration, file storage, and backup/restore.

Open‑Source Repository

The project’s source code and releases are hosted on GitHub:

https://github.com/pocketbase/pocketbase