Deploy a database sandbox

Set up a database on a Quake AI VM for prototyping and local development. Choose between SQLite (zero overhead, file-based) and PostgreSQL (tuned for low-RAM tiers).

What you will learn:

• When SQLite vs PostgreSQL is the right fit for a sandbox
• How to install and seed a SQLite database
• How to install PostgreSQL and tune it for a 1 GiB RAM tier
• How to create a database, role, and remote-connection rules
• How to connect from your local machine over the public network

Prerequisites#

• A Quake AI account with an active project, see the Quickstart if you have not signed up
• An SSH key pair uploaded to your account
• A running VM you can SSH into, or follow Launch your first server to launch one

Option A: SQLite#

SQLite is a file-based database that runs inside your application process. No separate server, no extra RAM usage. Ideal for prototyping, personal projects, and applications with moderate write throughput.

Install and create a database#

SSH into your VM and install SQLite:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y sqlite3

Create a test database:

sqlite3 ~/myapp.db << 'EOF'
CREATE TABLE users (
  id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
  name TEXT NOT NULL,
  email TEXT UNIQUE NOT NULL,
  created_at DATETIME DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
);

INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES ('Alice', '[email protected]');
INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES ('Bob', '[email protected]');

SELECT * FROM users;
EOF

Connect from your application#

SQLite databases are regular files. Any application on the same VM can connect by path:

• Node.js: npm install better-sqlite3; new Database('/home/ubuntu/myapp.db')
• Python: import sqlite3; sqlite3.connect('/home/ubuntu/myapp.db')

When to use SQLite#

• Single-application prototypes
• Read-heavy workloads with moderate writes
• When you want zero database administration

Option B: PostgreSQL#

PostgreSQL requires more RAM but gives you a production-grade SQL database for prototyping schemas, testing queries, and developing against a real database engine.

Install and tune for 1 GB RAM#

SSH into your VM and install PostgreSQL:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y postgresql postgresql-client

Tune the configuration for the Developer Plan's memory constraints:

sudo tee /etc/postgresql/16/main/conf.d/dev-plan.conf > /dev/null << 'EOF'
shared_buffers = 128MB
effective_cache_size = 256MB
work_mem = 4MB
maintenance_work_mem = 32MB
max_connections = 20
wal_buffers = 4MB
checkpoint_completion_target = 0.9
EOF

sudo systemctl restart postgresql

Create a database and user#

sudo -u postgres psql << 'EOF'
CREATE USER devuser WITH PASSWORD 'devpass';
CREATE DATABASE devdb OWNER devuser;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE devdb TO devuser;
EOF

Test the connection:

psql -U devuser -d devdb -h localhost -c "SELECT version();"

Allow remote connections (optional)#

To connect to PostgreSQL from your local machine, update the security group and PostgreSQL configuration:

1. Add a security group rule for TCP port 5432 (see the security group pattern from Deploy an API service).

2. Configure PostgreSQL to listen on all interfaces:

sudo sed -i "s/#listen_addresses = 'localhost'/listen_addresses = '*'/" \
  /etc/postgresql/16/main/postgresql.conf

echo "host devdb devuser 0.0.0.0/0 scram-sha-256" | \
  sudo tee -a /etc/postgresql/16/main/pg_hba.conf

sudo systemctl restart postgresql

1. Connect from your local machine:

psql -U devuser -d devdb -h YOUR_INSTANCE_IP

Next steps#

• Deploy an API service: combine a database with an API server
• Self-Managed PostgreSQL template: automate this setup with OpenTofu
• Block storage concepts: add a dedicated volume for database files

See also#

• How to create a volume
• Resource tiers