Minion CLI

A CLI tool that simplifies deploying any application to VPS servers.

Overview

Minion CLI simplifies the process of deploying containerized applications to VPS servers. It handles Docker image building, transfer, and deployment with automatic SSL certificate management via Traefik.

Prerequisites

Before using Minion CLI, ensure you have the following installed on your local machine:

Required

• Rust (1.70 or later) - For building and installing the CLI

  curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh

• Docker - For building container images locally

  • Docker Desktop for Mac
  • Docker Desktop for Windows
  • Docker Engine for Linux

  Make sure Docker is running before attempting to deploy.

• SSH Access - You need SSH key-based authentication to your VPS

  • First, ensure your public key is added to the VPS server's ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
  • Then add your private key to the SSH agent on your local machine:

    ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519
    # or
    ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_rsa

VPS Requirements

• Ubuntu/Debian-based VPS (tested on Ubuntu 25.10)
• Root or sudo access
• SSH access configured

Installation

Install Minion CLI globally on your system:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/CaliforniaOpenSource/minion-cli.git
cd minion-cli

# Build the project
cargo build --release

# Install the binary
cargo install --path .

This will install the minion command in your PATH.

To verify installation:

minion --version

Usage

Minion CLI has three main commands:

1. Setup - Configure your VPS

Run this once to set up your VPS with Docker and Traefik:

minion setup

This command will:

• Create a minion user on the VPS
• Install Docker
• Set up Traefik as a reverse proxy
• Configure SSL certificate management with Let's Encrypt

You'll be prompted for:

• VPS hostname or IP address
• Email address for SSL certificates

2. Init - Initialize a project

Run this in your application directory to configure deployment settings:

cd /path/to/your/app
minion init

You'll be prompted for:

• VPS hostname or IP address
• Application name
• Domain/URL (e.g., app.example.com)
• Port your app listens on (e.g., 3000)

This creates a .minion configuration file in your project.

3. Deploy - Deploy your application

Deploy your application to the VPS:

minion deploy

Use -y or --yes to skip prompts and use values from .minion:

minion deploy -y

This command will:

1. Build a Docker image locally
2. Save and transfer the image to your VPS
3. Create a docker-compose configuration
4. Start your application with automatic SSL

Your app will be available at https://app.example.com after deployment completes.

Configuration File

The .minion file stores your deployment configuration:

APP_NAME=my-app
APP_PORT=3000
APP_URL=app.example.com
APP_VOLUMES=
VPS_HOST=167.99.231.125

This file is automatically created by minion init and updated by minion deploy.

Volume Mappings (experimental)

To persist data, you can specify volume mappings during deployment:

minion deploy
# When prompted for volumes:
# Enter: data:/app/data,uploads:/app/uploads

Or use minion deploy -y to use the volumes already saved in .minion.

This maps:

• /opt/minion/your-app/volumes/data on VPS → /app/data in container
• /opt/minion/your-app/volumes/uploads on VPS → /app/uploads in container

Troubleshooting

SSH Key Issues

If you see Error: no identities found in the ssh agent:

# Start the SSH agent
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"

# Add your SSH key
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

Docker Not Running

If you see docker: command not found or connection errors:

• Ensure Docker Desktop is running
• Verify with: docker ps

Build Failures

If Docker build fails, you can test locally:

docker build -t test-build . --platform=linux/amd64

This will show the full error output.