NocoBase on GCP - Developer Guide

Welcome to the Meetrix NocoBase developer guide for Google Cloud Platform! With the Meetrix pre-configured GCP image, you can deploy a production-ready NocoBase instance in minutes.

This guide walks you through finding the product on GCP Marketplace, configuring the deployment, pointing DNS, accessing the admin panel, and managing the server.

What Is NocoBase?

NocoBase is an open-source, self-hosted no-code platform that turns a relational database into tables, forms, dashboards, and workflows, all without writing code. Deploying it on Google Cloud Platform keeps your data inside your own GCP project instead of a third-party SaaS account.

Related Article

Meetrix NocoBase - Developer Guide (AWS)

Step-by-step guide for deploying and configuring NocoBase on AWS using the Meetrix pre-configured AMI and CloudFormation.

Meetrix.IO • Maneesha Shehara

Launch NocoBase from GCP Marketplace

Step 1: Find the Product

1. Log in to your Google account.
2. Go directly to the product page: NocoBase on GCP Marketplace
3. You can also browse all Meetrix products at the Meetrix Solutions Page.
4. You will see the following product listing page.

Step 2: Accept the Agreement

1. Select your GCP project from the project selector at the top.
2. Review the product description and pricing details, then click GET STARTED.
3. Accept the terms and conditions and click AGREE.

Free Trial

This product includes a 5-day free trial with up to USD 50.00 in licence fee credits. To activate it, tick I accept the solution trial Terms and Conditions on the launch screen before proceeding.

Configure Your NocoBase Deployment on GCP

You will see the deployment configuration form. Fill in the fields across the following sections:

General

• Deployment name: A unique name for this deployment.
• Deployment Service Account: Use an existing account with the required roles, or create a new one.
• Zone: Select the GCP zone closest to your users.
• Machine type: Default e2-medium (2 vCPU, 4 GB memory) works for most setups. Choose a larger type in the Compute-optimised or Memory-optimised series for heavier workloads.

Networking

• Network / Subnetwork: Leave as default unless you have a custom VPC.
• External IP: Leave as Ephemeral so the instance is reachable from the internet.
• Allow SSH (TCP port 22): Enabled by default. Restrict the source IP range if you want to limit SSH access to specific IPs.

Application Settings

• Domain name: The domain for your NocoBase instance (e.g. nocobase.yourdomain.com). Make sure to point your DNS A record to the instance IP before or shortly after deploying.
• Admin email: Used for SSL certificate registration via Let's Encrypt.

Click DEPLOY and wait a few minutes for the deployment to complete.

Point DNS to Your NocoBase Server

Step 1: Get the External IP

1. Once deployment is complete, click the VM instance resource name in the deployment details.
2. Copy the External IP from the Network interfaces section.

Step 2: Create a DNS A Record

1. Go to your DNS provider.
2. Add an A record pointing your NocoBase domain (e.g. nocobase.yourdomain.com) to the copied external IP.
3. Wait for DNS propagation before proceeding (typically a few minutes to 1 hour).

Access NocoBase

Once DNS has propagated and SSL has issued, visit your domain. The first account you create becomes the super admin, and all future accounts are created through the admin panel.

Generate an SSL Certificate for NocoBase Manually

NocoBase will automatically try to issue SSL for the domain name you provided during deployment. If it's unsuccessful, for example if DNS hadn't propagated yet, you can generate it manually.

Step 1: SSH into the Server

1. Go to the VM instance page in the GCP console.
2. Click SSH to open a browser-based terminal and authorize access.

Step 2: Run the Certificate Script

The image includes a pre-configured certificate script. Run it with:

sudo bash /root/certificate_generate_standalone.sh

This script runs certbot using the domain name and admin email you provided during deployment.

Check NocoBase Server Logs

SSH into the server as shown above, then check the running containers and their logs:

sudo docker ps

Select the correct container and check its logs:

sudo docker logs <container_id>

Manage Your NocoBase Deployment on GCP

Shut Down the VM

To stop the VM without deleting it, go to Compute Engine → VM Instances in the GCP console, select your instance, and click Stop. You can restart it at your convenience by clicking Start/Resume.

Delete the Deployment

To fully remove the deployment and stop all billing:

1. Go to Solution deployments in the GCP console.
2. Find your NocoBase deployment.
3. Click Delete to remove all associated resources.

Upgrades

When there is an upgrade, we will update the product with a newer version. You can check the product version in GCP Marketplace. If a newer version is available, back up your server data, delete the current deployment, and launch the product again using the newer version.

Troubleshoot NocoBase on GCP

Insufficient Capacity Error

If you see an error stating there is not sufficient capacity for the selected machine type while deploying, try a different zone or try again later.

502 Bad Gateway

If you see a 502 Bad Gateway error when accessing your domain, the application is likely still starting up. Wait 5-10 minutes and try again.

Storage Full Error

If the application becomes unresponsive, check whether the instance storage is full. SSH into the server and run:

df -h

If the root volume is between 90-100%, resize the boot disk from the Compute Engine console, then reboot the instance.

Technical Support

If you run into any issues, our support team is here to help. Reach out to us at support@meetrix.io and we will respond within 12 hours.