FAQ
General
Section titled “General”What is Ownkube?
A developer platform that runs in your own AWS account. You get git-push-style deploys, managed PostgreSQL, and autoscaling, with infrastructure that’s yours. No platform team, no vendor lock-in, no compute markup.
Which cloud providers are supported?
AWS today. GCP and Azure are on the roadmap. Every cluster runs inside the AWS account you connect.
What happens if I disconnect Ownkube?
Your infrastructure keeps running. Ownkube provisions standard AWS resources, so you can manage them directly after disconnecting. See Security.
How is this different from Heroku, Render, or Railway?
Those platforms run your infrastructure in their cloud account and mark up AWS compute 3-5x. Ownkube runs everything in your AWS account with a flat platform fee on top. Your cloud credits apply, your data stays with you, and the raw cost is typically half.
Can I use Ownkube without a credit card?
Yes. The free tier covers up to 10 vCPU and 20 GB RAM across all your clusters with no card required.
Clusters
Section titled “Clusters”What’s the difference between Production and Starter?
Production uses managed EKS, highly available across availability zones, with node autoscaling. Starter uses lightweight K3s on one AWS instance. Cheap (no Ownkube platform fee, you only pay AWS for the EC2 instance), fast to provision (5 min), and great for dev, staging, or small production workloads. See Clusters.
Which should I pick to start?
The Starter shape. It’s the cheapest path onto Ownkube, provisions in minutes, and runs unlimited apps on one AWS instance. Move production workloads to Production later when you need high availability across availability zones.
How long does cluster creation take?
Starter: about 5 minutes. Production: about 10 minutes. Both provision in the background while you continue working.
Can I run multiple clusters in one organization?
Yes, any number, across as many AWS accounts and regions as you want. Put dev on a Starter cluster and production on a Production cluster, or use multiple Production clusters for multi-region.
Deployments
Section titled “Deployments”What kinds of workloads can I run?
Web apps (HTTP services), workers (long-running background processes), jobs (one-off or cron), databases (managed PostgreSQL), and Functions (beta, serverless event handlers triggered by HTTP or a cron schedule). See Deployments.
What frameworks and languages are supported?
Anything that runs in a container. Bring your own Dockerfile, push to a connected registry, deploy. Node, Python, Go, Ruby, Rust, Java are all supported.
Are public hostnames and TLS automatic?
Yes. Toggle Make this deployment public on the deployment Settings tab and Ownkube assigns a generated hostname with an automatically-provisioned TLS certificate and renewal. See Deployments.
Can I run cron jobs?
Yes. Create a Job deployment and add a schedule (standard cron syntax). See Deployments.
How do I deploy updates?
Push a new image to your registry, update the tag on the deployment Settings tab, and save. Ownkube rolls new containers out and drains the old ones after health checks pass.
Billing and costs
Section titled “Billing and costs”What am I paying Ownkube for?
A platform fee on Production: $5 per vCPU + $1 per GB RAM, metered per second on requested resources. Starter clusters (K3s on one AWS instance) are free, with no Ownkube platform fee. You pay AWS directly for compute at their standard rates in both shapes. No markup.
Can I use AWS Activate credits?
Yes, and they go further on Ownkube than on a typical PaaS. All compute runs in your AWS account, so every dollar of AWS Activate or other startup credits applies directly at wholesale AWS rates with no platform markup. On the Starter shape there’s no Ownkube fee at all, so credits cover 100% of the bill.
How much do typical teams save vs traditional PaaS?
Usually 50-70% at scale. The savings come from: no compute markup, access to AWS reserved-instance pricing, and the ability to run multiple services on shared cluster capacity.
Is there an Enterprise plan?
Yes, with custom pricing, volume discounts, SLAs, SSO, and advanced access controls. Contact us. Enterprise is not self-serve.
Security and compliance
Section titled “Security and compliance”Does Ownkube see my application data?
No. Everything runtime (traffic, database rows, logs) stays in your VPC. Ownkube only receives configuration intent. See Security.
What IAM permissions does Ownkube need?
A scoped-down role limited to EKS, EC2, VPC, IAM role-passing, CloudFormation, S3, ACM, Route 53, and Elastic Load Balancing. No admin access. Full list in the AWS connect guide.
Is my data encrypted?
At rest with AWS KMS keys in your account, in transit with TLS on every hop. Secret env vars are encrypted in Ownkube’s database before being delivered to your cluster’s secret store.
Can I achieve SOC 2 / HIPAA / GDPR on Ownkube?
Yes. Since everything runs in your AWS account, compliance scope tracks what you already have with AWS. Keep your BAA with AWS for HIPAA; pick your region for GDPR residency.
Teams and access
Section titled “Teams and access”How do I invite teammates?
Open Settings, go to the Organization section, and invite by email. See plan limits for seat count on your tier.
Is there SSO?
SSO is part of the Enterprise plan. Contact us.