How to set up Zipline on Saplo: Your own screenshot hosting instead of CloudApp Pro

Screenshots and client-destined files end up in your messenger history, and after a month, no one can find them because Discord, Slack, and Messenger are for chatting, not file storage. Everything scrolls down along with a thousand other messages. Services like CloudApp organize this mess, but they require a subscription: the Pro plan costs $10 per month, or $117 per year, and your uploaded files still reside on the provider's servers. Zipline is an open-source screenshot and file hosting solution that you can set up on your own Saplo Box: you upload a file from your browser or with a single shortcut in ShareX, get a short link, and send it on. Below, step by step, we'll show you how to set up Zipline on Saplo and connect it to ShareX on Windows.

Why Zipline Instead of CloudApp Pro

With cloud-based screenshot hosting, you pay twice: with a subscription and with your data. The pricing plan determines how many uploads you can make and how large the files you upload can be, and each file goes to the company's server, to which you're also telling what you're working on. When the provider raises prices or changes plans, your archive remains, but on their terms.

Zipline reverses this relationship. The application runs on your Box, files are on your disk, and the only limit is the capacity you have in your hosting plan. You upload a screenshot, a project file, or a recording, get a short link leading to a preview, and send it to anyone, without counting uploads. On Windows, ShareX handles this, sending the screenshot directly from a keyboard shortcut, and on macOS and Linux, you use the same upload API.

The project is open source and publicly developed on GitHub, and the official Docker image is the same version that users with their own dedicated server deploy.

Zipline requirements and hosting on Saplo

The Zipline recipe in the Saplo catalog declares a minimum of 512 MB RAM and 10 GB of disk space. The smallest Box S for $29 per year (1 GB RAM, 15 GB disk) covers both thresholds: after installation, about 0.5 GB of memory remains for other applications, and file space is governed by the Box's disk capacity, not the upload counter. For a very large archive of video recordings, it's worth considering a larger Box, but for typical screenshots and documents, Box S is perfectly sufficient.

Before installation, prepare:

• an active Box with free resources,
• the application name and a domain or subdomain *.saploapp.pl under which the file hosting will operate,
• a browser, because you perform the entire installation from the panel.

You do not create or configure a database. Zipline requires PostgreSQL, and Saplo's shared database supports MySQL and MariaDB, so the recipe sets up a dedicated PostgreSQL container within the same installation: the engine generates the database password and session secret, and you only deal with your own administrator account. SSH is not needed. You can find the current offer and deployment description on the Zipline on Saplo page.

Step-by-step installation

1. Log in to your Saplo panel and open the App catalog. Search for Zipline (under the "Business Tools" category).
2. Name your application, select a Box with available resources, and choose the domain or subdomain where you want to host your files.
3. Confirm the form. The recipe downloads the official ghcr.io/diced/zipline image along with the PostgreSQL container, combines them into a single installation, and exposes the application via the Box's nginx with a free SSL certificate.
4. The first launch takes longer than with simpler applications because two images are downloaded and the database schema is created. The engine waits for the application's response, so the completion of the installation in the panel means Zipline is running, not just the container started.
5. Go to the application's address. On the first visit, Zipline shows a configuration wizard: you provide an administrator account name and password. There is no default login hidden in the files; the account belongs to you from the first second.
6. In the application directory on Box (/srv/apps/<app-name>/), you'll find the ZIPLINE-SETUP.txt file: a reminder of the steps and instructions for connecting ShareX. You can read it via SFTP, but it doesn't contain any passwords, so skipping the file doesn't block anything.

If the application doesn't respond after installation is complete, check its status in the panel and contact Saplo Support instead of running a second installation alongside the first one.

ShareX Screenshots on Windows

Zipline's greatest convenience comes on Windows, where ShareX has been the screenshot standard for years. From the Zipline panel, you download a ready-made configuration file .sxcu with your instance address and API key. Then, import it into ShareX: Destinations -> Custom uploader settings -> Import. From this moment on, any screenshot taken with a ShareX shortcut goes directly to your Box, and a shortened link to the file lands in your clipboard, so you can send it further with a simple Ctrl+V. The entire journey from Print Screen to a ready link takes less time than saving the file to your desktop and uploading it manually.

Uploading from macOS, Linux, and your browser

ShareX is just one of the clients: the Zipline upload API is open, so any program that can send a file via an HTTP request can use it. On macOS and Linux, popular tools have their own uploader mechanisms or scripts where you can link your instance address and API key, generated in the Zipline panel under Settings -> Account.

Your browser works without any configuration: after logging into the Zipline panel, you drag and drop a file onto the page or select it from your disk, get a short link, and copy it with a single click. This mode is sufficient when you're working on someone else's computer or on your phone.

Settings worth knowing

In the administrator account, you have a full configuration panel. The most useful for a start are: maximum file upload size, automatic expiration of old uploads, interface theme, and multipart upload for large files. Saplo does not change the default image values, so you set the limits for yourself, not according to the hosting provider's assumptions.

Zipline on Saplo vs. CloudApp Pro

The price difference is $88 per year in favor of Zipline, but the second row of the table is more important: your archive of screenshots and files does not depend on the pricing or decisions of a single company.

FAQ

Do I need SSH? No. You perform the installation from the directory in the panel, you set up the administrator account in the wizard when you first log in, and the ZIPLINE-SETUP.txt file is an instruction, not a source of passwords. SFTP is useful for reading it, but you can do everything else from your browser.

Do I set up a database? No. Zipline requires Postgres, so the recipe sets up a dedicated database container for it in the same installation. The database password and session secret are generated by the engine during installation; you only configure your administrator account.

How many screenshots will fit on Box S? A PNG screenshot usually weighs from several hundred kilobytes to several megabytes, so we're talking about thousands of files. Video recordings, large project files, and other applications running on the same Box take up space faster.

Can I give access to collaborators? Yes. Zipline has invitation-based registration: the administrator generates an invitation, and the person with the invitation creates their own account on the same instance. The number of accounts does not generate fees; the limit is the Box's resources.

What about updates? Zipline runs in a container on the official Docker image ghcr.io/diced/zipline, and uploads and the database are in separate volumes, so refreshing the application version does not affect your files or settings.

How do I get started? Open the Zipline hosting offer on Saplo, choose a Box, and launch the application from the catalog. After installation, create an account in the wizard, download the .sxcu file, and connect ShareX: you'll send your first screenshot to your own server faster than you can make coffee.