page:migrate:railway app:laravel

Migrate Railway app: Laravel

Summary

Move Laravel compute from Railway app to Ample, one component at a time. Destination verified on Ample: the app built, started and answered on its public HTTPS URL with encrypted configuration delivered. Source procedure: Export variables from the Railway service (Variables tab or railway variables) into an env file kept out of the repository. Not migrated automatically: Railway cron schedules, volumes and private networking are not migrated; persistent data belongs in a managed database, a bucket or an Ample volume. Cutover: Add the custom domain with ample domain add, update DNS from the Railway target, keep the Railway service until verified, then remove it. Rollback: keep the source untouched until you confirm; nothing at the source is changed or deleted by this guide.

Prerequisites

Authorized access to the Railway app source and its export tooling
An inventory of every component in scope and out of scope
A validated backup or copy before any cutover
An Ample account token with servers:write, databases:read

Workflow Steps

Inventory the source
List what Railway app provides beyond the component you are moving. Out of scope here: Railway cron schedules, volumes and private networking are not migrated; persistent data belongs in a managed database, a bucket or an Ample volume.
Source step 1
Export variables from the Railway service (Variables tab or railway variables) into an env file kept out of the repository.
Source step 2
Translate railway.json/Nixpacks settings into the repository's build and start commands; Ample detects Node and Python builds itself.
Source step 3
Note Railway-only features in use: cron schedules, volumes, private networking, templates.
Deploy on Ample in parallel
composer install --no-dev from composer.lock, then FrankenPHP serving public/ (php-server with the index.php fallback) reading PORT on the php-8.5 template. Pass the exported variables with --env; keep the source running.
```
ample deploy . --name  --public --env-file .env.production
```
Validate before cutover
Run the app's own checks and, for data, compare counts and checksums; the example checks are the pattern self-tests (/p/configuration-secrets, /p/relational-records).
Cut over
Add the custom domain with ample domain add, update DNS from the Railway target, keep the Railway service until verified, then remove it.
Rollback
Point DNS or configuration back to the source. The source was never modified; deletion is a separate, user-executed step after validation.

Tested Configuration

Template: php-8.5
Runtime: php
Size: s-1vcpu-1gb
Install Command: composer install --no-dev --prefer-dist --no-interaction --no-progress --optimize-autoloader
Start Command: frankenphp php-server --listen :$PORT --root public

Limitations

Documentation only: nothing is executed automatically and no execution binding is offered.
The source-side procedure is documented from Railway app's standard tooling and was not executed in this catalog's evidence; the destination side was verified with the pattern fixture.
No full source-product parity is claimed: Railway cron schedules, volumes and private networking are not migrated; persistent data belongs in a managed database, a bucket or an Ample volume.

Cost Estimate

Currency: USD
Monthly Amount: 10.0
Basis: Size prices from pricing.toml (loaded by the API) at build revision 1ac5595375130d45290090e82ed0f554ccd45405-dirty
Components:
- App server: size s-1vcpu-1gb, quantity 1.0, monthly amount 5.0
- Managed PostgreSQL database: size s-1vcpu-1gb, quantity 1.0, monthly amount 5.0
Note: Destination always-on monthly price of the tested sizes; apps auto-pause when idle. Source costs are unknown to Ample.

Success Checks

Destination app responds on its public URL:
- Kind: http_get
- Path: /
- Expect: ample canary laravel patterns
Configuration-secrets check from the destination example:
- Kind: http_get
- Path: /p/configuration-secrets
- Expect: see the pattern fixture checks
Relational-records check from the destination example:
- Kind: http_get
- Path: /p/relational-records
- Expect: see the pattern fixture checks
Data or object counts and checksums match the source:
- Kind: manual
- Expect: operator comparison before cutover.

Examples

Title: Laravel pattern fixture (destination)
- Description: Verified destination basis: Laravel compute.
- Source Ref: tests/deploy-canaries/laravel-patterns

Evidence Summary

Kind: canary_run
Summary: Destination side verified: the Laravel pattern fixture deployed on Ample and its checks passed (the app built, started and answered on its public HTTPS URL with encrypted configuration delivered). The source-side export from Railway app is documented from the vendor's standard tooling and was not executed by this catalog's evidence.
Observed At: 2026-09-20T20:36:21Z
Implementation Revision: 118ad1c6d7d23d4c2ce069254bab9ec9d37cd57b-dirty (CLI 118ad1c)
Expires At: 2027-03-19T20:36:21Z