ntfy: push notifications from your own server to your phone

Description and use

Set up a private ntfy server behind Traefik, configure HTTPS and authentication, subscribe to a topic, and send notifications via curl. Alerts arrive instantly on the phone via the ntfy app.

Problem

Receive real‑time alerts (e.g., backup failures, disk space warnings, SSH logins) on a phone without relying on third‑party push services.

Outcome

A lightweight, self‑hosted push notification system that delivers instant alerts to phone apps or browsers, keeping all data on the private server and eliminating third‑party dependencies.

Workflow

• 1. Create project directory /opt/ntfy and write compose.yaml with ntfy image, environment variables, Traefik labels, and volumes.
• 2. Run docker compose up -d and verify container status with docker compose ps and health endpoint curl https://ntfy.YOUR_DOMAIN/v1/health.
• 3. Create an admin user with docker exec -it ntfy ntfy user add --role=admin admin and set a password.
• 4. Log into the web client at https://ntfy.YOUR_DOMAIN, subscribe to a topic (e.g., serverkueche-alerts).
• 5. Configure the ntfy app on phone (Settings → Default server) and add the same topic.
• 6. Send a test message with curl -u admin:YOUR_PASSWORD -d "Backup completed" https://ntfy.YOUR_DOMAIN/serverkueche-alerts.

Evidence

ntfy is extremely lightweight (runs easily on the smallest VPS) and the data stays with you.

Source

Because we set deny-all, you need at least one user.

Source

Send a message via curl. Because the server is private, you supply your credentials (-u USER:PASSWORD).

Source