FlashPaper Hosting Live In 5 Minutes

FlashPaper hosting on xCloud gives you a self-hosted one-time secret sharing service on your own domain: paste a password or short note, get a one-time link, and the message is destroyed the first time it is opened. Deploy FlashPaper 2.5.0 and xCloud runs the pinned image behind HTTPS with an SQLite store, nothing else to run, and no login for visitors.

Deploy your FlashPaper

No terminal
No technical skills needed
No lock-in, cancel anytime

What is FlashPaper?

Self-hosted FlashPaper is a minimal self-destructing message service. Upstream's README describes a one-time encrypted password and secret sharing application focused on simplicity and security, with no database or complicated set-up required. You paste a password or short note, receive a one-time link, and the message is destroyed once the link is opened. It is a self-hosted alternative to hosted secret-sharing services, and it is licensed MIT.

On xCloud the template runs ghcr.io/andrewpaglusch/flashpaper 2.5.0, pinned by digest, as one nginx and PHP-FPM container with an SQLite store and a static AES key in the flashpaper_data volume. Unlike upstream's wording, this install is not zero-knowledge, because the key is on the same server as the messages. There are no accounts, so anyone who can reach the site can create messages.

From Sign-Up to a Live FlashPaper Link In Just 3 Easy Steps

Self-hosting FlashPaper normally means a container, a domain and a certificate before a single secret can be shared. This is the same result without assembling any of it.

Step 01
Sign Up
Create your xCloud account, pick FlashPaper from the OneClick catalog and choose a domain. There are no accounts or credentials to set.
Step 02
We Deploy It For You
One click. We bring up FlashPaper 2.5.0 pinned by immutable digest, mount the data volume holding the SQLite message store and the static AES key, and publish it over HTTPS.
Step 03
Encrypt And Share A Link
Open your HTTPS URL, type a message, press Encrypt Message, and share the one-time link. The recipient confirms once, reads it, and it is destroyed.

Everything FlashPaper Does, On Your Own Server

FlashPaper runs in full here — one-time links, the JSON API and pruning, on infrastructure you control.

One-Time, Self-Destructing Links
Each message is destroyed the first time it's viewed. Opening the link a second time shows it has already been destroyed.
AES-256 Encryption
Messages are encrypted before they are stored. The key sits in the same data volume as the messages, so this is not zero-knowledge: protect access to the server.
Built-In Templates
Templates for common secrets like credentials or credit card details, plus an optional announcement banner.
JSON API For Automation
POST secret=...&json=true and scripts or tools can create one-time links automatically.
Automatic Pruning
Unread messages are pruned automatically, by default between 365 and 730 days, with the window configurable.
No Accounts To Manage
Anyone who can reach the site can create a message, and only the one-time link opens it — nothing to register or sign into.

Everything You Need To Run Your Secret Sharing 24/7

Managed hosting for FlashPaper, so the parts that keep it online are not your problem.

FlashPaper 2.5.0 deployed instantly
AES-256 message encryption
Free SSL certificate
Server backups and snapshots
Server security updates included
30+ server locations
JSON API for scripted sharing
Unused balance refunded

What You Can Do With FlashPaper

Password sharing tool for your team
An IT admin sends a new account password through a one-time link instead of pasting it into chat, so the secret is gone after the recipient opens it once.
Send a secret without leaving a copy
Someone shares an API key or recovery code through a link that self-destructs, and learns from the destroyed link whether the intended person opened it first.
Create links from scripts
A developer posts a secret to the JSON API with curl and gets a one-time link back, so deployment scripts and tools can hand out credentials without a person copying them.
Brand it for your organisation
An admin sets the site title, logo, announcement banner and message texts through the environment, so staff recognise the service as their organisation's own.

FlashPaper vs Alternatives

Hosted secret-sharing services: Choose your own FlashPaper over a hosted secret-sharing service when you want messages stored on a server you control. It is not zero-knowledge here, so access to the server matters more than it would with a client-side design.
PrivateBin: In a FlashPaper vs PrivateBin comparison, PrivateBin is a self-hosted paste tool with its own OneClick page. FlashPaper is single-purpose: one-time messages for passwords and short notes, destroyed on first view.
Yopass: Yopass is a self-hosted secret-sharing service with its own OneClick page. FlashPaper needs no separate database, using an SQLite store in one container with the key in the same data volume.
Pastefy: Pastefy is a self-hosted paste service with its own OneClick page. FlashPaper is narrower: a message can be read only through its one-time link, then it is gone.

Simple Pricing. Everything Included.

Dedicated Cloud VPS sizes, pre-configured for FlashPaper hosting. Pick the one that fits, and resize any time.

Cloud VPS 6 GB

Cloud VPS 16 GB

Higher message volume across more teams.

$59.99per month

16 GB RAM
6 vCPU cores
200 GB NVMe SSD
30 TB
Unlimited

Get started

Cloud VPS 24 GB

FlashPaper alongside a whole self-hosted stack.

$84.99per month

24 GB RAM
8 vCPU cores
300 GB NVMe SSD
30 TB
Unlimited

Get started

Every size is a dedicated Cloud VPS we provision, patch, monitor and restore. Billed monthly with no lock-in — delete the server and the unused balance comes back to your account. FlashPaper itself is free under the MIT licence.

Docker hosting

Already Have a Server? Bring Your Own

Connect any VPS — DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS, Hetzner or bare metal — and deploy FlashPaper on it through the same panel, for a per-server management fee instead of a Cloud VPS rental.

Free

Start your journey without cost.

$0forever

1 server
10 sites

Start free

Starter

Professional

The same platform, discounted at 6–10 servers.

$4per server / month

6–10 servers
Unlimited sites
All features included
Bring any VPS provider

Get started

Agency

The same platform, discounted at 11+ servers.

$3per server / month

11+ servers
Unlimited sites
All features included
Bring any VPS provider

Get started

Priced per connected server, so your rate adjusts automatically as you add or remove servers. You pay your own provider for the server itself.

Self-managed hosting

Ready To Own Your Secret Sharing?

FlashPaper on xCloud runs on a dedicated Cloud VPS that we provision, patch, monitor and restore. Deploy faster. Own your secrets. Stay in control.

Fast Provisioning
Deploy faster using an xCloud Managed Server built with optimized stacks and high-speed SSDs.
Enterprise-grade security
Protect your infrastructure with a free SSL certificate and more advanced security features at no additional cost.
Intuitive Control Panel
From Server creation to application deployment, everything can be managed from our intuitive control panel.

Hear what people are saying about us

See why agencies, developers, startups, and growing businesses choose xCloud to power their projects.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns you may have.

Is FlashPaper free and open source?

Yes. FlashPaper is licensed MIT, so the service itself carries no licence charge. xCloud bills only for the dedicated Cloud VPS, and messages live on your own volume. This template adds no paid FlashPaper tier of any kind.

Can I run FlashPaper with Docker?

Yes, and upstream recommends Docker. This template does it for you: the ghcr.io/andrewpaglusch/flashpaper 2.5.0 image, pinned by digest, as one container behind HTTPS with a data volume. It is FlashPaper Docker hosting; the image tag has no v prefix.

How much RAM does a FlashPaper cloud server need?

FlashPaper needs only 128 MB of RAM: it is one nginx and PHP-FPM container with SQLite, so a FlashPaper cloud server is very small. The 6 GB Cloud VPS sold here gives room for other apps on the same machine.

Is FlashPaper zero-knowledge?

Not in this template. Messages are stored on the server and the key that protects them lives in the same data volume, so anyone with access to the server could in principle read pending messages. Protect access to the server, and treat it as a convenience, not a vault.

Can anyone create messages on my FlashPaper?

Yes. FlashPaper has no accounts and no login, so anyone who can reach the site can create messages and use the JSON API, which makes a public instance open to the whole internet. Add Basic Auth at your proxy if you need to restrict who can create them.

How long does FlashPaper keep unopened messages?

Messages that are never opened are pruned after 365 to 730 days by default. You can change the window with the PRUNE settings in the environment, or switch pruning off. Once a message is opened through its one-time link, it is destroyed immediately.

Does FlashPaper have an API?

Yes. The same flow is available programmatically: posting secret and json=true to the site root returns a one-time link, for example with curl. Because there are no accounts, the API is open to anyone who can reach the site unless you add your own access control.

How do I back up FlashPaper?

Take a backup of the complete flashpaper_data volume, which holds the SQLite database and the static AES key. Losing it loses the key and every pending message, and a restored database without the key cannot be read. Never use compose down -v for an upgrade.

Backups in xCloud

How do I update FlashPaper?

There are no automatic upgrades. Release 2.5.0 is pinned by digest, and catalogue changes never reach live sites. Back up the flashpaper_data volume, read upstream's notes, adopt a newer template version, then send yourself a test message and open it once.

Can I cancel anytime?

Yes. There is no lock-in — cancel any time. Hosting is billed monthly and charged for what you actually use, so when you delete the server the unused balance is refunded to your account, less up to 10% in payment-processing fees.