Shlink Self-Hosted URL Shortener

This is a repackaged open source software product wherein additional charges apply for cloudimg support services.

## Why This AMI Instead of Self-Installing

Deploying Shlink from source requires installing PHP 8.4 with multiple extensions, configuring nginx, setting up a database, connecting the web client to the API, and hardening credentials - a process that can take hours. This AMI eliminates that effort entirely. Launch an instance and your complete link management platform is running within minutes, with a unique API key generated automatically and no shared credentials. Compared to SaaS shorteners, you retain full ownership of your click data inside your own VPC - no third-party analytics vendor ever touches your visitor information.

## Overview

Shlink is a self-hosted URL shortener that gives you complete ownership of your short links, their data and their analytics. This image delivers Shlink 5.1.0 fully installed and configured alongside the official Shlink web client, so a complete link management platform is running within minutes of launch.

## Application Stack

• Shlink on PHP 8.4 with all required extensions
• nginx web server with TLS-ready configuration
• SQLite database on a dedicated, independently resizable EBS volume
• Official Shlink web client (single page application) pre-connected to the local API
• systemd timer that processes and geolocates visits on a schedule

## Secure First Boot

On the first boot of your instance a one-shot service deletes any build-time API keys, short URLs and visits, generates a fresh administrator API key unique to that instance, wires the web client to it, and writes it to a root-only file. No shared or default credentials ship in the image. The dedicated data disk supports EBS encryption at rest, and nginx is configured to serve traffic over HTTPS once you attach your TLS certificate or terminate SSL at an Application Load Balancer.

## AWS Integration Points

• Amazon CloudWatch - Configure the CloudWatch agent to stream nginx access logs and Shlink application logs for centralized monitoring and alerting.
• AWS Certificate Manager / Application Load Balancer - Terminate TLS at an ALB with a free ACM certificate for production-grade HTTPS without managing certificates on the instance.
• Amazon Route 53 - Point your branded short-link domain at the instance or load balancer for custom vanity URLs.
• Amazon EBS Snapshots - Schedule automated snapshots of the dedicated SQLite data disk for point-in-time backup and disaster recovery.

## Ready To Use

The Shlink REST API, short URL redirects, web client and database are all configured. Browse to the web client, sign in with the generated key, and start creating short URLs, QR codes and reading visit analytics. The REST API is ready for your own applications and integrations - connect it to workflow automation tools or your existing marketing stack.

## Use Cases

• Marketing teams generating thousands of branded campaign links and tracking click-through rates across channels, all within their own AWS account so visitor data never leaves their control.
• Developer teams programmatically creating short URLs via the REST API as part of CI/CD pipelines or customer-facing applications that need link generation at scale.
• QR code campaigns for retail, events or print media where you need reliable redirect performance and real-time scan analytics.
• Organizations in regulated industries (finance, healthcare, government) that require link-tracking data to remain in a specific AWS region and VPC rather than on a third-party SaaS platform.

## cloudimg Support

24/7 technical support by email and live chat. Our engineers help with Shlink deployment, custom domain configuration, REST API integration, visit analytics and database administration. Critical issues receive a one-hour average response.

## Get Started

Launch this AMI, retrieve your unique API key, and begin shortening URLs in minutes. For a guided walkthrough of custom domain setup or API integration, contact cloudimg support.

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