Discord Bots

Deploy your Discord bot

From code on your machine to a bot running 24/7 on our infra, with auto-restart on crashes.

Before you start

Your bot code on your local machine — Node.js, Python, or any language with a runtime we support
A package.json (Node) or requirements.txt (Python) listing your dependencies
Your bot token (from the Discord Developer Portal)

Step 1 — Open your panel

From your dashboard, click Open Panel next to your bot service. You'll land in the Pterodactyl panel with a file manager, console, and startup settings.

Step 2 — Upload your code

Three ways to get your files onto the server:

Panel upload (small bots)

Go to the Files tab.
Zip your project folder locally (exclude node_modules, .git, and any secrets).
Upload the zip, then right-click → Unarchive.

SFTP (recommended for larger bots)

Follow the SFTP guide to connect, then drag your whole project folder into /home/container.

Git clone (Pro plans)

Open the panel console and run:

git clone https://github.com/yourname/yourbot.git .
# The . at the end clones into the current folder

Step 3 — Install dependencies

From the panel console:

Node.js

npm install
# or if you use pnpm:
pnpm install
# or yarn:
yarn install

Python

pip install -r requirements.txt

Note: Installing takes 30 seconds to a few minutes depending on the number of packages. Node.js installs are usually faster on subsequent deploys because npm caches them.

Step 4 — Set environment variables

Never hardcode your bot token in the source. Use environment variables instead. In the panel, go to the Startup tab.

Add variables like:

DISCORD_TOKEN — your bot token
DATABASE_URL — if you have one
OWNER_ID — your Discord user ID, if your code checks it

In your code, read them with process.env.DISCORD_TOKEN (Node) or os.environ["DISCORD_TOKEN"] (Python).

Heads up: If you commit your token to a public Git repo, Discord auto-revokes it. If that happens, generate a new one in the Developer Portal and update the env var.

Step 5 — Set the startup command

Still in the Startup tab, look for the Startup Command field. Set it based on your language:

Node.js

node index.js

or whatever your entry file is — bot.js, src/index.js, etc.

Python

python main.py

TypeScript (via tsx)

npx tsx src/index.ts

Step 6 — Start and watch the console

Click Start. Watch the console output. You should see your bot's normal startup log — something like:

Ready! Logged in as MyBot#1234
Serving 5 guilds

If you see errors, they're usually:

Missing token — env var name doesn't match what the code expects
Cannot find module — dependencies weren't installed, run npm install again
EADDRINUSE — the port is in use, change it or restart
Out of memory — upgrade your plan, or fix the memory leak

Step 7 — Auto-restart (already on)

You don't need to do anything here. If your bot crashes, the panel detects the process exit and restarts it automatically. You'll see a [Server] Process exited, restarting... line in the console.

Heads up: Auto-restart doesn't help if the crash is in your code (e.g., an unhandled promise rejection on startup). The bot will loop restart → crash → restart forever. Check the console and fix the bug.

Updating your bot later

To deploy new code:

Stop the server from the console (stop for Node, Ctrl+C for Python).
Upload the changed files via SFTP or panel.
Run npm install again if package.json changed.
Start the server.

If you use Git: git pull instead of manual uploads.

Using the MySQL database

Your plan includes MySQL. In the panel, go to the Databases tab, click New Database, and note the credentials.

Connection string example for Node.js:

import mysql from "mysql2/promise";

const db = await mysql.createConnection({
  host: process.env.DB_HOST,
  user: process.env.DB_USER,
  password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
  database: process.env.DB_NAME,
});

Store the DB values as env vars in Startup tab (same as your bot token) so you can rotate them without code changes.

Next: SSH into a VPS →← Back to plugins

Step 2 — Upload your code

Three ways to get your files onto the server:

Panel upload (small bots)

Go to the Files tab.
Zip your project folder locally (exclude node_modules, .git, and any secrets).
Upload the zip, then right-click → Unarchive.

SFTP (recommended for larger bots)

Follow the SFTP guide to connect, then drag your whole project folder into /home/container.

Git clone (Pro plans)

Open the panel console and run:

git clone https://github.com/yourname/yourbot.git .
# The . at the end clones into the current folder

Step 3 — Install dependencies

From the panel console:

Node.js

npm install
# or if you use pnpm:
pnpm install
# or yarn:
yarn install

Python

pip install -r requirements.txt

Note: Installing takes 30 seconds to a few minutes depending on the number of packages. Node.js installs are usually faster on subsequent deploys because npm caches them.

Step 4 — Set environment variables

Never hardcode your bot token in the source. Use environment variables instead. In the panel, go to the Startup tab.

Add variables like:

DISCORD_TOKEN — your bot token
DATABASE_URL — if you have one
OWNER_ID — your Discord user ID, if your code checks it

In your code, read them with process.env.DISCORD_TOKEN (Node) or os.environ["DISCORD_TOKEN"] (Python).

Heads up: If you commit your token to a public Git repo, Discord auto-revokes it. If that happens, generate a new one in the Developer Portal and update the env var.

Step 6 — Start and watch the console

Click Start. Watch the console output. You should see your bot's normal startup log — something like:

Ready! Logged in as MyBot#1234
Serving 5 guilds

If you see errors, they're usually:

Missing token — env var name doesn't match what the code expects
Cannot find module — dependencies weren't installed, run npm install again
EADDRINUSE — the port is in use, change it or restart
Out of memory — upgrade your plan, or fix the memory leak

Step 7 — Auto-restart (already on)

You don't need to do anything here. If your bot crashes, the panel detects the process exit and restarts it automatically. You'll see a [Server] Process exited, restarting... line in the console.

Using the MySQL database

Your plan includes MySQL. In the panel, go to the Databases tab, click New Database, and note the credentials.

Connection string example for Node.js:

import mysql from "mysql2/promise";

const db = await mysql.createConnection({
  host: process.env.DB_HOST,
  user: process.env.DB_USER,
  password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
  database: process.env.DB_NAME,
});

Store the DB values as env vars in Startup tab (same as your bot token) so you can rotate them without code changes.