Moving from PikaPods to CoreHost

PikaPods gives you SFTP access to your pod's files, and its own documentation describes a manual one-time backup for migrations. That is the route this guide uses. Everything we say about PikaPods comes from its public documentation (listed at the end), as we read it on 22 October 2026. Not sure CoreHost is the right fit? See the side by side comparison first.

Before you start

• Check the app is in the catalog. Find it in the app catalog. CoreHost only runs apps from its catalog.
• Write down the version. PikaPods updates apps for you, so your pod can run a newer release than the one CoreHost runs. Apps read older data but usually not newer data, so compare the versions in each app's settings before you copy anything.
• Note your settings. Values you entered as environment variables in the pod are not part of its files. Write them down, and look for any secret or encryption key, because some apps cannot read their old data without it.
• Keep the pod running until you are done. Nothing here changes your pod, except that you stop it while you copy.

Step by step

1. Deploy the same app on CoreHost, in the region you want, and let it finish its first start.
2. In PikaPods, open your pod and go to its settings. Switch on SFTP and copy the host, user name and password it shows.
3. Connect with an SFTP program such as WinSCP, Cyberduck or rclone, and switch on hidden files, so you can see folders that start with a dot.
4. If the pod settings show a Database section, switch on database access and export the database as SQL. Not every app has one: apps that keep their data in a file, such as SQLite, have it in the SFTP files instead.
5. Stop the pod, so its files are complete, and download the app's data folders.
6. On CoreHost, stop the new app from its page in the control panel. In the Files tab, upload your files into the matching folders, replacing the ones the new app created, then start the app.
7. Sign in and check your data, then update the address in your phones, scripts and bookmarks. Keep the pod stopped, not deleted, for a week.

What to watch for

• Uptime Kuma. PikaPods says new Uptime Kuma pods use a MySQL database. If you see no kuma.db file over SFTP, history cannot be moved by copying files. Your monitor list can still come across: open a ticket and we will help.
• Pocket ID. Passkeys only work on the address they were created for, so people register them again on the new address.
• Secrets. If the app needs a key that PikaPods keeps in the pod's settings, copy it before you leave. Never paste a key into a ticket: ask support for a private way to send it.
• Database apps. Apps that keep data in PostgreSQL or MariaDB cannot be moved by copying files. Use the app's own export, or ask us to load the SQL dump with you.

How each app moves

The route depends on the app. Each app's page has the details under Move your existing app here.

Want us to do it with you?

Open a ticket from your control panel, say which app you are moving and that it runs on PikaPods, and support will tell you what can be moved and which files to send. We never log in to your PikaPods account: you stay in control of your old pod.