> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.stackshift.cloud/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# What is StackShift

> A precise description of StackShift as it exists today: a self-hosted application platform control plane for deploying and operating workloads across connected nodes.

<Tip>
  **Live.** This area is documented as current, user-reliable behavior.
</Tip>

## Goal

Understand the platform model before you start reading deployment or operations guides.

## Prerequisites

* A basic understanding of Docker images, Docker Compose, and Linux hosts

## Workflow

<Steps>
  <Step>
    Think of StackShift as the control plane, not the machine that runs your workloads.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Connect one or more nodes with the agent so StackShift has somewhere to place workloads.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Use projects for application/image deployments and stacks for Compose and service-style workloads.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Use templates when you want a versioned, curated stack blueprint with safer lifecycle controls.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Use operations, backup, and recovery surfaces to monitor and maintain what is running.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## How to think about the product

StackShift is not a generic cloud account wrapper and it is not just a Docker UI. It is a platform control plane that coordinates deployments, health, routing, and recovery across machines you connect to it.

The product is structured around the workload shape you are trying to run. That distinction matters because different surfaces carry different lifecycle, observability, and recovery behavior.

## Primary product surfaces

* Projects: application-style deployments from GitHub or Docker images.
* Stacks: multi-container and service-style workloads defined with Compose.
* Templates: curated, versioned blueprints that deploy as stacks.
* Nodes: machines running the agent and hosting workloads.
* Databases: managed database resources tracked separately from stacks.
* Operations: health, alerts, services, node state, and recovery visibility.

## Additional product areas

Domains and email, team collaboration, billing, notifications, global settings, and AI diagnosis all exist as first-class product areas in the current platform.

## Expected result

<Check>
  You can explain the difference between the control plane, nodes, projects, stacks, templates, databases, and operations.
</Check>

## Related guides

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Core concepts" href="/introduction/core-concepts">
    A glossary and mental model for projects, stacks, templates, nodes, databases, deployments, and operations.
  </Card>

  <Card title="How StackShift works" href="/introduction/how-stackshift-works">
    A product-level walkthrough of how the control plane, worker, agent, and runtime hosts cooperate.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Current platform status and terminology" href="/introduction/current-platform-status">
    A maturity guide for reading the platform docs without collapsing every user-visible surface into the same confidence level.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>