This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Priyabrato Saha

Setting up LiveKit Server on a Google Cloud VM (GCP)

This guide explains how to set up and run a LiveKit server on a Google Cloud VM instance using systemd for persistent, auto-starting service.

Prerequisites

• Google Cloud Project with billing enabled
• VM Instance created (preferably Ubuntu 22.04 LTS)
• gcloud CLI configured (optional for local management)
• Domain name (optional but useful)

1. Create and Configure a VM Instance

1. Go to GCP Console
2. Navigate to Compute Engine > VM Instances
3. Click Create Instance
4. Settings:

• Machine type: e2-medium or higher
• Boot disk: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
• Firewall: Allow both HTTP and HTTPS
• External IP: Static (Reserved)
  1. SSH into the instance:

gcloud compute ssh <instance-name>
# or use browser SSH terminal

2. Install Dependencies

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install -y tmux curl unzip nginx

3. Install and Set Up LiveKit Server

Step 1: Download the Binary

cd ~
mkdir -p apps/livekit && cd apps/livekit
curl -LO https://github.com/livekit/livekit/releases/latest/download/livekit-linux-amd64
chmod +x livekit-linux-amd64
sudo mv livekit-linux-amd64 /usr/local/bin/livekit-server

Step 2: Create Config File (livekit.yaml)

nano livekit.yaml

Paste minimal config:

port: 7880
rtc:
  udp_port: 7881
  tcp_port: 7882
keys:
  devkey: secret

Replace keys with your preferred API key pair or manage with env vars.

4. Set Up systemd Service

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/livekit.service

Paste the following:

[Unit]
Description=LiveKit Server
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/livekit-server --config /home/YOUR_USER/apps/livekit/livekit.yaml
Restart=always
User=YOUR_USER
WorkingDirectory=/home/YOUR_USER/apps/livekit

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Replace YOUR_USER with your GCP username (e.g., priya_scse2022)

Reload and Enable

sudo systemctl daemon-reexec
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable livekit.service
sudo systemctl start livekit.service
sudo systemctl status livekit.service

5. Configure NGINX (Optional: Reverse Proxy)

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/livekit

Paste:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name livekit.yourdomain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:7880;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
    }
}

Enable it:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/livekit /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx

Optional: Add SSL with Let’s Encrypt

6. Verify Everything

• Visit http://<your-external-ip>:7880 or http://livekit.yourdomain.com
• Check logs: journalctl -u livekit.service -f
• On VM reboot, LiveKit will auto-start via systemd

Done!

You now have a persistent, production-ready LiveKit server running on GCP with automatic restarts using systemd and optional reverse proxy using NGINX.

Pro Tips

• Add a firewall rule to open ports 7880-7882
• Use ufw or GCP firewall for tighter security
• For production, consider load balancing and TLS termination
• To update LiveKit:

sudo systemctl stop livekit.service
curl -LO https://github.com/livekit/livekit/releases/latest/download/livekit-linux-amd64
chmod +x livekit-linux-amd64
sudo mv livekit-linux-amd64 /usr/local/bin/livekit-server
sudo systemctl start livekit.service

Happy hacking with LiveKit!

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Priyabrato Saha