2. Self-Host Full Supabase Stack for Open Brain#

Status: Accepted

Context#

We need persistent AI memory accessible from any AI tool via MCP (Model Context Protocol). Options considered:

  1. Supabase Cloud — managed, but data leaves the cluster; monthly cost

  2. Postgres + custom MCP — minimal dependencies, but rebuilds platform features

  3. Full self-hosted Supabase — complete platform on our hardware

Decision#

Self-host the full Supabase stack (db, auth, PostgREST, Edge Functions, Studio, Kong) using the supabase-community/supabase-kubernetes Helm chart.

Consequences#

  • All data stays on our NAS (privacy, no cloud dependency)

  • ~2.5GB RAM footprint across all components

  • Studio UI for visual database management

  • Edge Functions provide a REST API for direct access (MCP protocol is now served by a standalone Python server — see ADR 0010)

  • Dependency on community Helm chart for upgrades

  • Kong gateway provides unified API routing