Glossary
Terms that appear in the console, CLI, API, and this documentation, in alphabetical order. For how they relate to each other, see Platform concepts.
A–C
API Key: Organization key used by the API, the CLI, and automations. It gets only the scopes you choose. See API keys.
Auto-scaling: Automatic adjustment of the number of instances based on usage. See Scaling.
Build: The step that prepares the app to run: installs dependencies and runs pre-build and build. The result appears in Build Logs.
Build Logs: History of each build, with the step and reason for failures.
Console: Web interface at console.zenifra.com to create and manage projects.
Credit: The organization's prepaid balance used to pay for usage. See Payments.
Custom domain: Your own domain, such as app.yourcompany.com, pointed at a project with managed HTTPS. See Domains.
D–I
Deploy (deployment): Putting a new version of the app live. It can be manual, on push, on tag, or on release. See Deployment.
Environment variable: A name and value pair delivered to the app, used for configuration and secrets. See Variables.
Ephemeral: Does not survive a restart. Files written outside persistent storage are ephemeral.
Health check: Periodic check of a GET route in the app. If it fails, the instance restarts. See Health checks.
Instance: One running copy of the app. More instances mean more capacity and fault tolerance.
L–P
Application logs: Everything the app writes to stdout and stderr while running. See Observability.
MCP: Protocol that lets AI agents operate Zenifra with the permissions of an API Key. See MCP.
OCI image: A container package in the open standard used by Docker. It lets you deploy any language. See Deploy via OCI.
Organization: A space that groups projects, members, billing, and keys. One account can belong to several. See Organizations.
Owner: Role with full access to the organization.
Persistent storage: An app directory that keeps files across restarts and deployments. Without it, the instance disk is ephemeral. See Storage.
Plan: The set of resources (CPU, memory, storage, and features) chosen for a project. See Payments and Limits.
Port: Project field that states which port the app listens on. It must match the port used in the code.
pre-build: Optional command that runs after dependency install and before build.
Preview (Preview Environment): A temporary copy of the project, usually per pull request, with its own URL and TTL. See Preview Environments.
Project: A unit deployed on Zenifra: an HTTP app, a database, or a managed service.
R–Z
Registry: A service that stores OCI images, such as GitHub Container Registry, Docker Hub, or AWS ECR. See Private registry.
Rollback: Going back to a previous version. See Rollback.
Runtime: Language and version used to build GitHub projects: Node.js or Python. See Runtimes.
Scope: A specific permission, such as project.deploy.trigger, granted to members and API Keys. See Permissions.
start command: The command that starts the app's main process. Required for GitHub projects.
Template: A ready-made configuration to deploy an app in a few clicks, such as n8n or WordPress. See Templates.
TTL: Time to live. For previews, it is the time until automatic removal. For DNS, it is how long a record stays cached.
Update mode: The rule that decides what deploys a new version of a GitHub project: Manual, Automatic by branch, By Tag, or By Release.
Next steps
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Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about accounts, projects, deployments, databases, domains, billing, credit, security, and support on the Zenifra platform.
Help center and support
Where to get help with Zenifra: self-service guides, platform status, how to open a ticket with the right details, and how to send documentation feedback.