How to put a Telegram bot online without a VPS
Normally, to keep a Telegram bot online you have to rent a VPS, set up Python or Node.js on it, write a systemd unit, keep an eye on the process so it does not crash, and pay for the server every month. For a first bot or a pet project, that is a lot of extra fuss.
Netrun takes the infrastructure off your plate: you upload your bot code and add the token — the server, startup, and restarts are on us. Here is how to do it in a few minutes.
Prepare your bot code
Put your project in a single folder with a dependency file: requirements.txt for Python (for example, aiogram or python-telegram-bot) or package.json for Node.js (telegraf, grammY). Read the bot token from an environment variable instead of hardcoding it in the code.
Get a token from BotFather
Open @BotFather in Telegram, send the /newbot command, and follow the prompts. You will get a token back — a long string like 123456:ABC. It is the access key to your bot, so keep it secret.
Upload the project to Netrun
Pack your code into a ZIP archive or connect a GitHub repository, including a private one. Netrun detects the language and builds the project itself — no need to write a Dockerfile.
Add the token and launch
When Netrun asks about secrets, paste the token from BotFather. Press launch — the project deploys to our servers, and your bot goes online.
Check that the bot replies
Open the bot in Telegram and send /start. If it replies, everything works. Logs and status are visible in your dashboard, and if something fails, Netrun restarts the process automatically.
That is it: your bot lives on the internet without a server of your own. On the Free plan a project sleeps when idle — for a bot that needs to stay reachable around the clock, a paid plan with always-on operation is a better fit. Try Netrun.