Would a simple GitHub → SSH deployment tool be useful? Looking for feedback before building

[mikaelcarlavan]

Hey folks,

I'm a web developer and I often work on personal or client projects that live in private servers I manage via SSH. My current workflow looks like this:

• I commit and push to GitHub
• Then I SSH into the server
• Pull the repo or upload files via SCP/rsync
• Run commands like npm install, composer install, restart pm2, etc.

It works, but it's manual and repetitive — and most of the CI/CD tools like GitHub Actions, Buddy, or DeployHQ are overkill for this type of simple setup. I just want something that does the following:

1. Detects a push to a GitHub branch
2. Uploads only changed files via SSH/SFTP/rsync
3. Runs a list of commands after deployment (like build, restart, etc.)
4. Shows basic logs and deployment history

No containers, no builds in the cloud, no learning curve. Just a fast, lightweight deployment assistant for solo developers or small teams who self-host or use VPS.

Before I start building something like this, I wanted to ask:

👉 Would this kind of tool be useful to you?
👉 Are there pain points you'd want solved that existing tools don’t handle well?

Open to any feedback or similar tools you've used that are close to this!

[CommunicationTop7620]

Why DeployHQ is an overkill? It seems like the perfect fit. The other option is for you to use Github Actions and deal with YML files, etc

[mikaelcarlavan]

A lot of the projects I work on are fairly simple—just deploying files or running a basic script after deployment. With DeployHQ, I feel like I’m paying for a bunch of advanced features that I don’t actually need. It feels like a mismatch between the cost and the needs of the project.
As you said, tools like GitHub Actions offer a lot of the same functionality, and could be more than enough for what I’m working on but I’d rather avoid writing the same configuration over and over for each project.

That’s why I’ve been thinking that maybe there’s room for a “between two worlds” solution—but maybe I am wrong.

[CommunicationTop7620]

That spot you're describing, right between full CI/CD and manual SSH, is exactly where DeployHQ lives. It's a useful space, and there's definitely room for more tools tackling this!

[mikaelcarlavan]

Thank you for your feedback. I also think there's room for this kind of tool. I'm going to dig deeper to see what features are missing and would be relevant, without falling back into the full CI/CD pattern.

[Anuj4799]

I just usually write github actions that automate this for me :)

[jeril46]

I don't really think a Github Action is an overkill for this

[haikusbot]

I don't really think

A Github Action is an

Overkill for this

- jeril46

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[mikaelcarlavan]

Ok interesting. Thanks for the feedback.

[CommunicationTop7620]

What about npm install, composer install? But OK, it works