A self-hosted, drag-and-drop dashboard builder with 50 widgets, a template gallery, custom pages, and zero cloud dependencies. One Node.js server, no frameworks, no build step needed.

Works standalone or with OpenClaw. LobsterBoard is a general-purpose dashboard — use it to monitor your homelab, track stocks, display weather, manage todos, or anything else. OpenClaw users get bonus widgets (auth status, cron jobs, activity logs), but they're completely optional.

npm install lobsterboard
cd node_modules/lobsterboard
node server.cjs

Or clone it:

git clone https://github.com/Curbob/LobsterBoard.git
cd LobsterBoard
npm install
node server.cjs

Open http://localhost:8080 → press Ctrl+E to enter edit mode → drag widgets from the sidebar → click 💾 Save.

• Drag-and-drop editor — visual layout with 20px snap grid, resize handles, property panel
• 50 widgets — system monitoring, weather, calendars, RSS, smart home, finance, AI/LLM tracking, notes, and more
• Template Gallery — export, import, and share dashboard layouts with auto-screenshot previews; import as merge or full replace
• Custom pages — extend your dashboard with full custom pages (notes, kanban boards, anything)
• Canvas sizes — preset resolutions (1920×1080, 2560×1440, etc.) or custom sizes
• Live data — system stats stream via Server-Sent Events, widgets auto-refresh
• Dark theme — the only correct choice
• No cloud — everything runs locally, your data stays yours

PORT=3000 node server.cjs              # Custom port
HOST=0.0.0.0 node server.cjs           # Expose to network

Widget settings are edited in the right-hand panel during edit mode. All configuration saves to config.json.

LobsterBoard includes a built-in template system for sharing and reusing dashboard layouts.

• Export your current dashboard as a template (auto-captures a screenshot preview)
• Browse the template gallery to discover pre-built layouts
• Import templates in two modes:
  • Replace — swap your entire dashboard for the template
  • Merge — append the template's widgets below your existing layout
• Templates are stored in the templates/ directory and can be shared as folders

LobsterBoard includes a pages system for adding full custom pages beyond the widget dashboard. Pages get their own route, nav entry, and optional server-side API.

pages/
└── my-page/
    ├── page.json       # Metadata (title, icon, order)
    ├── index.html      # Page UI
    └── api.cjs         # Optional: server-side API routes

Pages are auto-discovered on startup. Drop a folder in pages/, restart the server, and it appears in the nav.

👉 Full guide with examples: pages/README.md

cat > ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.lobsterboard.plist << 'EOF'
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
  <dict>
    <key>Label</key><string>com.lobsterboard</string>
    <key>RunAtLoad</key><true/>
    <key>KeepAlive</key><true/>
    <key>ProgramArguments</key>
    <array>
      <string>/usr/local/bin/node</string>
      <string>/path/to/lobsterboard/server.cjs</string>
    </array>
    <key>WorkingDirectory</key><string>/path/to/lobsterboard</string>
    <key>EnvironmentVariables</key>
    <dict>
      <key>PORT</key><string>8080</string>
      <key>HOST</key><string>0.0.0.0</string>
    </dict>
  </dict>
</plist>
EOF

launchctl load ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.lobsterboard.plist

Update the paths to match your install location and Node.js binary (which node).

sudo cat > /etc/systemd/system/lobsterboard.service << 'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=LobsterBoard Dashboard
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=your-user
WorkingDirectory=/path/to/lobsterboard
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node server.cjs
Environment=PORT=8080 HOST=0.0.0.0
Restart=always
RestartSec=5

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

sudo systemctl enable lobsterboard
sudo systemctl start lobsterboard

npm install -g pm2
cd /path/to/lobsterboard
PORT=8080 HOST=0.0.0.0 pm2 start server.cjs --name lobsterboard
pm2 save
pm2 startup

lobsterboard/
├── server.cjs          # Node.js server
├── app.html            # Dashboard builder
├── config.json         # Your saved layout
├── js/
│   ├── builder.js      # Editor: drag-drop, zoom, config I/O
│   ├── widgets.js      # All 50 widget definitions
│   └── templates.js    # Template gallery & export system
├── css/
│   └── builder.css     # Dark theme styles
├── templates/          # Dashboard templates
│   ├── templates.json  # Template index
│   └── */              # Individual template folders
├── pages/              # Custom pages (auto-discovered)
│   └── README.md       # Page creation guide
└── package.json

This project is licensed under the Business Source License 1.1 (BSL-1.1).

You are free to use, modify, and self-host LobsterBoard for non-commercial purposes. Commercial use requires a separate license. See LICENSE for full terms.

For commercial use, OEM licensing, or enterprise deployments, contact:

📧 curbob on GitHub — github.com/Curbob

Made with 🦞 by Curbob