diff --git a/.woodpecker/build-docker.yml b/.woodpecker/build-docker.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7c4cef2e4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.woodpecker/build-docker.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+labels:
+  platform: linux/amd64
+
+variables:
+  - &on-release
+    when:
+      event:
+        - push
+        - tag
+      branch:
+        - develop
+        - stable
+  - &on-stable
+    when:
+      event:
+        - push
+        - tag
+      branch:
+        - stable
+
+steps:
+  build:
+    image: woodpeckerci/plugin-docker-buildx:latest
+    secrets: [docker_username, docker_password]
+    settings:
+      repo: akkoma/akkoma
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile
+      platforms: linux/amd64
+      tag: next
+    when:
+      branch: customizable-docker-db
+      event: push
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index aadd08f7a..0ce08eda7 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -1,9 +1,37 @@
-FROM hexpm/elixir:1.15.4-erlang-26.0.2-alpine-3.18.2
+####################################
+# BUILD CONTAINER
+####################################
+
+FROM hexpm/elixir:1.16.3-erlang-26.2.5-alpine-3.19.1 AS BUILD
 
 ENV MIX_ENV=prod
-ENV ERL_EPMD_ADDRESS=127.0.0.1
 
-ARG HOME=/opt/akkoma
+RUN mkdir /src
+WORKDIR /src
+RUN apk add git gcc g++ musl-dev make cmake file-dev exiftool ffmpeg imagemagick libmagic ncurses postgresql-client
+RUN mix local.hex --force &&\
+    mix local.rebar --force
+
+ADD mix.exs /src/mix.exs
+ADD mix.lock /src/mix.lock
+ADD lib/ /src/lib/
+ADD priv/ /src/priv/
+ADD config/ /src/config/
+ADD rel/ /src/rel/
+ADD restarter/ /src/restarter/
+ADD docs/ /src/docs/
+ADD installation/ /src/installation/
+
+RUN mix deps.get --only=prod
+RUN mix release --path docker-release
+
+#################################
+# RUNTIME CONTAINER
+#################################
+
+FROM alpine:3.19.1
+
+RUN apk add file-dev exiftool ffmpeg imagemagick libmagic postgresql-client
 
 LABEL org.opencontainers.image.title="akkoma" \
     org.opencontainers.image.description="Akkoma for Docker" \
@@ -14,21 +42,23 @@ LABEL org.opencontainers.image.title="akkoma" \
     org.opencontainers.image.revision=$VCS_REF \
     org.opencontainers.image.created=$BUILD_DATE
 
-RUN apk add git gcc g++ musl-dev make cmake file-dev exiftool ffmpeg imagemagick libmagic ncurses postgresql-client
-
+ARG HOME=/opt/akkoma
 EXPOSE 4000
 
-ARG UID=1000
-ARG GID=1000
-ARG UNAME=akkoma
-
-RUN addgroup -g $GID $UNAME
-RUN adduser -u $UID -G $UNAME -D -h $HOME $UNAME
-
 WORKDIR /opt/akkoma
 
-USER $UNAME
-RUN mix local.hex --force &&\
-    mix local.rebar --force
+COPY --from=BUILD /src/docker-release/ $HOME
+RUN ln -s $HOME/bin/pleroma /bin/pleroma
+# it's nice you know
+RUN ln -s $HOME/bin/pleroma /bin/akkoma
+RUN ln -s $HOME/bin/pleroma_ctl /bin/pleroma_ctl
+RUN ln -s $HOME/bin/pleroma_ctl /bin/akkoma_ctl
+
+ADD docker-entrypoint.sh $HOME/docker-entrypoint.sh
+
+ENV AKKOMA_CONFIG_PATH=/opt/akkoma/config/prod.secret.exs
+VOLUME uploads /opt/akkoma/uploads
+VOLUME instance /opt/akkoma/instance
+VOLUME config /opt/akkoma/config
 
 CMD ["/opt/akkoma/docker-entrypoint.sh"]
diff --git a/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml b/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7ac8c5ecd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+services:
+  db:
+    # If you use a config generator, use the value below for your
+    # "ram" size
+    shm_size: 4gb
+    command:
+      - "postgres"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_connections=40"
+      - "-c"
+      - "shared_buffers=1GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "effective_cache_size=3GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "maintenance_work_mem=512MB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "checkpoint_completion_target=0.9"
+      - "-c"
+      - "wal_buffers=16MB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "default_statistics_target=500"
+      - "-c"
+      - "random_page_cost=1.1"
+      - "-c"
+      - "effective_io_concurrency=200"
+      - "-c"
+      - "work_mem=6553kB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "min_wal_size=4GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_wal_size=16GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_worker_processes=4"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_workers_per_gather=2"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_workers=4"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_maintenance_workers=2"
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 6c0e2a7e1..3ac94808f 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -1,12 +1,10 @@
-version: "3.7"
-
 services:
   db:
-    image: akkoma-db:latest
-    build: ./docker-resources/database
+    image: postgres:16-alpine
     shm_size: 4gb
     restart: unless-stopped
-    user: ${DOCKER_USER}
+    env_file:
+      - .env 
     environment: {
       # This might seem insecure but is usually not a problem.
       # You should leave this at the "akkoma" default.
@@ -18,19 +16,15 @@ services:
       POSTGRES_USER: akkoma,
       POSTGRES_PASSWORD: akkoma,
     }
-    env_file:
-      - .env 
+    user: ${DOCKER_USER}
     volumes:
       - type: bind
         source: ./pgdata
         target: /var/lib/postgresql/data
-
   akkoma:
-    image: akkoma:latest
-    build: .
+    image: akkoma/akkoma:next
     restart: unless-stopped
-    env_file:
-      - .env
+    user: ${DOCKER_USER}
     links:
       - db
     ports: [
@@ -44,7 +38,9 @@ services:
       "127.0.0.1:4000:4000",
     ]
     volumes:
-      - .:/opt/akkoma
+      - ./config:/opt/akkoma/config
+      - ./uploads:/opt/akkoma/uploads
+      - ./instance:/opt/akkoma/instance
 
   # Copy this into docker-compose.override.yml and uncomment there if you want to use a reverse proxy
   #proxy:
diff --git a/docker-entrypoint.sh b/docker-entrypoint.sh
index 778ef08e2..49319bfa9 100755
--- a/docker-entrypoint.sh
+++ b/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ while ! pg_isready -U ${DB_USER:-pleroma} -d postgres://${DB_HOST:-db}:5432/${DB
 done
 
 echo "-- Running migrations..."
-mix ecto.migrate
+/opt/akkoma/bin/pleroma_ctl migrate
 
 echo "-- Starting!"
-mix phx.server
+/opt/akkoma/bin/pleroma start
diff --git a/docker-resources/build.sh b/docker-resources/build.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index ce4f30f8d..000000000
--- a/docker-resources/build.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,4 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/sh
-
-docker compose build --build-arg UID=$(id -u) --build-arg GID=$(id -g) akkoma
-docker compose build --build-arg UID=$(id -u) --build-arg GID=$(id -g) db
diff --git a/docker-resources/database/Dockerfile b/docker-resources/database/Dockerfile
deleted file mode 100644
index 2a38dd16b..000000000
--- a/docker-resources/database/Dockerfile
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,10 +0,0 @@
-FROM postgres:14-alpine
-
-ARG UID=1000
-ARG GID=1000
-ARG UNAME=akkoma
-
-RUN addgroup -g $GID $UNAME
-RUN adduser -u $UID -G $UNAME -D -h $HOME $UNAME
-
-USER akkoma
diff --git a/docker-resources/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml b/docker-resources/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7ac8c5ecd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docker-resources/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+services:
+  db:
+    # If you use a config generator, use the value below for your
+    # "ram" size
+    shm_size: 4gb
+    command:
+      - "postgres"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_connections=40"
+      - "-c"
+      - "shared_buffers=1GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "effective_cache_size=3GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "maintenance_work_mem=512MB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "checkpoint_completion_target=0.9"
+      - "-c"
+      - "wal_buffers=16MB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "default_statistics_target=500"
+      - "-c"
+      - "random_page_cost=1.1"
+      - "-c"
+      - "effective_io_concurrency=200"
+      - "-c"
+      - "work_mem=6553kB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "min_wal_size=4GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_wal_size=16GB"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_worker_processes=4"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_workers_per_gather=2"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_workers=4"
+      - "-c"
+      - "max_parallel_maintenance_workers=2"
diff --git a/docker-resources/generate-instance.sh b/docker-resources/generate-instance.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..1f92d3d8d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docker-resources/generate-instance.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+mkdir -p pgdata
+
+# This is sorta special in that we need the generated_config.exs to make it onto the host
+docker compose run \
+    --rm \
+    -e "PLEROMA_CTL_RPC_DISABLED=true" \
+    akkoma ./bin/pleroma_ctl instance gen --no-sql-user --no-db-creation --dbhost db --dbname akkoma --dbuser akkoma --dbpass akkoma --listen-ip 0.0.0.0 --listen-port 4000 --static-dir /opt/akkoma/instance/ --uploads-dir /opt/akkoma/uploads/ --db-configurable y --output /opt/akkoma/config/generated_config.exs --output-psql /opt/akkoma/config/setup_db.psql
+
+# setup database from generated config
+# we run from the akkoma container to ensure we have the right environment! can't connect to a DB that doesn't exist yet...
+docker compose run \
+    --rm \
+    -e "PLEROMA_CTL_RPC_DISABLED=true" \
+    -e "PGPASSWORD=akkoma" \
+    akkoma psql -h db -U akkoma -d akkoma -f /opt/akkoma/config/setup_db.psql
+
+# stop tzdata trying to write to places it shouldn't
+echo "config :tzdata, :data_dir, "/var/tmp/elixir_tzdata_storage" >> /opt/akkoma/config/generated_config.exs
+
+echo "Instance generated!"
+
+echo "Make sure you check your config and copy it to config/prod.secret.exs before starting the instance!"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/docker-resources/manage.sh b/docker-resources/manage.sh
index acb6618c3..847cd0788 100755
--- a/docker-resources/manage.sh
+++ b/docker-resources/manage.sh
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
 #!/bin/sh
 
-docker compose run --rm akkoma $@
+# this should all be done without needing a running instance
+docker compose run --rm -e "PLEROMA_CTL_RPC_DISABLED=true" akkoma ./bin/pleroma_ctl $@
diff --git a/docker-resources/migrate-postgresql-version.sh b/docker-resources/migrate-postgresql-version.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..7d5015b2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docker-resources/migrate-postgresql-version.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# USAGE:
+# migrate-postgresql-version.sh <data_directory> <old_version> <new_version>
+
+if [ "$#" -ne 3 ]; then
+    echo "USAGE: migrate-postgresql-version.sh <data_directory> <old_version> <new_version>"
+    echo "Example: migrate-postgresql-version.sh pgdata 14 16"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+data_directory=$1
+old_version=$2
+new_version=$3
+new_data_directory=$data_directory.new
+
+# we'll need the credentials to create the new container
+echo "Please provide the credentials for your database"
+echo "If you set a different password for the old container, you'll need to provide it here! Check your config file if you're not sure"
+echo ""
+
+echo "Database user (default 'akkoma'):"
+read DB_USER
+echo "Database password (default: 'akkoma'):"
+read DB_PASS
+echo "Database name (default: 'akkoma'):"
+read DB_NAME
+
+echo ""
+echo "Ok! Using user:$DB_USER to migrate db:$DB_NAME from version $old_version to $new_version"
+
+trap "docker stop pg$old_version pg$new_version" INT TERM
+
+# Start a PostgreSQL 14 container
+docker run --rm -d --name pg$old_version \
+  -v $(pwd)/$data_directory:/var/lib/postgresql/data \
+  -e "POSTGRES_PASSWORD=$DB_PASS" \
+  -e "POSTGRES_USER=$DB_USER" \
+  -e "POSTGRES_DB=$DB_NAME" \
+  postgres:$old_version-alpine
+
+# wait a bit for the container to start
+sleep 10
+
+# Dump the db from the old container
+echo "Dumping your old database..."
+
+docker exec pg$old_version pg_dumpall -U $DB_USER > dump.sql
+
+# Stop the old container
+echo "Stopping the old database..."
+docker stop pg$old_version
+
+# Start a PostgreSQL 16 container
+echo "Creating a new database with version $new_version..."
+docker run --rm -d --name pg$new_version \
+    -v $(pwd)/$new_data_directory:/var/lib/postgresql/data \
+    -e "POSTGRES_PASSWORD=password" \
+    -e "POSTGRES_USER=$DB_USER" \
+    -e "POSTGRES_DB=$DB_NAME" \
+    postgres:$new_version-alpine
+
+# wait for it
+sleep 10
+
+# Load the db into the new container
+docker exec -i pg$new_version psql -U $DB_USER < dump.sql
+
+# Stop the new container
+docker stop pg$new_version
+
+# Remove the dump file
+# rm dump.sql
+
+echo "Migration complete! Your new database folder is $data_directory.new - you can now move your old data and replace it"
+
+echo "mv $data_directory $data_directory.old"
+echo "mv $new_data_directory $data_directory"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/docs/docs/installation/docker_en.md b/docs/docs/installation/docker_en.md
index 9551b034a..d586876e4 100644
--- a/docs/docs/installation/docker_en.md
+++ b/docs/docs/installation/docker_en.md
@@ -28,31 +28,14 @@ echo "DOCKER_USER=$(id -u):$(id -g)" >> .env
 This probably won't need to be changed, it's only there to set basic environment
 variables for the docker compose file.
 
-### Building the container
-
-The container provided is a thin wrapper around akkoma's dependencies, 
-it does not contain the code itself. This is to allow for easy updates
-and debugging if required.
-
-```bash
-./docker-resources/build.sh
-```
-
-This will generate a container called `akkoma` which we can use
-in our compose environment.
-
 ### Generating your instance
 
 ```bash
 mkdir pgdata
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix deps.get
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix compile
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix pleroma.instance gen
+./docker-resources/generate-instance.sh
 ```
 
-This will ask you a few questions - the defaults are fine for most things,
-the database hostname is `db`, the database password is `akkoma`
-(not auto generated), and you will want to set the ip to `0.0.0.0`.
+This will ask you a few questions - the defaults are fine for most things!
 
 Now we'll want to copy over the config it just created
 
@@ -60,24 +43,6 @@ Now we'll want to copy over the config it just created
 cp config/generated_config.exs config/prod.secret.exs
 ```
 
-### Setting up the database 
-
-We need to run a few commands on the database container, this isn't too bad
-
-```bash
-docker compose run --rm --user akkoma -d db 
-# Note down the name it gives here, it will be something like akkoma_db_run
-docker compose run --rm akkoma psql -h db -U akkoma -f config/setup_db.psql
-docker stop akkoma_db_run # Replace with the name you noted down
-```
-
-Now we can actually run our migrations
-
-```bash
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix ecto.migrate
-# this will recompile your files at the same time, since we changed the config
-```
-
 ### Start the server
 
 We're going to run it in the foreground on the first run, just to make sure
@@ -102,7 +67,7 @@ docker compose up -d
 If your instance is up and running, you can create your first user with administrative rights with the following task:
 
 ```shell
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix pleroma.user new MY_USERNAME MY_EMAIL@SOMEWHERE --admin
+./docker-resources/manage.sh user new MY_USERNAME MY_EMAIL@SOMEWHERE --admin
 ```
 
 And follow the prompts 
@@ -154,23 +119,43 @@ If you want, you can also run the reverse proxy on the host. This is a bit more
 Follow the guides for source install for your distribution of choice, or adapt
 as needed. Your standard setup can be found in the [Debian Guide](../debian_based_en/#nginx)
 
+### Applying Postgresql optimisations
+
+Your postgresql server will behave better if you tune its settings to your machine.
+
+There is a file at `docker-resources/docker-compose.pgsql-tuning.yml` which shows you how to apply settings, for example
+those generated by [PgTune](https://pgtune.leopard.in.ua/)
+
+You can merge this config into a `docker-compose.override.yml` file to apply them. Make sure that you generate your options
+based on the shm_size you allocate!
+
 ### You're done!
 
 All that's left is to set up your frontends. 
 
-The standard from-source commands will apply to you, just make sure you
+The standard OTP commands will apply to you, just make sure you
 prefix them with `./docker-resources/manage.sh`!
 
+So, for example, if an OTP command would be
+
+```
+./bin/pleroma_ctl user new myuser
+```
+
+The equivalent docker command would be
+
+```
+./docker-resources/manage.sh user new myuser
+```
+
 {! installation/frontends.include !}
 
 ### Updating Docker Installs
 
 ```bash
 git pull
-./docker-resources/build.sh
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix deps.get
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix compile
-./docker-resources/manage.sh mix ecto.migrate
+docker compose pull
+./docker-resources/manage.sh migrate
 docker compose restart akkoma db
 ```
 
@@ -180,6 +165,20 @@ create a new file called `docker-compose.override.yml`. There you can add any
 overrides or additional services without worrying about git conflicts when a
 new release comes out.
 
+### Migrating from the old docker install system
+
+If you were running akkoma in docker before 2024.06, you will need to do a few little migration steps.
+
+First off, we need to migrate our postgres installation to a newer version!
+
+```bash
+./docker-resources/migrate-postgresql-version.sh pgdata 14 16    
+```
+
+This should be nice and quick.
+
+After that you can just `docker compose pull` and all should be fine.
+
 #### Further reading
 
 {! installation/further_reading.include !}
diff --git a/lib/mix/tasks/pleroma/instance.ex b/lib/mix/tasks/pleroma/instance.ex
index 72f4623ce..c07bc7daf 100644
--- a/lib/mix/tasks/pleroma/instance.ex
+++ b/lib/mix/tasks/pleroma/instance.ex
@@ -37,7 +37,9 @@ defmodule Mix.Tasks.Pleroma.Instance do
           listen_port: :string,
           strip_uploads_metadata: :string,
           read_uploads_description: :string,
-          anonymize_uploads: :string
+          anonymize_uploads: :string,
+          no_sql_user: :boolean,
+          no_db_creation: :boolean
         ],
         aliases: [
           o: :output,
@@ -260,7 +262,9 @@ defmodule Mix.Tasks.Pleroma.Instance do
           dbname: dbname,
           dbuser: dbuser,
           dbpass: dbpass,
-          rum_enabled: rum_enabled
+          rum_enabled: rum_enabled,
+          no_sql_user: Keyword.get(options, :no_sql_user, false),
+          no_db_creation: Keyword.get(options, :no_db_creation, false)
         )
 
       config_dir = Path.dirname(config_path)
diff --git a/priv/templates/sample_psql.eex b/priv/templates/sample_psql.eex
index 627839a68..a3376c2ec 100644
--- a/priv/templates/sample_psql.eex
+++ b/priv/templates/sample_psql.eex
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
+<%= unless no_sql_user do %>
 CREATE USER <%= dbuser %> WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD '<%= dbpass %>';
-CREATE DATABASE <%= dbname %> OWNER <%= dbuser %>;
+<% end %>
+<%= unless no_db_creation do %>
+CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS <%= dbname %> OWNER <%= dbuser %>;
+<% end %>
 \c <%= dbname %>;
 --Extensions made by ecto.migrate that need superuser access
 CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS citext;