호스팅 또는 자체 호스팅 MonkeyCode? 새로운 SaaS 옵션에 대한 보안 체크리스트

Teams evaluating AI development platforms usually hit the same fork: run it yourself, or use a hosted service. MonkeyCode now supports both. The open-source project (github.com/chaitin/MonkeyCode, AGPL-3.0) can be privately deployed, and there is now a hosted platform at monkeycode-ai.net that is free to start and needs no local install.

The hosted option removes real operational risk surface. You are not patching the box, rotating its keys, or owning the network boundary of the model backend. That is genuinely attractive for small teams without a platform group. But “someone else runs it” changes who holds authority, not whether authority must be constrained.

A decision checklist

Use this before you pick a deployment mode. Score each row for your context.

Question Favors hosted SaaS Favors self-host Do you have staff to patch and monitor the platform? No Yes Must source and model traffic stay inside your network? No Yes Do you need custom model backends / BYOK control? Sometimes Yes Is fast time-to-first-task the priority? Yes No Are you bound by data-residency or air-gap rules? No Yes

What stays your job either way

• Least privilege for the agent. Whatever runs the tasks should not hold more repo, filesystem, or network authority than the task needs.
• Credential boundaries. Confirm where model keys live and who can read them. On the hosted platform, ask the team directly rather than assuming.
• Egress expectations. Know what leaves your environment. For hosted, that is your source and prompts by design; decide if that is acceptable per repo.
• Auditability. You still need a record of what the agent changed and merged.

If you want a low-friction way to try the workflow before committing to a deployment model, the hosted platform is the fastest path: monkeycode-ai.net. It is free to start; ask the team on the MonkeyCode Discord about current free model-credit availability, eligibility, and limits before you plan usage. Do not assume unlimited or permanent access.

Disclosure: I’m a MonkeyCode user sharing my own experience, not affiliated with the project.