diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 99c9369..ff4b365 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -47,6 +47,9 @@ FROM rust:alpine AS backend-builder
 WORKDIR /app
 RUN apk add --no-cache musl-dev pkgconfig openssl-dev openssl-libs-static
 
+# Install sqlx-cli for migrations
+RUN cargo install sqlx-cli --no-default-features --features sqlite
+
 # Copy shared models
 COPY calendar-models ./calendar-models
 
@@ -76,19 +79,29 @@ RUN cargo build --release --bin backend
 FROM alpine:latest
 
 # Install runtime dependencies
-RUN apk add --no-cache ca-certificates tzdata
+RUN apk add --no-cache ca-certificates tzdata sqlite
 
 # Copy frontend files to temporary location
 COPY --from=builder /app/frontend/dist /app/frontend-dist
 
-# Copy backend binary (built in workspace root)
+# Copy backend binary and sqlx-cli
 COPY --from=backend-builder /app/target/release/backend /usr/local/bin/backend
+COPY --from=backend-builder /usr/local/cargo/bin/sqlx /usr/local/bin/sqlx
 
-# Create startup script to copy frontend files to shared volume
-RUN mkdir -p /srv/www
+# Copy migrations for database setup
+COPY --from=backend-builder /app/backend/migrations /migrations
+
+# Create startup script to copy frontend files, run migrations, and start backend
+RUN mkdir -p /srv/www /db
 RUN echo '#!/bin/sh' > /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'echo "Copying frontend files..."' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
     echo 'cp -r /app/frontend-dist/* /srv/www/' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'echo "Ensuring database directory exists..."' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'mkdir -p /db && chmod 755 /db' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'echo "Running database migrations..."' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'sqlx migrate run --database-url "sqlite:///db/calendar.db" --source /migrations || echo "Migration failed but continuing..."' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
     echo 'echo "Starting backend server..."' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
+    echo 'export DATABASE_URL="sqlite:///db/calendar.db"' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
     echo '/usr/local/bin/backend' >> /usr/local/bin/start.sh && \
     chmod +x /usr/local/bin/start.sh
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index cd03b56..23a06d6 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -29,6 +29,12 @@ While there are many excellent self-hosted CalDAV server implementations (Nextcl
 - **Real-time Updates**: Seamless synchronization with CalDAV servers
 - **Timezone Aware**: Proper local time display with UTC storage
 
+### User Experience
+- **Persistent Preferences**: Settings sync across devices and sessions
+- **Remember Me**: Optional server/username remembering for convenience
+- **Session Management**: Secure session tokens with automatic expiry
+- **Cross-Device Sync**: User preferences stored in database, not just browser
+
 ## Architecture
 
 ### Frontend (Yew WebAssembly)
@@ -40,7 +46,8 @@ While there are many excellent self-hosted CalDAV server implementations (Nextcl
 
 ### Backend (Axum)  
 - **Framework**: Axum async web framework with CORS support
-- **Authentication**: JWT token management and validation
+- **Authentication**: SQLite-backed session management with JWT tokens
+- **Database**: SQLite for user preferences and session storage
 - **CalDAV Client**: Full CalDAV protocol implementation for server sync
 - **API Design**: RESTful endpoints following calendar operation patterns
 - **Data Flow**: Proxy between frontend and CalDAV servers with proper authentication
@@ -54,12 +61,36 @@ While there are many excellent self-hosted CalDAV server implementations (Nextcl
 
 ## Getting Started
 
-### Prerequisites
+### Docker Deployment (Recommended)
 
+The easiest way to run the calendar is using Docker Compose:
+
+1. **Clone the repository**:
+   ```bash
+   git clone <repository-url>
+   cd calendar
+   ```
+
+2. **Start the application**:
+   ```bash
+   docker compose up
+   ```
+
+3. **Access the application** at `http://localhost`
+
+The Docker setup includes:
+- **Automatic database migrations** on startup
+- **Persistent data storage** in `./data/db/` volume
+- **Frontend served via Caddy** on port 80
+- **Backend API** accessible on port 3000
+
+### Development Setup
+
+#### Prerequisites
 - Rust (latest stable version)
 - Trunk (`cargo install trunk`)
 
-### Development Setup
+#### Local Development
 
 1. **Start the backend server** (serves API at http://localhost:3000):
    ```bash
@@ -73,6 +104,17 @@ While there are many excellent self-hosted CalDAV server implementations (Nextcl
 
 3. **Access the application** at `http://localhost:8080`
 
+#### Database Setup
+
+For local development, run the database migrations:
+```bash
+# Install sqlx-cli if not already installed
+cargo install sqlx-cli --features sqlite
+
+# Run migrations
+sqlx migrate run --database-url "sqlite:calendar.db" --source backend/migrations
+```
+
 ### Building for Production
 
 ```bash