Compose Stack Installation

This section describes the installation and configuration of the SubredditLog application itself via a Docker Compose stack.

Install Docker and Docker-Compose

Install the following per Docker-provided documentation:

• Docker
• docker-compose

Download SubredditLog

Create a directory of our choosing (e.g. ~/subredditlog/) and enter it. In that directory, create docker-compose.yml with the following contents:

version: '3.7'

services:
  app:
    image: ghcr.io/lfg-cares/subredditlog:0.3.2
    command: gunicorn subreddit_log.wsgi:application --bind 0.0.0.0:8000
    volumes:
      - static_files:/home/app/web/staticfiles
    expose:
      - 8000
    environment:
      - SQL_ENGINE=django.db.backends.postgresql
      - SQL_DATABASE=subreddit_log
      - SQL_USER=srlog_user
      - SQL_HOST=db
      - SQL_PASSWORD=$DB_PASSWORD
      - SQL_PORT=5432
      - DATABASE=postgres
      - SECRET_KEY=$SECRET_KEY
      - DJANGO_ALLOWED_HOSTS=$ALLOWED_HOSTS
    depends_on:
      - db
  db:
    image: postgres:13-alpine
    volumes:
      - psql_data:/var/lib/posgresql/data/
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=srlog_user
      - POSTGRES_DB=subreddit_log
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=$DB_PASSWORD
  nginx:
    image: ghcr.io/lfg-cares/subredditlog-nginx:0.3.2
    volumes:
      - static_files:/var/www/html/staticfiles
    ports:
      - 7654:80
    depends_on:
      - app


volumes:
  psql_data:
  static_files:

Also create a .env file with the following contents:

SECRET_KEY=
ALLOWED_HOSTS=
DB_PASSWORD=

Configuration

You will need to edit the .env file you just created as seen below.

ALLOWED HOSTS

This is a list of the valid hostnames and IP addresses by which this server can be reached. You must specify at least one name or IP address. (Note that this does not restrict the locations from which SubredditLog may be accessed: It is merely for HTTP host header validation.)

Each value should be separated by a space. For example,

ALLOWED_HOSTS=subredditlog.example.com 192.168.1.2

If you are not yet sure what the domain name and/or IP address of the SubredditLog installation will be, you can set this to a wildcard (asterisk) to allow all host values.

ALLOWED_HOSTS=*

SECRET KEY

This parameter must be assigned a randomly-generated key employed as a salt for hashing and related cryptographic functions. (Note, however, that it is never directly used in the encryption of secret data.) This key must be unique to this installation and is recommended to be at least 50 characters long. It should not be shared outside the local system.

The following online tool can be used to generate a good secret key: https://miniwebtool.com/django-secret-key-generator/

DB_PASSWORD

Input a random, secure password to be used for the local database connection.

The following online tool can be used to generate a working password: https://nupass.pw

When you have finished modifying the configuration, remember to save the file.

Start the Compose Stack

After the configuration has been set, you can bring up the compose stack with the following command:

sudo docker-compose up -d

If no error messages have been generated, then the application is running properly.

Create a Super User

SubredditLog does not come with any predefined user accounts. You'll need to create a super user (administrative account) to be able to login. This can be created with the following command:

sudo docker-compose exec app python manage.py createsuperuser

Follow the on-screen instructions, using your Reddit username as the username. Email address can be skipped by pressing Enter, as SubredditLog does not utilize email addresses in any way.

Test the Application

Connect to the name or IP of the server (as defined in ALLOWED_HOSTS) on port 7654; for example, http://127.0.0.1:7654/. You should be greeted with the SubredditLog home page.

Try logging in using the super user account we just created. Once authenticated, you'll be able to access all areas of the UI, including the admin interface.