Synapsis/docker/README.md

Synapsis Docker Deployment

Production Docker deployment using pre-built images from GitHub Container Registry.

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🚀 Quick Start

This is the default install path for a fresh VPS where Synapsis should manage its own HTTPS with Caddy.

curl -fsSL https://synapsis.social/install.sh | bash
nano /opt/synapsis/.env  # Add your domain and admin email
cd /opt/synapsis
docker compose up -d

Your node is live at https://your-domain.com with automatic SSL.

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📋 What You Need

Requirement	Details
Server	2GB RAM, 2 CPU cores, 20GB SSD (minimum)
Domain	A domain or subdomain pointing to your server
Docker	Installed automatically by install.sh when missing on supported Linux hosts
Ports	80 and 443 must be free for the default Caddy install

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⚙️ Configuration

Edit .env and set these required values (domain should be host only, no scheme or path):

Variable	What to put
DOMAIN	Your domain (e.g., synapsis.example.com)
DB_PASSWORD	Strong password for PostgreSQL
AUTH_SECRET	Run: openssl rand -hex 32
ADMIN_EMAILS	Your email address

Use the bare/canonical host in DOMAIN. Example: set DOMAIN=synapsis.example.com, not www.synapsis.example.com. If you also want www.synapsis.example.com to work, create a DNS record for www pointing to the same server. The bundled Caddy config will redirect www to the canonical DOMAIN.

Optional (advanced):

• NEXT_PUBLIC_NODE_DOMAIN to override the node domain (defaults to DOMAIN)
• NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL to override the public app URL used by background jobs (auto-derived from the node domain)
• ALLOW_LOCALHOST=1 to allow localhost in production containers for local testing

Port Configuration:

• PORT=auto (default) — Automatically finds an available port between 3000-3020
• PORT=3000 — Use a specific port instead

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Advanced: Existing nginx/Traefik/Caddy Host

If your server already runs a reverse proxy on 80/443, use the advanced mode:

curl -fsSL https://synapsis.social/install.sh | PROXY=none bash
nano /opt/synapsis/.env
cd /opt/synapsis
docker compose up -d

This mode:

• skips the bundled Caddy service
• binds Synapsis to 127.0.0.1:${PORT:-3000}
• expects your existing reverse proxy to forward traffic there

In PROXY=none mode, PORT is the localhost port your reverse proxy should target. The installer automatically changes PORT=auto to PORT=3000 unless you override it.

Example nginx site:

server {
    server_name node.example.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

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🔄 Updates (migrations run automatically)

cd /opt/synapsis
docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

🗑️ Full Uninstall

To remove Synapsis completely from a host and start over:

curl -fsSL https://synapsis.social/uninstall.sh | bash

The uninstaller destroys the Synapsis containers, volumes, network, cached Synapsis images, and /opt/synapsis. It requires typing DELETE unless you set FORCE=1.

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🛠️ Common Commands

# View logs
docker compose logs -f app

# Restart services
docker compose restart app

# Stop everything
docker compose down

# Database backup
docker compose exec postgres pg_dump -U synapsis synapsis > backup.sql

# Access database
docker compose exec postgres psql -U synapsis -d synapsis

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🔍 Troubleshooting

Container won't start

docker compose config  # Validate config
docker compose logs app --tail=50  # Check errors

Port already in use

If the installer says 80 or 443 is already in use, another reverse proxy is already bound there.

Use a fresh VPS for the default Caddy install, or rerun the installer in advanced mode:

curl -fsSL https://synapsis.social/install.sh | PROXY=none bash

For the application port itself, PORT=auto (default) automatically finds an available port. If you set a specific port that's taken:

# Check what's using the port
sudo netstat -tlnp | grep :3000

# Choose a different fixed port in /opt/synapsis/.env
# Example: PORT=3013

Database connection failed

# Check database health
docker compose ps

# Verify environment variables loaded
docker compose exec app env | grep DATABASE

SSL certificate issues

# Check Caddy logs
docker compose logs caddy

# Test Caddy config
docker compose exec caddy caddy validate --config /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Image pull fails

# Verify image exists
docker pull ghcr.io/gnosyslabs/synapsis:latest

# Check the published package tags in GitHub Container Registry

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💾 Backup Strategy

Create /opt/synapsis/backup.sh:

#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/synapsis"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
mkdir -p $BACKUP_DIR

# Database backup
docker compose exec -T postgres pg_dump -U synapsis synapsis > "$BACKUP_DIR/db_$DATE.sql"

echo "✅ Backup complete: $DATE"

Schedule daily backups:

chmod +x /opt/synapsis/backup.sh
echo "0 2 * * * /opt/synapsis/backup.sh" | sudo crontab -

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🏗️ Building from Source

To build locally instead of using pre-built images:

git clone https://github.com/GnosysLabs/Synapsis.git
cd synapsis/docker
docker compose up -d --build

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For full documentation, visit docs.synapsis.social