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docker-easy-haproxy/docs/acme.md
Joao Gilberto Magalhaes 711bb43572 Prepare version 6.0.0
2026-02-18 17:38:46 -05:00

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---
sidebar_position: 11
---
# SSL - Automatic Certificate Management Environment (ACME)
The Automatic Certificate Management Environment (ACME) protocol
allow automating interactions between certificate authorities and their users' servers,
allowing the automated deployment of public key infrastructure.
Most of the issuers offers Automatic Issuing free of cost.
## Supported ACME Challenge Methods
Easy HAProxy supports the following ACME challenge types:
- **HTTP-01 Challenge (Default and Only)**
The ACME server validates ownership by making an HTTP request to a temporary endpoint served on port 80. Easy HAProxy provisions a standalone Certbot responder on an internal port and routes `/.well-known/acme-challenge/` traffic to it.
:::info Challenge Support
- **HTTP-01**: Fully supported (default)
- **TLS-ALPN-01**: Not supported natively by Easy HAProxy
- **DNS-01**: Not supported natively. If you need DNS-01 for wildcard certificates, obtain certificates externally and mount them via `sslcert` as static certificates.
:::
## How ACME works with Easy HAProxy
At a high level, ACME with Easy HAProxy works in two stages:
1. Global ACME/Certbot setup (one-time per EasyHAProxy instance)
- Choose your Certificate Authority (CA) either by:
- Using AUTOCONFIG with `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG` (e.g., zerossl, letsencrypt_test, google, etc.), or
- Manually setting `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_SERVER` (and `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EAB_KID` / `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EAB_HMAC_KEY` when your CA requires EAB).
- Always set your contact email via `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL`.
- Ensure ports 80 and 443 are publicly reachable on the EasyHAProxy host.
- Persist the folder `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` on a durable volume so issued/renewed certificates survive container restarts and avoid hitting CA rate limits.
- Challenge method is HTTP-01 only; EasyHAProxy configures a standalone Certbot responder internally.
2. Enable ACME per domain (per service/app)
- Add the label `easyhaproxy.<definition>.certbot=true` to the service you want a certificate for.
- Ensure the service is exposed on HTTP port 80 from EasyHAProxy’s perspective (e.g., `easyhaproxy.<definition>.port=80`). ACME HTTP-01 will not work if the front port is not 80.
- Provide the domain via `easyhaproxy.<definition>.host=yourdomain.tld` (and additional labels per your install method).
What happens under the hood
- When a labeled domain is detected and a certificate is needed, EasyHAProxy runs Certbot with `--preferred-challenges http` and a standalone responder bound to internal port 2080.
- HAProxy temporarily routes `/.well-known/acme-challenge/` for that domain to the Certbot responder, allowing the CA to validate via HTTP-01.
- On success, EasyHAProxy merges the issued cert and key and stores them under `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` (one PEM per domain), then reloads HAProxy to serve HTTPS for that domain.
- Certificates are monitored and renewed automatically before expiry.
Tips
- Do not map port 443 for your backend app; EasyHAProxy will terminate TLS at the proxy once the certificate is issued.
- If you do not set `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL`, EasyHAProxy will not request certificates.
- DNS-01 is not supported natively; for wildcards or DNS-only environments, issue certificates externally and mount them via `sslcert` as static certificates.
## Environment Variables
To enable the ACME protocol we need to enable Certbot in EasyHAProxy by setting up the following environment variables:
| Environment Variable | Required? | Description |
|------------------------------------------|-----------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL | **YES** | Your email for the certificate authority. Required for certificate issuance. |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG | **YES\*** | Pre-configured settings for your Certificate Authority (CA). See table below. **Required if CERTBOT_SERVER is not set.** |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_SERVER | **YES\*** | The ACME endpoint URL of your certificate authority. **Required if AUTOCONFIG is not set.** Auto-set when using AUTOCONFIG. |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EAB_KID | - | External Account Binding (EAB) Key Identifier (KID) provided by your certificate authority. Some CA require it. See table below. |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EAB_HMAC_KEY | - | External Account Binding (EAB) HMAC Key provided by your certificate authority. Some CA require it. See table below. |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_RETRY_COUNT | - | Wait 'n' requests before retrying issue invalid requests. Default 60. |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_PREFERRED_CHALLENGES | - | The preferred challenges for Certbot. Available: `http` |
| EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_MANUAL_AUTH_HOOK | - | The path to a script that will be executed (default: None) |
**\*Important:** You must set **either** `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG` **or** `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_SERVER` (not both). Using `AUTOCONFIG` is recommended as it automatically configures the server URL for popular certificate authorities.
## Auto Config Certificate Authority (CA)
Here are detailed instructions per Certificate Authority (CA). If anyone is missing, please let's know.
Possible values for: `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG`
| CA | Auto Config | Free? | Account Required? | EAB KID? | EAB HMAC Key? | More Info |
|----------------------|------------------|-------|--------------------|----------|---------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Let's Encrypt | letsencrypt | Yes | No | No | No | Default when no AUTOCONFIG is set |
| Let's Encrypt (Test) | letsencrypt_test | Yes | No | No | No | - |
| ZeroSSL | zerossl | Yes | No | No | No | [Link](https://zerossl.com/documentation/acme/) |
| BuyPass | buypass | Yes | No | No | No | [Link](https://community.buypass.com/t/63d4ay/buypass-go-ssl-endpoints-updated-14-05-2020) |
| BuyPass (test) | buypass_test | Yes | No | No | No | [Link](https://community.buypass.com/t/63d4ay/buypass-go-ssl-endpoints-updated-14-05-2020) |
| Google | google | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/identity-security/automate-public-certificate-lifecycle-management-via--acme-client-api) |
| Google Test | google_test | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://cloud.google.com/blog/products/identity-security/automate-public-certificate-lifecycle-management-via--acme-client-api) |
| SSLCOM RCA | sslcom_rca | Trial | EAB Keys by email. | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://www.ssl.com/blogs/sslcom-supports-acme-protocol-ssl-tls-certificate-automation/) |
| SSLCOM ECC | sslcom_ecc | Trial | EAB Keys by email. | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://www.ssl.com/blogs/sslcom-supports-acme-protocol-ssl-tls-certificate-automation/) |
| Digicert | - | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://docs.digicert.com/en/certcentral/certificate-tools/certificate-lifecycle-automation-guides/use-a-third-party-acme-client-for-host-automations.html) |
| Entrust | - | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://www.entrust.com/knowledgebase/ssl/how-to-use-acme-to-install-ssl-tls-certificates-in-entrust-certificate-services-apache) |
| Sectigo | - | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | [Link](https://www.sectigo.com/resource-library/sectigos-acme-automation) |
This configuration is global. After set up ACME properly, is necessary enable for each domain the certificate request.
To do that add the label: `easyhaproxy.<definition>.certbot=true`. See the method of installation you are using to learn how to set up properly.
## Example
### Setting up EasyHAProxy
Run the EasyHAProxy container:
```bash
docker run \
... \
-e EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG=zerossl \
-e EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL=john@doe.com \
-p 80:80 \
-p 443:443 \
-v /path/to/guest/certbot/certs:/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot \
... \
byjg/easy-haproxy
```
:::note Configuration Notes
- The `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG` is not required for Let's Encrypt (it's the default). In this example, the certificate will be issued by ZeroSSL.
- If you don't set the `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL` environment variable, EasyHAProxy will fail silently and **will not request** certificates.
- Ports 80 and 443 must be accessible through the internet as a [Let's Encrypt requirement](https://letsencrypt.org/docs/allow-port-80/)
:::
:::danger Important: Persist Certbot Certificates
To avoid hitting rate limits and certificate issuing problems:
- **You must persist** the container folder `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` outside the container
- **Never delete or modify** its contents manually
- If you don't persist this folder, or if you delete/modify its contents, certificate issuing may not work properly and you may hit rate limits
:::
If you are using Let's Encrypt, be aware of it rate limits:
- https://letsencrypt.org/docs/duplicate-certificate-limit/
- https://letsencrypt.org/docs/rate-limits/
## Setting up your container to use the ACME CA
```bash
docker run \
... \
--label easyhaproxy.express.port=80 \
--label easyhaproxy.express.localport=3000 \
--label easyhaproxy.express.host=example.org \
--label easyhaproxy.express.certbot=true \
... \
some/myimage
```
:::warning ACME Requirements
- Your container **must** be configured to listen on port 80 (`easyhaproxy.<definition>.port=80`). The CA will not issue certificates if using another port, and EasyHAProxy will fail silently.
- Do not set port 443 for the container when using ACME, because EasyHAProxy will create the HTTPS binding automatically once the certificate is issued.
:::
## Complete Docker Compose Example
Here's a complete `docker-compose.yml` showing proper ACME configuration:
```yaml
services:
easyhaproxy:
image: byjg/easy-haproxy:6.0.0
volumes:
- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
# REQUIRED: Persist Certbot certificates (ACME)
- certs_certbot:/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot
# OPTIONAL: For manual certificates (see SSL documentation)
- certs_haproxy:/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/haproxy
environment:
# Service discovery
EASYHAPROXY_DISCOVER: docker
EASYHAPROXY_LABEL_PREFIX: easyhaproxy
# ACME/Certbot Configuration (Method 1: Recommended)
EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL: your-email@example.com
EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG: letsencrypt
# ACME/Certbot Configuration (Method 2: Manual)
# EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL: your-email@example.com
# EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_SERVER: https://acme-v02.api.letsencrypt.org/directory
# Other settings
EASYHAPROXY_SSL_MODE: "default"
HAPROXY_CUSTOMERRORS: "true"
HAPROXY_USERNAME: admin
HAPROXY_PASSWORD: password
HAPROXY_STATS_PORT: 1936
ports:
- "80:80/tcp"
- "443:443/tcp"
- "1936:1936/tcp"
healthcheck:
test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "-u", "admin:password", "http://localhost:1936"]
interval: 10s
timeout: 5s
start_period: 30s
retries: 3
# Example backend service with ACME enabled
myapp:
image: nginx:alpine
labels:
easyhaproxy.http.host: example.com
easyhaproxy.http.port: 80
easyhaproxy.http.localport: 80
easyhaproxy.http.certbot: "true" # Enable ACME for this domain
volumes:
certs_certbot:
# This volume MUST be persisted to avoid rate limits
certs_haproxy:
# Optional: only needed if using manual certificates
```
## Certificate Storage Paths
EasyHAProxy uses different paths for different certificate types:
| Path | Purpose | When to Mount |
|----------------------------------|-------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------|
| `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` | ACME/Certbot automatic certificates | **Required** when using ACME |
| `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/haproxy` | Manual/custom certificates | Optional - only if using custom certificates |
Both volumes can be mounted simultaneously. Per-domain certificate selection:
- If a domain has `certbot=true` label, ACME certificate is used
- Otherwise, manual certificate from `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/haproxy` is used (if present)
## Troubleshooting
### Warning: "ACME environment not ready: ACME server not configured"
**Cause:** You set `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_EMAIL` but forgot to configure the ACME server.
**Solution:** Add one of these to your environment variables:
```yaml
# Option 1: Use AUTOCONFIG (recommended)
EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG: letsencrypt
# Option 2: Set server manually
EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_SERVER: https://acme-v02.api.letsencrypt.org/directory
```
### Certificates Not Being Issued
**Common causes:**
1. Port 80 is not publicly accessible
2. DNS doesn't point to your server
3. Container label missing `certbot=true`
4. Container port is not 80 (`easyhaproxy.<definition>.port` must be 80)
5. Rate limits hit (check `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` volume)
**Debug steps:**
```bash
# Check EasyHAProxy logs
docker logs easyhaproxy
# Check if Certbot volume is persisted
docker volume inspect certs_certbot
# Verify port 80 is accessible
curl -I http://your-domain.com/.well-known/acme-challenge/test
```
### Rate Limit Errors
If you hit Let's Encrypt rate limits:
- Wait for the limit window to reset (usually 1 week)
- Use staging server for testing: `EASYHAPROXY_CERTBOT_AUTOCONFIG: letsencrypt_test`
- Ensure `/etc/easyhaproxy/certs/certbot` volume is properly persisted
- See: https://letsencrypt.org/docs/rate-limits/
### Using Both ACME and Manual Certificates
You can use both simultaneously:
1. Mount both volumes (`certs_certbot` and `certs_haproxy`)
2. Use `certbot=true` label for domains that should use ACME
3. Omit the label for domains using manual certificates
Example:
```yaml
services:
# This service uses ACME
app1:
labels:
easyhaproxy.http.host: auto.example.com
easyhaproxy.http.certbot: "true"
# This service uses manual certificate
app2:
labels:
easyhaproxy.http.host: manual.example.com
# No certbot label - will use /etc/easyhaproxy/certs/haproxy/manual.example.com.pem
```
----
[Open source ByJG](http://opensource.byjg.com)
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