Docker Deployment Guide

Quick Start

1. Basic Relay Setup

# Build and start the relay
docker-compose up -d

# View logs
docker-compose logs -f orly-relay

# Stop the relay
docker-compose down

2. With Nginx Proxy (for SSL/domain setup)

# Start relay with nginx proxy
docker-compose --profile proxy up -d

# Configure SSL certificates in nginx/ssl/
# Then update nginx/nginx.conf to enable HTTPS

Configuration

Environment Variables

Copy env.example to .env and customize:

cp env.example .env
# Edit .env with your settings

Key settings:

• ORLY_OWNERS: Owner npubs (comma-separated, full control)
• ORLY_ADMINS: Admin npubs (comma-separated, deletion permissions)
• ORLY_PORT: Port to listen on (default: 7777)
• ORLY_MAX_CONNECTIONS: Max concurrent connections
• ORLY_CONCURRENT_WORKERS: CPU cores for concurrent processing (0 = auto)

Data Persistence

The relay data is stored in ./data directory which is mounted as a volume.

Performance Tuning

Based on the v0.4.8 optimizations:

• Concurrent event publishing using all CPU cores
• Optimized BadgerDB access patterns
• Configurable batch sizes and cache settings

Development

Local Build

# Pull the latest image (recommended)
docker pull silberengel/orly-relay:latest

# Or build locally if needed
docker build -t silberengel/orly-relay:latest .

# Run with custom settings
docker run -p 7777:7777 -v $(pwd)/data:/data silberengel/orly-relay:latest

Testing

# Test WebSocket connection
websocat ws://localhost:7777

# Run stress tests (if available in cmd/stresstest)
go run ./cmd/stresstest -relay ws://localhost:7777

Production Deployment

SSL Setup

1. Get SSL certificates (Let's Encrypt recommended)
2. Place certificates in nginx/ssl/
3. Update nginx/nginx.conf to enable HTTPS
4. Start with proxy profile: docker-compose --profile proxy up -d

Monitoring

• Health checks are configured for both services
• Logs are rotated (max 10MB, 3 files)
• Resource limits are set to prevent runaway processes

Security

• Runs as non-root user (uid 1000)
• Rate limiting configured in nginx
• Configurable authentication and event size limits

Troubleshooting

Common Issues (Real-World Experience)

Container Issues:

1. Port already in use: Change ORLY_PORT in docker-compose.yml
2. Permission denied: Ensure ./data directory is writable
3. Container won't start: Check logs with docker logs container-name

WebSocket Issues:

1. HTTP 426 instead of WebSocket upgrade:

- Use ws://127.0.0.1:7777 in proxy config, not http:// - Ensure proxy_wstunnel module is enabled

1. Connection refused in browser but works with websocat:

- Clear browser cache and service workers - Try incognito mode - Add CORS headers to Apache/nginx config

Plesk-Specific Issues:

1. Plesk not applying Apache directives:

- Check if config appears in /etc/apache2/plesk.conf.d/vhosts/domain.conf - Use direct Apache override if Plesk interface fails

1. Virtual host conflicts:

- Check precedence with apache2ctl -S - Remove conflicting Plesk configs if needed

SSL Certificate Issues:

1. Self-signed certificate after Let's Encrypt:

- Plesk might not be using the correct certificate - Import Let's Encrypt certs into Plesk or use direct Apache config

Debug Commands

# Container debugging
docker ps | grep relay
docker logs orly-relay
curl -I http://127.0.0.1:7777  # Should return HTTP 426

# WebSocket testing
echo '["REQ","test",{}]' | websocat wss://domain.com/
echo '["REQ","test",{}]' | websocat wss://domain.com/ws/

# Apache debugging (for reverse proxy issues)
apache2ctl -S | grep domain.com
apache2ctl -M | grep -E "(proxy|rewrite)"
grep ProxyPass /etc/apache2/plesk.conf.d/vhosts/domain.conf

Logs

# View relay logs
docker-compose logs -f orly-relay

# View nginx logs (if using proxy)
docker-compose logs -f nginx

# Apache logs (for reverse proxy debugging)
sudo tail -f /var/log/apache2/error.log
sudo tail -f /var/log/apache2/domain-error.log

Working Reverse Proxy Config

For Apache (direct config file):

<VirtualHost SERVER_IP:443>
    ServerName domain.com
    SSLEngine on
    SSLCertificateFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/domain.com/fullchain.pem
    SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/domain.com/privkey.pem

    # Direct WebSocket proxy for Nostr relay
    ProxyRequests Off
    ProxyPreserveHost On
    ProxyPass / ws://127.0.0.1:7777/
    ProxyPassReverse / ws://127.0.0.1:7777/

    Header always set Access-Control-Allow-Origin "*"
</VirtualHost>

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