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  3. Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?

Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?

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  • girishG Offline
    girishG Offline
    girish
    Staff
    wrote on last edited by
    #24

    For Netdata to work well, it has to run like it runs on the host itself i.e without a sandbox. If you see https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/installing/docker#recommended-way or the compose file @fbartels posted, it is giving access to proc, etc, sys of the host and docker access. This is security risk (or not) depending on whether you trust netdata. Cloudron apps don't have access to any of these things.

    1 Reply Last reply
    2
    • fbartelsF fbartels

      Using the install script is not even necessary, as netdata can just as well be run as a container itself. So a simple docker-compose.yaml with the following is enough:

      version: '3'
      services:
        netdata:
          image: netdata/netdata
          container_name: netdata
          pid: host
          network_mode: host
          restart: unless-stopped
          cap_add:
            - SYS_PTRACE
            - SYS_ADMIN
          security_opt:
            - apparmor:unconfined
          volumes:
            - ./netdataconfig/netdata:/etc/netdata
            - netdatalib:/var/lib/netdata
            - netdatacache:/var/cache/netdata
            - /etc/passwd:/host/etc/passwd:ro
            - /etc/group:/host/etc/group:ro
            - /proc:/host/proc:ro
            - /sys:/host/sys:ro
            - /etc/os-release:/host/etc/os-release:ro
            #- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
          environment:
            - DOCKER_HOST=127.0.0.1:2375
        cetusguard:
          image: hectorm/cetusguard:v1
          network_mode: host
          read_only: true
          volumes:
            - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
          environment:
            CETUSGUARD_BACKEND_ADDR: unix:///var/run/docker.sock
            CETUSGUARD_FRONTEND_ADDR: tcp://:2375
            CETUSGUARD_RULES: |
              ! Inspect a container
              GET %API_PREFIX_CONTAINERS%/%CONTAINER_ID_OR_NAME%/json
      
      volumes:
        netdatalib:
        netdatacache:
      

      Afterwards one can just create an app proxy to http://127.0.0.1:19999 and netdata can be "publicly" reached.

      The above docker-compose.yaml actually comes from the netdata documentation.

      imc67I Offline
      imc67I Offline
      imc67
      translator
      wrote on last edited by
      #25

      @fbartels said in Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?:

      Afterwards one can just create an app proxy to http://127.0.0.1:19999 and netdata can be "publicly" reached.

      I just installed Netdata (stable) on another Cloudron production server. Installation went well, connection to Netdata cloud dashboard went well and indeed as @fbartels wrote, the "app proxy" works also to have a local only view!

      Perfect!

      girishG 1 Reply Last reply
      1
      • imc67I imc67

        @fbartels said in Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?:

        Afterwards one can just create an app proxy to http://127.0.0.1:19999 and netdata can be "publicly" reached.

        I just installed Netdata (stable) on another Cloudron production server. Installation went well, connection to Netdata cloud dashboard went well and indeed as @fbartels wrote, the "app proxy" works also to have a local only view!

        Perfect!

        girishG Offline
        girishG Offline
        girish
        Staff
        wrote on last edited by
        #26

        @imc67 Did you install as docker container or via the apt repos?

        imc67I 1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • girishG girish

          @imc67 Did you install as docker container or via the apt repos?

          imc67I Offline
          imc67I Offline
          imc67
          translator
          wrote on last edited by
          #27

          @girish via apt

          1 Reply Last reply
          2
          • D Offline
            D Offline
            d1rk
            wrote on last edited by
            #28

            @imc67 I understood, that installing netdata via the Kickstart command is not a bad thing to do?

            https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/installing/one-line-installer-for-all-linux-systems

            ofc, taking into account, that messing with the system like that deviates from what is suggested for obvious reasons by Cloudron and is in my responsibility.

            imc67I 1 Reply Last reply
            2
            • D d1rk

              @imc67 I understood, that installing netdata via the Kickstart command is not a bad thing to do?

              https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/installing/one-line-installer-for-all-linux-systems

              ofc, taking into account, that messing with the system like that deviates from what is suggested for obvious reasons by Cloudron and is in my responsibility.

              imc67I Offline
              imc67I Offline
              imc67
              translator
              wrote on last edited by
              #29

              @d1rk on 3 of my Cloudrons it is working without an issue but indeed that’s not a measure for succes πŸ˜‰

              1 Reply Last reply
              1
              • robiR Offline
                robiR Offline
                robi
                wrote on last edited by
                #30

                It might be useful to use --disable-telemetry: Disable anonymous statistics. for the privacy conscious; as well as the local webUI.

                Conscious tech

                1 Reply Last reply
                1
                • D Offline
                  D Offline
                  d1rk
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #31

                  Thanks for your feedback. Yeah, that would have been my approach, anyway:

                  • disable any remote communication
                  • use local webUI
                  • install via kickstart (which results in apt-packages)

                  Ok, I would give it a go and see for myself.

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  1
                  • girishG Offline
                    girishG Offline
                    girish
                    Staff
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #32

                    Looks like we got our first support ticket related to installing netdata. I have not verified this but it seems that installing netdata installs the nodejs package which ends up downgrading nodejs to v12 . This in turn prevents Cloudron from starting up.

                    It's better to install netdata via Docker, atleast it would prevent the above issue.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    3
                    • D Offline
                      D Offline
                      d1rk
                      wrote on last edited by d1rk
                      #33

                      Oh, interesting find. I have to check which version of node I have. Currently it seems to work fine.

                      Thanks for keeping us posted, here.

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • imc67I Offline
                        imc67I Offline
                        imc67
                        translator
                        wrote on last edited by imc67
                        #34

                        Uhoh how do we check the version? And how to install it via Docker?

                        Netdata is extremely useful and needed like having a live dashboard in your car. Without its hard to drive πŸ˜‰

                        imc67I 1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • imc67I imc67

                          Uhoh how do we check the version? And how to install it via Docker?

                          Netdata is extremely useful and needed like having a live dashboard in your car. Without its hard to drive πŸ˜‰

                          imc67I Offline
                          imc67I Offline
                          imc67
                          translator
                          wrote on last edited by imc67
                          #35

                          @imc67 said in Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?:

                          Uhoh how do we check the version?

                          I just found out: node -v on the command line.

                          On my 3 Cloudron's it says v18.16.0

                          Is that OK @girish ?

                          girishG 1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • imc67I Offline
                            imc67I Offline
                            imc67
                            translator
                            wrote on last edited by imc67
                            #36

                            BTW nice to know:

                            ⭐ Netdata is the most energy-efficient monitoring tool for Docker-based systems ⭐

                            Dec 11, 2023: University of Amsterdam published a study related to the impact of monitoring tools for Docker based systems, aiming to answer 2 questions:

                            What is the impact of monitoring tools on the energy efficiency of Docker-based systems?
                            What is the impact of monitoring tools on the performance of Docker-based systems?
                            They tested ELK, Prometheus, Netdata and Zipkin, under 9 different configurations (Low, Mid, High Frequency vs. Low, Mid, High Workload, 3x3).

                            This is how Netdata stands:

                            πŸš€ Netdata excels in energy efficiency: "... Netdata being the most energy-efficient tool ...", as the study says.
                            πŸš€ Netdata excels in CPU Usage, RAM Usage and Execution Time, and has a similar impact in Network Traffic as Prometheus.
                            The study did not normalize the results based on the number of metrics collected. Given that Netdata usually collects singificantly more metrics than the other tools, Netdata managed to outperform the other tools, while ingesting a much higher number of metrics. Read the full study here: https://www.ivanomalavolta.com/files/papers/ICSOC_2023.pdf

                            source: https://github.com/netdata/netdata

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            2
                            • imc67I imc67

                              @imc67 said in Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?:

                              Uhoh how do we check the version?

                              I just found out: node -v on the command line.

                              On my 3 Cloudron's it says v18.16.0

                              Is that OK @girish ?

                              girishG Offline
                              girishG Offline
                              girish
                              Staff
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #37

                              @imc67 said in Any issues with including NetData on the root server and as an app add-on?:

                              On my 3 Cloudron's it says v18.16.0

                              Is that OK @girish ?

                              It is correct version right now. If netdata has a nodejs dep, then it might conflict with Cloudron's. We update Cloudron's nodejs without thinking about other software.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • imc67I Offline
                                imc67I Offline
                                imc67
                                translator
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #38

                                Still no single problem with 3 Cloudrons, I guess and am pretty sure it’s not NetData what’s causing your issue.

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                2
                                • C Offline
                                  C Offline
                                  cvachery
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #39

                                  Hello,

                                  I'm currently looking at this topic at the moment and maybe it would be possible to split this issue in two different subject.

                                  I understood that the main issue to add netdata to cloudron as an app is the capabilities required from the docker image to be able to collect all the metrics of the host. Which I understand is a problem as it challenge the whole security design actually implemented.

                                  But would it be conceivable to deploy netdata as a cloudron app with limited monitoring capabilities as a known limitation. I know that it can seems counter-productive but I have a specific purpose for which it could be useful : Using this netdata instance as a parent node to centralize all the metrics from different children and use the ldap/proxyauth addon of cloudron to add authentication to the WebUI
                                  That would be a really great use case for me.

                                  And concerning the other subject of actually collecting the data of the cloudron host using netdata. IMHO a tutorial on how to deploy it with docker and /or docker-compose, and the firewall configuration needed would be enough for most admin I think.

                                  marcusquinnM 1 Reply Last reply
                                  1
                                  • C cvachery

                                    Hello,

                                    I'm currently looking at this topic at the moment and maybe it would be possible to split this issue in two different subject.

                                    I understood that the main issue to add netdata to cloudron as an app is the capabilities required from the docker image to be able to collect all the metrics of the host. Which I understand is a problem as it challenge the whole security design actually implemented.

                                    But would it be conceivable to deploy netdata as a cloudron app with limited monitoring capabilities as a known limitation. I know that it can seems counter-productive but I have a specific purpose for which it could be useful : Using this netdata instance as a parent node to centralize all the metrics from different children and use the ldap/proxyauth addon of cloudron to add authentication to the WebUI
                                    That would be a really great use case for me.

                                    And concerning the other subject of actually collecting the data of the cloudron host using netdata. IMHO a tutorial on how to deploy it with docker and /or docker-compose, and the firewall configuration needed would be enough for most admin I think.

                                    marcusquinnM Offline
                                    marcusquinnM Offline
                                    marcusquinn
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #40

                                    @cvachery I believe it makes most sense to install in the root host.

                                    I assume being installed there would give it a view of all Docker Containers, anyway.

                                    Perhaps it should just be an optional install on the root host, with disclaimers that issues might not be supported.

                                    Web Design https://www.evergreen.je
                                    Development https://brandlight.org
                                    Life https://marcusquinn.com

                                    C 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • marcusquinnM marcusquinn

                                      @cvachery I believe it makes most sense to install in the root host.

                                      I assume being installed there would give it a view of all Docker Containers, anyway.

                                      Perhaps it should just be an optional install on the root host, with disclaimers that issues might not be supported.

                                      C Offline
                                      C Offline
                                      cvachery
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #41

                                      @marcusquinn I do agree that for a monitoring point of view it indeed makes more sense to deploy on the root host (that was my second point) but as a cloudron app I do believe the not privileged app has an utility.

                                      And using this architecture of a netdata parent node as a cloudron app and a child node being deployed on the root host streaming its data to the parent would be then transparent and we would have the best of the two world if the installation on the root host is at least well documented on the cloudron side or even as you suggest made an optionnal part of the install process

                                      robiR 1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • C cvachery

                                        @marcusquinn I do agree that for a monitoring point of view it indeed makes more sense to deploy on the root host (that was my second point) but as a cloudron app I do believe the not privileged app has an utility.

                                        And using this architecture of a netdata parent node as a cloudron app and a child node being deployed on the root host streaming its data to the parent would be then transparent and we would have the best of the two world if the installation on the root host is at least well documented on the cloudron side or even as you suggest made an optionnal part of the install process

                                        robiR Offline
                                        robiR Offline
                                        robi
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #42

                                        @cvachery Start a package for it using the docs and see how far you get, others here can chime in to help. Bit by bit, progress is made.

                                        Conscious tech

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • C Offline
                                          C Offline
                                          cvachery
                                          wrote on last edited by cvachery
                                          #43

                                          I've had some time this week to work on this topic. So here is where I am at the moment.
                                          I packaged an app for cloudron, it does seem to be working properly. (I let you guys have a look/test as it is my first try at packaging for cloudron)

                                          The only thing I can't get to work is the streaming part. (eg a child node stream to my cloudron node which is a parent), my best guess is that the reverse proxy used by cloudron doesn't send the tcp stream to the container but only http. But I don't know how to configure/fix that.

                                          The netdata configuration file is in /app/data/etc so to set up streaming you can add a file stream.conf using the file explorer and restart the app

                                          Infos I can give :
                                          Command used to install : cloudron install --image cvachery/netdata-app:v1.44.1
                                          Github : https://github.com/aylham/cloudron-netdata
                                          Docker image : docker pull cvachery/netdata-app:v1.44.1
                                          Netdata doc on how to setup streaming : https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/streaming/understanding-how-streaming-works#enable-streaming-between-nodes

                                          girishG KubernetesK 2 Replies Last reply
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