Deployment setup - the parts the workflow deliberately left out

Host setup checklist, real domains and ports, the database backup
script the deploy workflow only ever invokes, and a rollback plan.
Also drafted the FTPS switch procedure for whenever production moves
off the Pi, with a note that shared hosting is likely IIS-based -
that's a bigger change than swapping the transport.
This commit is contained in:
2026-07-28 19:07:26 +02:00
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# Deployment Instructions
**Target**: single Raspberry Pi (`linux-arm64`), test and production both on it, separated by
directory, `systemd --user` unit, and local port. Domains: `test.slpsoftware.nl` (test),
`slpsoftware.nl` (production).
---
## 1. One-Time Host Setup
Do this once, before the first automated deploy. Everything here is host configuration the workflow
assumes already exists — `deploy-scp.yaml` (U6) never creates any of it.
### 1.1 Prerequisites
- .NET 10 runtime installed on the Pi (ASM-03) — the publish is framework-dependent
(`infrastructure-design.md` § 1), so the Pi needs the runtime, not the full SDK
- SSH access for the deploy user, password auth for now (matches the reference project;
SSH-key migration remains a documented future step, same as there)
- `sqlcmd` installed, for the backup script (§ 4) — e.g. `mssql-tools18` / `unixodbc` on Debian-based
Raspberry Pi OS
### 1.2 Enable Lingering (INFRA-U6-01 — do this first, easy to forget)
```bash
sudo loginctl enable-linger <deploy-user>
```
Without this, the `systemd --user` service manager is torn down when the deploy SSH session ends,
killing the just-restarted app a few seconds after every successful deploy. This also fixes the
common "Failed to connect to bus" error `systemctl --user` can throw when invoked from a
non-interactive SSH command — lingering keeps the user's systemd instance (and `XDG_RUNTIME_DIR`)
running independent of any login session.
### 1.3 Directory Skeleton
Run once per environment (`test`, `production`):
```bash
mkdir -p ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/releases
mkdir -p ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/shared/wwwroot-web
```
`current` is created by the first deploy itself (`ln -sfn`) — don't pre-create it.
### 1.4 Runtime Configuration File
One file per environment, **outside** the release directory so it survives every switch:
```bash
touch ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/shared/env
chmod 600 ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/shared/env
```
Contents (fill in real values — this file is never read by the workflow, only by the systemd unit
below):
```ini
ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT=Production
ASPNETCORE_URLS=http://localhost:<port>
ConnectionStrings__DefaultConnection=Server=127.0.0.1,1433;User ID=<user>;Password=<password>;Database=SlpModularCms<Env>;TrustServerCertificate=True
JwtSettings__Secret=<secure-long-random-secret>
JwtSettings__Issuer=SlpModularCms
JwtSettings__Audience=SlpModularCmsPortal
MasterModule__MasterUrl=https://<this-environment-domain>
Observability__SentryDsn=<sentry-dsn-or-empty>
SecurityHeaders__AllowedScriptOrigins__0=<umami-script-origin>
SecurityHeaders__AllowedConnectOrigins__0=<sentry-ingest-origin>
```
Use ports **5100** (test) and **5101** (production) unless something else on the Pi already
occupies them. `ASPNETCORE_ENVIRONMENT=Production` is used for **both** environments deliberately —
`Development` disables HSTS and exposes the Scalar API explorer (`Program.cs`), neither of which
should be true for anything reachable at a real domain, including test.
**`SecurityHeaders__AllowedScriptOrigins__0` / `_AllowedConnectOrigins__0` must exactly match** the
Gitea variables `SECURITY_ALLOWED_SCRIPT_ORIGINS_TEST` / `_PRODUCTION` (see § 3) — REF-U5-01's CI
gate only catches drift between the frontend build and that Gitea variable; it cannot see this file,
so keeping the two in sync is a manual discipline, not something enforced automatically.
### 1.5 systemd User Units
Create `~/.config/systemd/user/slpmodularcms-test.service`:
```ini
[Unit]
Description=SlpModularCms API (test)
After=network.target
[Service]
WorkingDirectory=%h/apps/slpmodularcms-test/current
ExecStart=/usr/bin/dotnet %h/apps/slpmodularcms-test/current/SlpModularCms.Api.dll
EnvironmentFile=%h/apps/slpmodularcms-test/shared/env
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5
KillSignal=SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec=20
[Install]
WantedBy=default.target
```
And `~/.config/systemd/user/slpmodularcms-production.service` — identical, with `test` replaced by
`production` throughout (including the port inside `shared/env`).
Enable both (does not start them yet — nothing is deployed there until the first CI run):
```bash
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable slpmodularcms-test.service
systemctl --user enable slpmodularcms-production.service
```
### 1.6 nginx Routing
The existing reverse proxy (`infrastructure-design.md` § 1, § 4) needs a server block per domain,
routing to the matching local port:
```nginx
server {
listen 443 ssl;
server_name test.slpsoftware.nl;
location / {
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:5100;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
}
}
server {
listen 443 ssl;
server_name slpsoftware.nl;
location / {
proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:5101;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
}
}
```
TLS certificate provisioning (e.g. certbot) is existing host operations, out of scope for this
feature — assumed already handled the same way the reference project's domains are.
### 1.7 Database Backup Credentials (§ 4 depends on this)
```bash
touch ~/.config/slpmodularcms-db-backup.env
chmod 600 ~/.config/slpmodularcms-db-backup.env
```
```ini
DB_SERVER=127.0.0.1,1433
DB_NAME=SlpModularCmsProduction
DB_USER=<a-login-with-backup-database-permission>
DB_PASSWORD=<password>
```
Kept **separate** from `shared/env` (§ 1.4) deliberately — the backup script needs its own
credential, ideally scoped to just `BACKUP DATABASE` permission rather than the application's own
data-access login.
### 1.8 Gitea Actions Variables and Secrets
Set once, in this repository's Gitea Actions settings:
| Name | Kind | Value |
|---|---|---|
| `PI_MAIN_ADDRESS` | secret | the Pi's address |
| `PI_MAIN_PORT` | secret | SSH port |
| `PI_MAIN_USERNAME` | secret | deploy user |
| `PI_MAIN_PASSWORD` | secret | deploy user's password |
| `DEPLOY_PATH_TEST` | variable | `/home/<user>/apps/slpmodularcms-test` |
| `DEPLOY_PATH_PRODUCTION` | variable | `/home/<user>/apps/slpmodularcms-production` |
| `SERVICE_NAME_TEST` | variable | `slpmodularcms-test.service` |
| `SERVICE_NAME_PRODUCTION` | variable | `slpmodularcms-production.service` |
| `HEALTH_CHECK_URL_TEST` | variable | `https://test.slpsoftware.nl/health` |
| `HEALTH_CHECK_URL_PRODUCTION` | variable | `https://slpsoftware.nl/health` |
| `VITE_SENTRY_DSN` | variable | Sentry DSN (shared, not sensitive — safe in the client bundle) |
| `VITE_UMAMI_SCRIPT_URL` | variable | Umami script host (shared) |
| `VITE_UMAMI_WEBSITE_ID_TEST` / `_PRODUCTION` | variable | per-environment Umami website ID |
| `SECURITY_ALLOWED_SCRIPT_ORIGINS_TEST` / `_PRODUCTION` | variable | **must match** § 1.4's `SecurityHeaders__AllowedScriptOrigins__0` for that environment |
---
## 2. Deploy Sequence (What Actually Happens on a Run)
Already built (U5/U6) — this is the read-only walkthrough for whoever operates it:
1. Push to `master`, or a manual `workflow_dispatch` → the six gates run
2. `publish-test` runs (and `publish-production`, only if `workflow_dispatch` with the flag)
3. `deploy-test` (always, if gates pass) calls `deploy-scp.yaml`, which uploads into a new
`releases/{timestamp}/`, links `shared/wwwroot-web` in, switches `current`, restarts
`slpmodularcms-test.service`, verifies `https://test.slpsoftware.nl/health`, then prunes old
releases (only test — `run_db_backup: false`)
4. `deploy-production` (only with the flag) does the same, plus a database backup first
(`run_db_backup: true`) — see § 4
## 3. First-Ever Deploy Notes
- `wwwroot/web/` will be empty until a website workspace deploys into it — `/` serves the built-in
placeholder until then (this is expected, not a failure)
- The very first run has no "previous release" to keep — pruning naturally has nothing to prune
- Verify manually after the first run: `curl https://test.slpsoftware.nl/health` and
`curl https://slpsoftware.nl/health` (after the first production run) both return `200`
## 4. Database Backup Script
Create `~/scripts/backup-slpmodularcms-db.sh` on the Pi (this script is host-side by design — never
part of this repository, so no DB credential ever reaches Gitea):
```bash
#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail
ENVIRONMENT="${1:?Usage: backup-slpmodularcms-db.sh <environment>}"
CREDENTIALS_FILE="$HOME/.config/slpmodularcms-db-backup.env"
if [[ ! -f "$CREDENTIALS_FILE" ]]; then
echo "Missing $CREDENTIALS_FILE — see deployment-instructions.md § 1.7" >&2
exit 1
fi
# shellcheck source=/dev/null
source "$CREDENTIALS_FILE"
: "${DB_SERVER:?}" "${DB_NAME:?}" "${DB_USER:?}" "${DB_PASSWORD:?}"
BACKUP_DIR="$HOME/backups/slpmodularcms-${ENVIRONMENT}"
mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
TIMESTAMP=$(date -u +%Y%m%d%H%M%S)
BACKUP_FILE="$BACKUP_DIR/${DB_NAME}-${TIMESTAMP}.bak"
sqlcmd -S "$DB_SERVER" -U "$DB_USER" -P "$DB_PASSWORD" -C -Q \
"BACKUP DATABASE [$DB_NAME] TO DISK = N'$BACKUP_FILE' WITH INIT, COMPRESSION"
echo "Backup written to $BACKUP_FILE"
# Retention: keep the 7 most recent backups for this environment
ls -1t "$BACKUP_DIR"/*.bak 2>/dev/null | tail -n +8 | xargs -r rm -f
```
```bash
chmod +x ~/scripts/backup-slpmodularcms-db.sh
```
**Verify once, manually**, before relying on it in a real deploy:
```bash
~/scripts/backup-slpmodularcms-db.sh production
```
Confirm a `.bak` file appears under `~/backups/slpmodularcms-production/` and that `sqlcmd` didn't
silently fail (the script uses `set -euo pipefail`, so a real SQL error does propagate as a non-zero
exit — which fails the calling `deploy-scp.yaml` step, correctly blocking the deploy).
## 5. Future: Switching Production to FTPS (Shared Hosting)
D-02/NFR-09 required the workflow's *transport* to be swappable without restructuring — satisfied by
the `transport` input already on `deploy-scp.yaml` (currently only `scp` is implemented). This
section documents what actually changes when that day comes (OPEN-04 — not scheduled, drafted now
per Q5 = B of the deployment setup plan).
### 5.1 What carries over unchanged
- The CI workflow's gates, the two-build split, the `config` job pattern
- The overall shape of the interface: `artifact_name`, `environment`, `deploy_path`
### 5.2 What does not carry over — read this before assuming it's a drop-in swap
Shared .NET hosting is almost always **Windows/IIS-based**, not Linux/systemd. That changes more
than the transport:
- **No `systemctl --user` restart** — IIS picks up a new deployment via an app-pool recycle, usually
triggered by touching `web.config` or the app-pool's own recycle mechanism, not a service restart
command
- **The atomic release-switch pattern may not be available at all** — many shared hosts expose only
a single web root over FTPS, with no ability to create sibling directories and swap a symlink.
`wwwroot/web/` persistence (FR-08, ASM-01) would need a **different** mechanism on such a host —
e.g. never touching a specific subfolder during upload, rather than linking a persistent directory
outside a swapped release tree, since "outside the release tree" may not be an available concept
- **Database backup** — shared hosting frequently does not expose direct `sqlcmd`/SSH access at all;
the backup step in `deploy-scp.yaml` (§ 4 script) would need to become either a provider-specific
API call or a documented manual pre-production step (the FR-20 fallback U6 already designed for)
### 5.3 What building `deploy-ftps.yaml` would actually require
1. A new reusable workflow implementing the **same five required inputs**
(`artifact_name`, `environment`, `deploy_path`, `service_name`, `health_check_url`) so
`continuous_integration.yaml` calls it identically via the `transport` input
2. An FTPS upload step (e.g. `lftp` mirror or `curl --ftp-ssl`) replacing the `scp` step
3. A **new decision, not yet made**: what "atomic switch" and "restart" even mean on the target
host — this cannot be answered generically; it depends on which shared host is actually chosen
4. Re-running this feature's Infrastructure Design step for U6, scoped to the new host, once a
specific shared-hosting provider is selected — not a checklist item that can be pre-answered today
**Recommendation**: treat this section as a starting brief for that future Infrastructure Design
pass, not as a ready-to-execute procedure — the concrete host was unknown at the time this was
written (OPEN-04), so several of the decisions above are necessarily provider-specific.
@@ -0,0 +1,57 @@
# Deployment Plan
**Date**: 2026-07-28
**Decided at**: Deployment Setup, per `deployment-setup-plan.md` (Q1 = A, Q2 = A)
## Method
Gitea Actions CI/CD, already built in Construction:
- `.gitea/workflows/continuous_integration.yaml` (U5) — six blocking gates, then a per-environment
`dotnet publish`, then invokes the deploy workflow
- `.gitea/workflows/deploy-scp.yaml` (U6) — reusable `workflow_call` workflow: backup (production
only) → upload → link persistent website → atomic switch → restart → health check → prune
This stage does not change that mechanism — it documents the operational side Construction
deliberately left out: host setup, real domains, the database backup script, and the rollback
procedure.
## Environments
| Environment | Host | Domain | Trigger |
|---|---|---|---|
| Test | Raspberry Pi (`linux-arm64`) | `test.slpsoftware.nl` | Automatic on push to `master`, or any `workflow_dispatch` |
| Production | Same Pi, separate directory | `slpsoftware.nl` | Only `workflow_dispatch` with `deploy_production = true` |
Same physical host for both (per `infrastructure-design.md` § 1) — separated by directory,
`systemd --user` unit, and local port, never by anything the workflow manages directly.
## Rationale for What's Documented Here vs. Already Decided
| Already decided (Construction) | Documented here (Operations) |
|---|---|
| Atomic switch mechanism, retention count, transport | Real domains, real ports |
| `deploy-scp.yaml`'s step sequence | The one-time host setup that sequence assumes already exists |
| That a DB backup step runs before production deploys | The actual backup script's content |
| That `transport` is reserved for FTPS (D-02, NFR-09) | What actually changes operationally when that day comes |
## Automation Level
Fully automated for test (push to `master` → live on `test.slpsoftware.nl` with no human step).
Production requires an explicit, manual `workflow_dispatch` run with the flag checked — this manual
trigger **is** the approval gate (D-09); no separate approval workflow step exists or is needed.
## Rollback Strategy
Summarized here; full procedure in `rollback-plan.md`. Two releases are always retained
(`infrastructure-design.md` § 3), so rolling back is a re-point-and-restart, never a rebuild, for the
most recent deploy. Migrations are required to be forward-compatible and non-destructive (D-26), so
redeploying an older commit remains valid further back than just one release.
## Secrets and Configuration
Per D-16, runtime configuration lives in **host** environment variables that the workflow never
writes — see `deployment-instructions.md` § "Runtime Configuration" for the full list and where it
lives on the host (a single `shared/env` file per environment, outside the swapped release
directory, `chmod 600`). Gitea Actions secrets are limited to what the workflow itself needs to
reach the host: SSH credentials (`PI_MAIN_*`). No application secret is ever a Gitea secret or
variable.
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# Rollback Plan
**Mechanism** (D-26, `infrastructure-design.md` § 34): two releases are always retained —
`current` plus exactly one previous. Pruning only ever runs after a **passing** health check, so a
failed deploy never leaves fewer than two releases on disk.
## When to Roll Back
- The deploy workflow's health check failed (job already shows red; `current` was left pointing at
the new, unhealthy release — no automatic rollback, per `infrastructure-design.md` § 4)
- The deploy succeeded and passed its health check, but a defect surfaces afterward that only shows
up under real traffic
## Fast Rollback (Previous Release Still on Disk) — the Common Case
No rebuild needed. Over SSH, on the Pi:
```bash
cd ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/releases
ls -1t # confirm which directory is the previous, working release
ln -sfn ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/releases/<previous-timestamp> ~/apps/slpmodularcms-<env>/current
systemctl --user restart slpmodularcms-<env>.service
curl -f https://<env-domain>/health # confirm the rollback itself is healthy
```
This is the same atomic-switch primitive the deploy workflow itself uses — pointing it backward
instead of forward. `wwwroot/web/` is untouched either way, since it was never part of the switched
directory to begin with (FR-08).
## Rebuild-and-Redeploy Rollback (Older Than One Release Back)
If the defect predates the retained previous release, redeploy an **earlier commit** through the
normal pipeline:
1. `git revert` or check out the last-known-good commit on a branch
2. Push to `master` (test) or run `workflow_dispatch` with `deploy_production: true` (production) —
the same gates and deploy sequence run as any other deploy
3. This only works because migrations are required to be forward-compatible and non-destructive
(D-26) — redeploying an older commit's code against a database that has since had newer
migrations applied must not break. If a migration since the target commit **was** destructive,
this path is not safe and the database backup (§ below) is the actual recovery route instead
## Database Rollback
A backup is taken before every **production** deploy (`operations/deployment/deployment-instructions.md`
§ 4, invoked by `deploy-scp.yaml` when `run_db_backup: true`). To restore:
```bash
sqlcmd -S <server> -U <user> -P <password> -C -Q \
"RESTORE DATABASE [SlpModularCmsProduction] FROM DISK = N'<path-to-backup>.bak' WITH REPLACE"
```
Restoring a database backup and rolling back the application release are **independent actions**
decide based on the actual failure whether one, the other, or both are needed. Rolling back the app
without restoring the database is usually sufficient (migrations are non-destructive by design);
restoring the database without rolling back the app should be rare and deliberate.
## What Is Never Part of a Rollback
- `wwwroot/web/` (the customer's website) — structurally outside every release directory; no
rollback action should ever touch it
- The Data Protection key ring — lives in the database, not the release directory; rolling back the
app release does not affect it
- Gitea Actions variables/secrets — these describe the *target*, not a specific release; nothing
about them changes during a rollback
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# Deployment Setup Plan
## Context already established (not re-asked)
The deployment *mechanism* was already decided and built during Construction — this stage is about
producing the operational documentation around it, not re-deciding the method:
- **Method**: Gitea Actions CI/CD (`continuous_integration.yaml``deploy-scp.yaml`), built in U5/U6
- **Target**: a single Raspberry Pi (`linux-arm64`), test and production on the same host, split by
directory only (`infrastructure-design.md` § 1)
- **Transport**: SSH/SCP, `sshpass` + plain shell steps (D-05)
- **Release strategy**: atomic release-directory switch, 2 releases retained, `systemd --user`
services, no sudo (`infrastructure-design.md` §§ 23)
- **Rollback mechanism**: re-point the `current` symlink to the previous release and restart the
service — already fully specified, this stage just needs to write it up as a runnable procedure
- **Approval gate for production**: the `workflow_dispatch` + `deploy_production` flag itself is the
approval gate (D-09) — no additional gate is needed
## Question 1: Include Deployment Setup?
Given all of the above was purpose-built in Construction specifically to be deployed, declining this
stage would leave the pipeline built but undocumented for actual first use. Recommended: A.
A) Yes — produce the deployment documentation (Recommended)
B) No — deployment is handled elsewhere or not needed
C) Not sure — suggest an approach and I'll decide
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]:A
## Question 2: Deployment Method
Confirms the method already built — asked per the mandatory format, not because it's genuinely open.
A) CI/CD pipeline (already built: Gitea Actions, this is a confirmation, not a new choice) (Recommended)
B) Something else entirely — describe below
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]: A
---
The remaining questions are the genuinely open items — real host facts that only you know, which
`infrastructure-design.md` deliberately left for this stage.
## Question 3: Real Domains
`HEALTH_CHECK_URL_TEST` / `_PRODUCTION` and the nginx routing (`infrastructure-design.md` § 1) need
real hostnames to write concrete instructions. What should the deployment instructions use?
A) I'll provide the real domains now — describe them after [Answer]: below (e.g. `test.example.nl`,
`example.nl`)
B) Use placeholders (`<test-domain>`, `<production-domain>`) in the generated instructions; I'll fill
them in myself when configuring Gitea variables
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]:A, production: slpsoftware.nl, test: test.slpsoftware.nl
## Question 4: Database Backup Script
`deploy-scp.yaml` (U6) invokes `~/scripts/backup-slpmodularcms-db.sh` on the host but does not create
it — it's host-side, deliberately kept out of the workflow so no DB credentials ever touch Gitea.
Should this stage draft that script's content for you to place on the Pi?
A) Yes, draft a `sqlcmd`/`BACKUP DATABASE` script now, parameterized by environment (Recommended)
B) No, I'll write the backup script myself — just document what it must accept/do (arguments,
exit-code contract, where the workflow expects it)
C) Not applicable yet — document it as a TODO, I'll come back to this before the first production deploy
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]:A
## Question 5: FTPS Switch Documentation Depth
D-02 requires the *workflow* to allow adding FTPS later without restructuring (already satisfied by
the `transport` input in `deploy-scp.yaml`) — but how much should the *documentation* say about
actually switching to it when production eventually moves to shared hosting?
A) Brief note only: confirm the extension point exists in the workflow, don't draft the FTPS steps
themselves (Recommended — shared hosting isn't happening yet, OPEN-04)
B) Draft a full FTPS switch procedure now, even though it won't be used until shared hosting happens
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]:B
## Question 6: One-Time Host Setup Checklist
Several one-time, host-side prerequisites were identified during Infrastructure Design and must be
documented somewhere before the first real deploy can succeed:
`loginctl enable-linger` (INFRA-U6-01), creating the `systemd --user` unit files, creating the
`releases`/`shared`/`current` directory skeleton, and the Gitea secrets/variables from
`infrastructure-design.md` § 6. Confirm this belongs in `deployment-instructions.md`?
A) Yes, include a full one-time host-setup checklist in the deployment instructions (Recommended)
B) No, I'll assemble the host setup myself from the Infrastructure Design doc directly
X) Other (please describe after [Answer]: tag below)
[Answer]:A