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Slavi Pantaleev e1690722f7 Replace cronjobs with systemd timers
Fixes https://github.com/spantaleev/matrix-docker-ansible-deploy/issues/756

Related to https://github.com/spantaleev/matrix-docker-ansible-deploy/issues/737

I feel like timers are somewhat more complicated and dirty (compared to
cronjobs), but they come with these benefits:

- log output goes to journald
- on newer systemd distros, you can see when the timer fired, when it
will fire, etc.
- we don't need to rely on cron (reducing our dependencies to just
systemd + Docker)

Cronjobs work well, but it's one more dependency that needs to be
installed. We were even asking people to install it manually
(in `docs/prerequisites.md`), which could have gone unnoticed.

Once in a while someone says "my SSL certificates didn't renew"
and it's likely because they forgot to install a cron daemon.

Switching to systemd timers means that installation is simpler
and more unified.
2021-01-14 23:35:50 +02:00
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Matrix (An open network for secure, decentralized communication) server setup using Ansible and Docker

Purpose

This Ansible playbook is meant to easily let you run your own Matrix homeserver.

That is, it lets you join the Matrix network with your own @<username>:<your-domain> identifier, all hosted on your own server.

Using this playbook, you can get the following services configured on your server:

Basically, this playbook aims to get you up-and-running with all the basic necessities around Matrix, without you having to do anything else.

Note: the list above is exhaustive. It includes optional or even some advanced components that you will most likely not need. Sticking with the defaults (which install a subset of the above components) is the best choice, especially for a new installation. You can always re-run the playbook later to add or remove components.

What's different about this Ansible playbook?

This is similar to the EMnify/matrix-synapse-auto-deploy Ansible deployment, but:

  • this one is a complete Ansible playbook (instead of just a role), so it's easier to run - especially for folks not familiar with Ansible

  • this one installs and hooks together a lot more Matrix-related services for you (see above)

  • this one can be executed more than once without causing trouble

  • works on various distros: CentOS (7.0+), Debian-based distributions (Debian 9/Stretch+, Ubuntu 16.04+), Archlinux

  • this one installs everything in a single directory (/matrix by default) and doesn't "contaminate" your server with files all over the place

  • this one doesn't necessarily take over ports 80 and 443. By default, it sets up nginx for you there, but you can also use your own webserver

  • this one runs everything in Docker containers, so it's likely more predictable and less fragile (see Docker images used by this playbook)

  • this one retrieves and automatically renews free Let's Encrypt SSL certificates for you

  • this one optionally can store the media_store content repository files on Amazon S3 (but defaults to storing files on the server's filesystem)

  • this one optionally allows you to use an external PostgreSQL server for Synapse's database (but defaults to running one in a container)

  • helps you import data from a previous installation (so you can migrate your manual virtualenv/Docker setup to a more managed one)

Installation

To configure and install Matrix on your own server, follow the README in the docs/ directory.

Changes

This playbook evolves over time, sometimes with backward-incompatible changes.

When updating the playbook, refer to the changelog to catch up with what's new.

Docker images used by this playbook

This playbook sets up your server using the following Docker images:

Deficiencies

This Ansible playbook can be improved in the following ways:

  • setting up automatic backups to one or more storage providers

Support