forgejo-config/README.md

# GCP Data Engineering VM with Forgejo

This project sets up a reusable Google Cloud Platform (GCP) virtual machine for data engineering and machine learning projects, with Forgejo as the first installed module.

## Technologies Used

- **Terraform**: For infrastructure provisioning and state management
- **Cloud-init**: For initial VM setup and configuration with Debian
- **Ansible**: For configuration management and application deployment
- **Docker & Docker Compose**: For containerized applications
- **Forgejo**: Open source git repository that can be accessed through a DuckDNS subdomain

## Project Structure

```
.
├── ansible/                  # Ansible playbooks and configurations
│   ├── forgejo.yml           # Forgejo installation playbook
│   ├── inventory.yml         # Ansible inventory file
│   └── templates/            # Jinja2 templates for configurations
│       ├── app.ini.j2        # Forgejo app configuration
│       ├── docker-compose.yml.j2  # Docker Compose template
│       ├── nginx.conf.j2     # Nginx configuration with SSL support
│       └── certbot-renew.j2  # SSL certificate renewal script
├── cloud-init/               # Cloud-init scripts
│   └── cloud-init.sh         # Initial VM setup script
├── terraform/                # Terraform configurations
│   ├── main.tf               # Main Terraform configuration
│   ├── variables.tf          # Variable definitions
│   └── terraform.tfvars.example  # Example variable values
├── deploy.sh                 # Deployment automation script
└── README.md                 # This file
```

## Prerequisites

1. Google Cloud Platform account with a project
2. Terraform installed locally
3. Ansible installed locally
4. SSH key pair for VM access
5. DuckDNS subdomain for Forgejo access

## Setup Instructions

### 1. Configure Terraform Variables

Copy the example variables file and edit it with your GCP project details:

```bash
cp terraform/terraform.tfvars.example terraform/terraform.tfvars
```

Edit `terraform/terraform.tfvars` with your GCP project ID, preferred region/zone, and SSH key path.

### 2. Configure Ansible Inventory

Edit `ansible/inventory.yml` to set your DuckDNS subdomain and admin email for Let's Encrypt SSL certificates.

### 3. Run the Deployment Script

```bash
./deploy.sh
```

This script will:
- Initialize and apply Terraform configuration to create the VM
- Update the Ansible inventory with the VM's IP address
- Wait for the VM to be ready
- Run the Ansible playbook to install and configure Forgejo

## Accessing Forgejo

Once deployment is complete, Forgejo will be accessible at:

```
https://your-duckdns-subdomain.duckdns.org
```

The deployment automatically configures:
- HTTPS with Let's Encrypt SSL certificates
- Automatic HTTP to HTTPS redirection
- Weekly SSL certificate renewal
- SQLite with WAL mode for improved performance

SSH access to the Forgejo Git server will be available on port 222:

```bash
ssh -p 222 git@your-duckdns-subdomain.duckdns.org
```

## Performance Optimizations

### SQLite WAL Mode

The deployment configures SQLite to use Write-Ahead Logging (WAL) mode for better performance. This provides:
- Improved write performance with concurrent operations
- Better read concurrency (readers don't block writers)
- Reduced disk I/O
- Improved durability and crash recovery

To modify this setting, edit the `ansible/templates/app.ini.j2` file:

```ini
[database]
SQLITE_JOURNAL_MODE = WAL
```

## Customization

- **Machine Type**: Edit `terraform/terraform.tfvars` to change the VM size
- **Forgejo Configuration**: Modify `ansible/templates/app.ini.j2` to customize Forgejo settings
- **Additional Applications**: Add new Ansible playbooks in the `ansible` directory

## Maintenance

- **Terraform State**: The Terraform state is stored locally in `terraform/terraform.tfstate`
- **VM Updates**: SSH into the VM and run standard Debian update commands
- **Forgejo Updates**: Update the Docker image version in `ansible/templates/docker-compose.yml.j2`
- **SSL Certificate Renewal**: Certificates are automatically renewed weekly via a cron job
- **Database Backups**: To back up the Forgejo database, copy `/opt/forgejo/data/gitea/gitea.db*` from the VM
- **Monitoring**: Check the status of services with:
  ```bash
  ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo systemctl status nginx"
  ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo docker ps"
  ```

## Troubleshooting

- **SSH Access**: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS`
- **Logs**: 
  - Forgejo logs: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo docker logs forgejo"`
  - Nginx logs: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log"`
  - SSL certificate logs: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo tail -f /var/log/letsencrypt/letsencrypt.log"`
- **Connectivity**: Ensure GCP firewall rules allow traffic on ports 80, 443, 22, 3000, and 222
- **SSL Issues**: 
  - Check certificate status: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo certbot certificates"`
  - Force certificate renewal: `ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo /etc/cron.weekly/certbot-renew"`
- **Database Performance**: If experiencing slowdowns, check SQLite WAL mode is working:
  ```bash
  ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa debian@VM_IP_ADDRESS "sudo ls -la /opt/forgejo/data/gitea/gitea.db*"
  ```
  You should see additional files like `gitea.db-wal` and `gitea.db-shm` if WAL mode is active.