ShinyProxy Deployment on Arbutus OpenStack

This repository contains Terraform configurations and documentation for deploying ShinyProxy on the Arbutus OpenStack cloud platform, providing a scalable web application hosting environment for R Shiny applications.

Overview

The shinyproxy-openstack-terraform directory contains infrastructure-as-code for provisioning and configuring:

• OpenStack VM with automated setup via cloud-init
• ShinyProxy application server with Docker backend
• Nginx reverse proxy with SSL termination
• BARQUE Shiny application deployment

Architecture Components

Base Infrastructure Setup

• Compute: Ubuntu VM with 8 vCPUs and 12GB RAM (p8-12gb flavor)
• Networking: Internal and public network configuration with floating IP
• Security: SSH key-based authentication and firewall rules
• Storage: Automated log management and application data persistence

Application Stack

• Docker Engine: Container runtime for Shiny applications
• Java Runtime: Required for ShinyProxy operation
• System Tools: jq, ufw for configuration and security management
• User Management: sviss user with Docker and sudo privileges

Service Configuration

Nginx Reverse Proxy (/etc/nginx/sites-available/shinyproxy)

• SSL termination for cloud.taqc.info
• Request forwarding to ShinyProxy on port 8080
• 100MB client body size limit for file uploads

ShinyProxy Configuration (/etc/shinyproxy/application.yml)

• Simple authentication with three users: tuan, julie, steve (admin)
• BARQUE application container specification
• Logging configuration and UI customization
• Docker port range allocation starting from 20000

Deployment Instructions

Prerequisites

Ensure you have OpenStack credentials loaded in your environment:

cd openStackProvisioning
source def-langloiv-prod-openrc.sh

Infrastructure Provisioning

Deploy the complete stack using Terraform:

terraform apply \
  -var os_auth_url=$OS_AUTH_URL \
  -var os_region=$OS_REGION_NAME \
  -var os_project_name=$OS_PROJECT_NAME \
  -var os_username=$OS_USERNAME \
  -var os_password=$OS_PASSWORD \
  -var os_domain=$OS_USER_DOMAIN_NAME

Automated Setup Process

The cloud-init script automatically handles:

1. Package Installation: Docker, Java, Nginx, Certbot, system utilities
2. User Configuration: SSH keys, group membership, permissions
3. Service Setup: ShinyProxy installation and configuration
4. Application Deployment: BARQUE app container build from GitHub
5. SSL Certificate: Let's Encrypt certificate provisioning
6. Network Security: Firewall configuration and service enablement

Security Configuration

Network Security

• SSH access restricted by IP CIDR with key-based authentication
• HTTP (80) and HTTPS (443) ports open for web access
• Internal communication secured within OpenStack network

Application Security

• User authentication required for ShinyProxy access
• Admin-level permissions for administrative functions
• Container isolation for application execution

Verification and Testing

System Health Checks

Execute these commands on the deployed VM:

# Verify Docker service
sudo systemctl status docker

# Check ShinyProxy status and logs
sudo systemctl status shinyproxy
sudo journalctl -u shinyproxy -n 100 --no-pager

# Validate Nginx configuration
sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl status nginx

# Confirm port availability
sudo ss -ltnp | grep -E ':80|:8080'

Application Access

1. Navigate to https://cloud.taqc.info
2. Authenticate using configured credentials (e.g., username: steve)
3. Verify BARQUE application availability and functionality

Expected Outcomes

Upon successful deployment:

• ShinyProxy Portal: Accessible at https://cloud.taqc.info
• BARQUE Application: Available through ShinyProxy interface
• SSL Security: Automated certificate management via Let's Encrypt
• Container Management: Docker-based application isolation and scaling

Troubleshooting Guide

ShinyProxy Issues

• Check application logs: /var/log/shinyproxy/shinyproxy.log
• Verify Java installation and port 8080 availability
• Restart service: sudo systemctl restart shinyproxy

Nginx Configuration Problems

• Test configuration: sudo nginx -t
• Verify site enablement: check /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/shinyproxy symlink
• Reload configuration: sudo systemctl reload nginx

Application Deployment Issues

• Confirm Docker image existence: docker images | grep barque-app
• Validate ShinyProxy configuration in application.yml
• Check container logs for runtime errors

Authentication Problems

• Review user configuration in /etc/shinyproxy/application.yml
• Verify group assignments and permissions
• Restart ShinyProxy after configuration changes