• 📢 Poway Auto Deployment Guide: Step-by-Step
  • 📌 Step 1: Clone & Configure Project
  • 📌 Step 2: Run Your Application with Docker
  • 📌 Step 3: Post-Deployment Checks & Monitoring
    • 🔹 Check Logs
    • 🔹 Check Application Health
    • 🔹 Monitor Performance
    • Test you DNS server
  • Deployment Diagram and Ubuntu
  • 📌 Final Notes, Security Best Practices, & Reference Steps for Future Use
  • Reference Steps Below
  • 📌 Reference Step: Initial Setup and Accessing AWS EC2
    • 🔹 : Get Your AWS EC2 Credentials
    • 🔹 Step 1.2: Accessing EC2 via SSH
  • 📌Reference Step: Initial Server Setup
  • 📌 Reference Step: Route Setup: Route53 Domain Setup (Optional)
    • This is an example, DON’T USE ANY INFO BESIDES VALUE, just use for example
• 📌Reference Step Expose the Application to the Internet

📢 Poway Auto Deployment Guide: Step-by-Step

Welcome to the official deployment guide for our project! 🚀 This guide provides an exhaustive step-by-step walkthrough for deploying our backend to AWS using EC2, Docker, and Cockpit. It demonstrates the exact steps we will follow in order for succesful deployment. Diagrams at the bottom, and the first three steps are the crucial ones.

📌 Step 1: Clone & Configure Project

1. Clone Your Repository

   git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/YOUR_BACKEND_REPO.git my_backend
   

   Example:

   git clone https://github.com/Ahaanv19/sprint4_flocker_backend.git
   

2. Navigate into the Project

   cd my_backend
   

3. Create .env File (WE DO NOT COMMIT THIS FILE!)

   touch .env
   nano .env
   

   💡 Example .env structure: We will decide on a password and username just our example

   SECRET_KEY=supersecretkey
   DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@localhost/dbname
   DEBUG=True
   

   Press CTRL + X, then Y, then Enter to save.

4. Initialize Database

   ./scripts/db_init.py
   

📌 Step 2: Run Your Application with Docker

1. Build Docker Image

   docker-compose build
   

2. Run Docker Containers in Detached Mode

   docker-compose up -d
   

3. Verify Running Containers

   docker ps
   

   ✅ Look for your application and its assigned port.

4. Test if the Server is Running

   curl localhost:8103
   

   ✅ If successful, you’ll see an HTTP response from your Flask backend.

📌 Step 3: Post-Deployment Checks & Monitoring

🔹 Check Logs

docker logs -f CONTAINER_ID

🔹 Check Application Health

curl http://OUR_DOMAIN_OR_IP

🔹 Monitor Performance

Use Cockpit Backdoor for system health and logs.

Test you DNS server

You can test in any terminal (MacOs, WSL, or AWS). Be sure it command returns IP address in answer section. Example result below

Deployment Diagram and Ubuntu

📌 Final Notes, Security Best Practices, & Reference Steps for Future Use

✅ WE DO NOT commit .env files or sensitive credentials.

✅ Regularly check logs & server health via Cockpit.

Reference Steps Below

These steps are for our reference, focus only on the steps 1,2, and 3, these steps can possibly causes issues but is still useful for future reference. DO NOT WITHOUT PERMISSION USE THESE STEPS!!!

📌 Reference Step: Initial Setup and Accessing AWS EC2

🔹 : Get Your AWS EC2 Credentials

1. Access AWS EC2 Console:
   • Navigate to AWS EC2 Dashboard.
   • Ensuring we are using the correct AWS region (e.g., us-west-1).
2. Locate or Create an EC2 Instance:
   • If you already have an instance running, find its Public IPv4 Address under Instances.
   • If you need to create a new one:
     • Click Launch Instance
     • Choose Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
     • Select instance type: t2.micro (free-tier eligible)
     • Configure key pair (download .pem file!)
     • Allow inbound traffic (ports 22, 8080, 443, etc.)
     • Click Launch
3. Find Your EC2 Public IP
   • Go to Instances → Your Instance → Details
   • Copy Public IPv4 Address

🔹 Step 1.2: Accessing EC2 via SSH

💡 Use Cockpit for easier management: Cockpit Backdoor

Alternatively, use SSH:

ssh -i /path/to/my-key.pem ubuntu@YOUR_INSTANCE_IP

Example:

ssh -i ~/.ssh/aws_key.pem ubuntu@18.234.56.78

✅ Success Check: You should now be inside the EC2 terminal!

📌Reference Step: Initial Server Setup

1. Update & Upgrade Packages

   sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
   

2. Install Required Software

   sudo apt install -y git docker.io docker-compose
   

3. Start & Enable Docker

   sudo systemctl enable docker
   sudo systemctl start docker
   

4. Verify Docker Installation

   docker --version
   

   ✅ Expected Output: Docker version XX.XX.XX

📌 Reference Step: Route Setup: Route53 Domain Setup (Optional)

1. Go to AWS Route 53
2. Register a domain name
3. Create an A Record:
   • Name: @
   • Type: A
   • Value: OUR_INSTANCE_IP

This is an example, DON’T USE ANY INFO BESIDES VALUE, just use for example

📌Reference Step Expose the Application to the Internet

1. Find Your Instance’s Public IP

   echo $(curl -s ifconfig.me)
   

   ✅ Copy the output and use it to test in a browser!

2. Allow Traffic on Port 8103 (Our specfied port number)

   sudo ufw allow 8103/tcp
   sudo ufw enable
   

3. Test Access from Your Machine

   curl http://OUR_INSTANCE_IP:8103
   

   ✅ Expected: Flask server response.

4. Set Up Reverse Proxy (Optional, for Nginx Support)

   sudo apt install nginx -y
   

5. Configure Nginx

   sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/my_backend
   

   💡 Example Nginx Config:

   server {
    listen 80;
    server_name YOUR_DOMAIN_OR_IP;
   
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:8805;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    }
   }
   

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