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An open source uptime and infrastructure monitoring application
This repository contains both the frontend and the backend of Checkmate, an open-source, self-hosted monitoring tool for tracking server hardware, uptime, response times, and incidents in real-time with beautiful visualizations. Checkmate regularly checks whether a server/website is accessible and performs optimally, providing real-time alerts and reports on the monitored services' availability, downtime, and response time.
Checkmate also has an agent, called [Capture](https://github.com/bluewave-labs/capture), to retrieve data from remote servers. While Capture is not required to run Checkmate, it provides additional insights about your servers' CPU, RAM, disk, and temperature status. Capture can run on Linux, Windows, Mac, Raspberry Pi, or any device that can run Go.
Checkmate has been stress-tested with 1000+ active monitors without any particular issues or performance bottlenecks.
## Table of contents
- [ Demo](#demo)
- [ User's guide](#users-guide)
- [️ Installation](#installation)
- [ Performance](#performance)
- [ Questions & Ideas](#questions--ideas)
- [ Features](#features)
- [️ Screenshots](#screenshots)
- [️ Tech stack](#tech-stack)
- [ A few links](#a-few-links)
- [ Contributing](#contributing)
## Demo
You can see the latest build of [Checkmate](https://demo.checkmate.so/) in action.
The username is
[email protected] and the password is Demouser1! (just a note that we update the demo server from time to time, so if it doesn't work for you, please ping us on the Discussions channel).
## User's guide
Usage instructions can be found [here](https://checkmate.so/docs).
## Prerequisites
- [Docker](https://www.docker.com/) installed
- [Git](https://git-scm.com/) installed
## Installation
The quickest way to run Checkmate is the reference Docker Compose file. It starts two services: the all-in-one Checkmate application image (`ghcr.io/bluewave-labs/checkmate`) and a separate MongoDB service.
> **What “all-in-one” means:** the Checkmate application is packaged in a single image; MongoDB is not embedded in that image and remains required. The reference Compose file starts MongoDB for you. For custom deployments, configure `DB_CONNECTION_STRING` to use an external MongoDB instance.
```bash
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bluewave-labs/checkmate/master/docker/docker-compose.yaml
JWT_SECRET="$(openssl rand -hex 32)" docker compose up -d
```
Then open http://localhost:52345. If the app is reached at another origin (domain or LAN IP), set `CLIENT_HOST` accordingly. To build the image yourself, run `docker build -f docker/Dockerfile -t checkmate .` from a checkout. For TLS, put any reverse proxy (Caddy, Traefik, nginx) in front of port 52345.
There are also 1-click installation options like [Repocloud](https://repocloud.io/details/Checkmate),
[Pikapods](https://www.pikapods.com/), [Coolify](https://coolify.io/), [Elestio](https://elest.io/open-source/checkmate), [Easypanel](https://easypanel.io/templates/checkmate), [K8s](./charts/helm/checkmate/INSTALLATION.md), [Sive Host](https://sive.host) or [Cloudzy](https://cloudzy.com/marketplace/checkmate). Note that the Helm chart has not yet been migrated to the all-in-one image: it still deploys the legacy `checkmate-client`, `checkmate-backend` and `checkmate-mongo` images, pinned at v3.8.1.
### Configuration
The image is configured entirely through environment variables on the server container:
| Variable | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `DB_CONNECTION_STRING` | Yes | MongoDB connection string, e.g. `mongodb://mongodb:27017/uptime_db` |
| `JWT_SECRET` | Yes | Secret used to sign auth tokens; generate one with `openssl rand -hex 32` |
| `CLIENT_HOST` | Yes | The URL users reach the app at, e.g. `https://checkmate.example.com`; used for CORS and for links in notifications and emails |
| `ENCRYPTION_KEY` | No | Encrypts stored Docker TLS client keys at rest; generate one with `openssl rand -base64 32`. Comma-separated list: the first key encrypts, every key decrypts. Must be identical on the API and every worker. To rotate without downtime, deploy `OLD_KEY,NEW_KEY` everywhere, then `NEW_KEY,OLD_KEY` everywhere, wait for the worker to re-encrypt every row, then drop `OLD_KEY`. |
| `PORT` | No | Port the API and web client are served on (default `52345`) |
| `HEALTH_PORT` | No | Port for the `/livez`, `/readyz` and `/metrics` endpoints, served by any process that runs the job worker (default `52346`) |
| `NODE_ENV` | No | `development`, `production` or `test` (default `development`). `development` disables the general API rate limiter; set `production` on real deployments |
| `LOG_LEVEL` | No | Server log level: `error`, `warn`, `info`, or `debug` (default `debug`) |
| `TOKEN_TTL` | No | Lifetime of issued auth tokens, e.g. `12h` or `7d` (default `99d`) |
| `QUEUE_MODE` | No | `primary` (default) runs the API, the web client and the job scheduler; `worker` runs a job-processing worker only, with no API |
| `QUEUE_PRIMARY_PROCESSES` | No | `true` (default) or `false`. Whether a `primary` node also processes monitoring jobs itself; set `false` when dedicated `worker` nodes handle all checks. Ignored in `worker` mode |
| `STATUS_PAGE_THEMES_ENABLED` | No | `true` (default) or `false`. When `false`, status pages ignore theme settings and always render the default theme |
The web client needs no configuration by default: it calls the API on the same origin it was served from (`/api/v1`). For setups where the defaults don't apply — for example, the API is reached through a different origin than the page — the server renders overrides into the client at runtime via these optional variables:
| Variable | Description |
|---|---|
| `CLIENT_CONFIG_API_BASE_URL` | Full base URL the client calls the API at, e.g. `https://api.example.com/api/v1`; defaults to same-origin `/api/v1` |
| `CLIENT_CONFIG_CLIENT_HOST` | Origin used when the client builds absolute links (invites, status pages); defaults to the browser's current origin |
| `CLIENT_CONFIG_LOG_LEVEL` | Browser console log level: `error`, `warn`, `info`, or `debug` (default `error`) |
> **Upgrading from an older image?** The `UPTIME_APP_*` variables (`UPTIME_APP_API_BASE_URL`, `UPTIME_APP_CLIENT_HOST`, `UPTIME_APP_LOG_LEVEL`) are no longer read. In most setups no replacement is needed — the same-origin defaults cover them; if you pointed the client at a different origin, use the `CLIENT_CONFIG_*` equivalents above. The `checkmate-client`, `checkmate-backend`, `checkmate-mongo`, and `checkmate-backend-mono-multiarch` images are no longer updated — switch to `ghcr.io/bluewave-labs/checkmate`, keeping your existing MongoDB service and data volume.
See full installation instructions in the [Checkmate documentation portal](https://checkmate.so/docs).
Alternatively, you can also use [Coolify](https://coolify.io/), [Elestio](https://elest.io/open-source/checkmate), [K8s](./charts/helm/checkmate/INSTALLATION.md) (legacy images, pinned at v3.8.1), [Sive Host](https://sive.host) (South Africa), [Cloudzy](https://cloudzy.com/marketplace/checkmate) or [Pikapods](https://www.pikapods.com/) to quickly spin off a Checkmate instance. If you would like to monitor your server infrastructure, you'll need [Capture agent](https://github.com/bluewave-labs/capture). Capture repository also contains the installation instructions.
### Using a Custom CA
If you need to monitor internal HTTPS endpoints with certificates from private Certificate Authorities (like Smallstep), see our [Custom CA Trust Guide](./docs/custom-ca-trust.md) for Docker configuration options.
### Docker monitors
A Docker monitor connects to a Docker daemon and reports on every container it runs. The daemon's ping response decides whether the monitor is up or down and its latency is the response time. Each check also records every container's state, health, CPU and memory usage, restart count, published ports and mounts. Enabling **Collect container logs** additionally stores the latest 200 log lines per container on every check; logs are kept for 7 days.
The **Docker host** field accepts two forms:
| Host | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Local socket | `unix:///var/run/docker.sock` | Also accepts a bare absolute path such as `/var/run/docker.sock`. Use this for the daemon on the same machine Checkmate runs on. |
| Remote daemon | `tcp://docker.example.com:2376` | Always uses mutual TLS; the port defaults to `2376`. Unencrypted daemons on `2375` are not supported. |
**Monitoring the local socket.** The reference Compose file does not mount the socket, so add it and grant the container the host's `docker` group. The image runs as an unprivileged user and cannot read the socket otherwise. Find the group id with `stat -c %g /var/run/docker.sock`, then:
```yaml
services:
checkmate:
volumes:
- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
group_add:
- "989" # the gid printed by stat
```
**Monitoring a remote daemon.** Set the host to `tcp://host:port` and fill in the **TLS credentials** section of the monitor form with the same PEM files you would pass to `docker --tlsverify`:
- **CA certificate**: the CA that signed the daemon's server certificate. Required unless **Ignore TLS/SSL errors** is on, which skips verifying the daemon's identity.
- **Client certificate**: the certificate the daemon uses to authenticate Checkmate.
- **Client key**: the matching private key, unencrypted (no passphrase). Checkmate checks that it matches the certificate, encrypts it with `ENCRYPTION_KEY`, and never shows it again. Leave the field blank when editing to keep the stored key.
TLS Docker monitors require `ENCRYPTION_KEY` to be set on the server (see [Configuration](#configuration)). Saving one without it fails with an error telling you so. If the key is ever removed or rotated incorrectly, affected checks fail with a decryption error until it is restored.
If the daemon's certificate is signed by a private CA that you also want the rest of Checkmate to trust, see the [Custom CA Trust Guide](./docs/custom-ca-trust.md); for Docker monitors alone, the **CA certificate** field is enough.
### Securing the Docker daemon with TLS
The Docker daemon does not enable TLS by default. Follow these steps on the Docker host to generate a CA, a server certificate, and a client certificate for Checkmate. This is the procedure from [Docker's own guide](https://docs.docker.com/engine/security/prote