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README.md

Redmine Host - Project Management

Redmine project management system at 141.56.51.15 running in an LXC container.

Overview

Hostname: pro
FQDN: pro.htw.stura-dresden.de
IP Address: 141.56.51.15
Type: Proxmox LXC Container
Services: Redmine (Rails), Nginx (reverse proxy), OpenSSH

Services

Redmine

Redmine is a flexible project management web application:

Port: 3000 (local only, not exposed)
Database: SQLite (default NixOS configuration)
SMTP relay: mail.htw.stura-dresden.de:25
Image processing: ImageMagick enabled
PDF support: Ghostscript enabled
Auto-upgrade: Enabled (Redmine updates automatically)

Features:

Issue tracking
Project wikis
Time tracking
Gantt charts and calendars
Multiple project support
Role-based access control

Nginx

Nginx acts as a reverse proxy:

Receives HTTPS requests (TLS termination)
Forwards to Redmine on localhost:3000
Manages ACME/Let's Encrypt certificates
Default virtual host (catches all traffic to this IP)

Privacy configuration:

Access logs: Disabled
Error logs: Emergency level only (/dev/null emerg)

Email Delivery

SMTP is configured for email notifications:

Delivery method: SMTP
SMTP host: mail.htw.stura-dresden.de
SMTP port: 25
Authentication: None (internal relay)

Redmine can send notifications for:

New issues
Issue updates
Comments
Project updates

Deployment

See the main README for deployment methods.

Initial Installation

Using nixos-anywhere:

nix run github:nix-community/nixos-anywhere -- --flake .#redmine --target-host root@141.56.51.15

Using container tarball:

nix build .#containers-redmine
scp result/tarball/nixos-system-x86_64-linux.tar.xz root@proxmox-host:/var/lib/vz/template/cache/
pct create 115 /var/lib/vz/template/cache/nixos-system-x86_64-linux.tar.xz \
  --hostname pro \
  --net0 name=eth0,bridge=vmbr0,ip=141.56.51.15/24,gw=141.56.51.254 \
  --memory 2048 \
  --cores 2 \
  --rootfs local-lvm:10 \
  --unprivileged 1 \
  --features nesting=1
pct start 115

Updates

# From local machine
nixos-rebuild switch --flake .#redmine --target-host root@141.56.51.15

# Or use auto-generated script
nix run .#redmine-update

Post-Deployment Steps

After deploying for the first time:

Access the web interface:
```
https://pro.htw.stura-dresden.de
```
Complete initial setup:
- Log in with default admin credentials (admin/admin)
- Immediately change the admin password
- Configure basic settings (Settings → Administration)
Configure LDAP authentication (optional):
- Navigate to Administration → LDAP authentication
- Add LDAP server if using external identity provider
- Configure attribute mapping
Set up projects:
- Create projects via Administration → Projects → New project
- Configure project modules (issues, wiki, time tracking, etc.)
- Set up roles and permissions
Configure email notifications:
- Administration → Settings → Email notifications
- Verify SMTP settings are working
- Set default email preferences
- Test email delivery
Configure issue tracking:
- Administration → Trackers (Bug, Feature, Support, etc.)
- Administration → Issue statuses
- Administration → Workflows

Integration with Proxy

The central proxy at 141.56.51.1 handles:

SNI routing: Routes HTTPS traffic for pro.htw.stura-dresden.de
HTTP routing: Routes HTTP traffic and redirects to HTTPS
ACME challenges: Forwards certificate verification requests

This host manages its own ACME certificates. Nginx handles TLS termination.

Troubleshooting

SMTP connection issues

If email notifications are not being sent:

# Check Redmine email configuration
cat /var/lib/redmine/config/configuration.yml | grep -A 10 email_delivery

# Test SMTP connectivity
telnet mail.htw.stura-dresden.de 25

# View Redmine logs
tail -f /var/lib/redmine/log/production.log

# Check mail queue (if using local sendmail)
mailq

Solution: Verify the SMTP relay (mail.htw.stura-dresden.de) is reachable and accepting connections on port 25.

ImageMagick/Ghostscript paths

If image processing or PDF thumbnails fail:

# Check ImageMagick installation
which convert
/run/current-system/sw/bin/convert --version

# Check Ghostscript installation
which gs
/run/current-system/sw/bin/gs --version

# Test image conversion
/run/current-system/sw/bin/convert test.png -resize 100x100 output.png

# View Redmine logs for image processing errors
grep -i imagemagick /var/lib/redmine/log/production.log

Solution: ImageMagick and Ghostscript are enabled via NixOS config. Paths are automatically configured.

Database migration failures

If Redmine fails to start after an update:

# Check Redmine service status
systemctl status redmine

# View Redmine logs
journalctl -u redmine -f

# Manually run database migrations (if needed)
cd /var/lib/redmine
sudo -u redmine bundle exec rake db:migrate RAILS_ENV=production

# Check database schema version
sudo -u redmine bundle exec rake db:version RAILS_ENV=production

Solution: Auto-upgrade is enabled, but migrations can sometimes fail. Check logs for specific errors.

Nginx proxy configuration

If the web interface is unreachable:

# Check Nginx configuration
nginx -t

# Check Nginx status
systemctl status nginx

# View Nginx error logs
journalctl -u nginx -f

# Test local Redmine connection
curl http://127.0.0.1:3000

Solution: Verify Nginx is proxying correctly to localhost:3000 and that Redmine is running.

Redmine service not starting

If Redmine fails to start:

# Check service status
systemctl status redmine

# View detailed logs
journalctl -u redmine -n 100

# Check database file permissions
ls -l /var/lib/redmine/db/

# Check configuration
ls -l /var/lib/redmine/config/

# Try starting manually
cd /var/lib/redmine
sudo -u redmine bundle exec rails server -e production

Solution: Check logs for specific errors. Common issues include database permissions, missing gems, or configuration errors.

ACME certificate issues

If HTTPS is not working:

# Check ACME certificate status
systemctl status acme-pro.htw.stura-dresden.de

# View ACME logs
journalctl -u acme-pro.htw.stura-dresden.de -f

# Check certificate files
ls -l /var/lib/acme/pro.htw.stura-dresden.de/

# Manually trigger renewal
systemctl start acme-pro.htw.stura-dresden.de

Solution: Ensure DNS points to proxy (141.56.51.1) and the proxy forwards ACME challenges to this host.

Files and Directories

Redmine home: /var/lib/redmine/
Configuration: /var/lib/redmine/config/
- configuration.yml - Email and general settings
- database.yml - Database configuration
Logs: /var/lib/redmine/log/production.log
Database: /var/lib/redmine/db/ (SQLite)
Files/attachments: /var/lib/redmine/files/
Plugins: /var/lib/redmine/plugins/
Themes: /var/lib/redmine/public/themes/

Network

Interface: eth0 (LXC container)
IP: 141.56.51.15/24
Gateway: 141.56.51.254
Firewall: Ports 22, 80, 443 allowed

Configuration Details

Redmine version: Latest from NixOS 25.11
Database: SQLite (default)
Web server: Nginx (reverse proxy)
Application server: Puma (default Rails server)
Ruby version: Determined by NixOS Redmine package
SMTP: mail.htw.stura-dresden.de:25
ImageMagick: Enabled (minimagick)
Ghostscript: Enabled (PDF support)
Font: Liberation Sans Regular

Automatic Maintenance

Auto-upgrade: Enabled (system automatically updates)
Auto-reboot: Allowed (system may reboot for updates)
Store optimization: Automatic
Garbage collection: Automatic (delete older than 42 days)

Useful Commands

# Access Redmine console
cd /var/lib/redmine
sudo -u redmine bundle exec rails console -e production

# Run rake tasks
sudo -u redmine bundle exec rake <task> RAILS_ENV=production

# Database backup
sudo -u redmine cp /var/lib/redmine/db/production.sqlite3 /backup/redmine-$(date +%Y%m%d).sqlite3

# View running processes
ps aux | grep redmine

# Restart Redmine
systemctl restart redmine