Subdomain-only gateway routing; drop path prefixes
Collapse the two proxy shapes (path_prefix + host) to a single checkbox: a service is either port-only, or exposed at <service-name>.<gateway.domain>. Path routes and their prefix-stripping foot-guns are gone; the subdomain is always the service name (rename the service to change it). - Schema: CaddySpec is just `enable` (presence = expose). service_proxy_targets returns (expose, port, base_url); Deployment carries `subdomain` (was proxy_path/proxy_host). Registry/deploy/mesh/CLI updated in lockstep. - Generator: compute_routes emits one host route per exposed service/frontend (address = name). acme mode = one *.<domain> site with a reverse_proxy matcher per service + a file_server matcher per frontend; the :<port> site redirects to the dashboard. off mode = a HTTP control plane on :<port> (dashboard at / + /api → castle-api); other services are port-only. - Dashboard/API: castle-app and castle-api are ordinary subdomains. The dashboard derives the API base at runtime (castle-api.<domain> on a subdomain, else /api) and calls it cross-origin — castle-api already allows CORS *. Frontends build with VITE_BASE=/ (served at their subdomain root). - CLI: `service create` drops --path/--host; --no-proxy makes it port-only. - Docs/tests reworked for the model; docs use generic placeholders only (no personal host/domain/IP details).
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@@ -17,73 +17,40 @@ strategy, and any working combination is fine.
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## The gateway is the single ingress
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Every reachable service goes through the Caddy **gateway** (`:9000` by default). A
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gateway route maps a public **address** to a **target**. Two address shapes matter
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for DNS and TLS:
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Every gateway-reachable service goes through the Caddy **gateway**. Exposure is a
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single **checkbox** (`proxy.caddy` on a service):
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- **path prefix** (`/foo`) — reached at `http://<node>:9000/foo/`. Shares the
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node's own name/port; needs no per-service DNS. Caddy **strips** the prefix, so
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this only suits apps that don't assume they live at the origin root.
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- **host route** (`foo.lan`, `foo.example.com`) — reached at `https://foo.…/`. A
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whole hostname proxied to the backend root, nothing stripped. This is the shape
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that gets its own DNS name and its own TLS cert.
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- **unchecked** — the service is reachable only at its own `host:port` (no gateway
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route, no DNS name).
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- **checked** — the gateway routes the whole subdomain **`<service-name>.<domain>`**
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to the backend root. The subdomain is always the service name.
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> **Rule of thumb:** a service that needs HTTPS, a real origin, WebSockets, or
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> root-relative asset URLs wants a **host route**. Path prefixes are for simple,
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> prefix-agnostic backends. See
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> [registry.md](registry.md#path-prefix-vs-host-route--pick-by-whether-the-app-is-prefix-aware)
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> for the failure modes of putting a root-based app under a stripped prefix.
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Only host routes are the subject of the rest of this document — they're what DNS
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and TLS act on.
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There are **no path-prefix routes**: a whole subdomain maps to the backend root, so
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root-relative asset URLs and `window.location`-derived WebSocket URLs just work
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(Caddy proxies WebSocket upgrades transparently). Each checked service gets its own
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DNS name and shares the gateway's TLS cert. The rest of this document is about
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making those subdomains **resolve** (DNS) and be **trusted** (TLS).
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## DNS: making a name resolve to the node
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A host route does nothing until `foo.…` resolves **to this node** on the clients
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that will use it. Castle does **not** run DNS; it relies on whatever already serves
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your LAN. Two facts shape the approach:
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A subdomain does nothing until it resolves **to this node** on the clients that
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browse it. Castle does **not** run DNS; you add one record to your **LAN's DNS
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server** — usually the router. A single **wildcard** covers every subdomain, so new
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services need no further DNS edits:
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- **Resolve on the clients that matter.** A name only needs to resolve for the
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devices that browse it. That's usually your LAN's DHCP/DNS authority — often the
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router — not a central or mesh resolver.
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- **One wildcard beats many records.** A single wildcard entry routes every
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subdomain of a zone to the node, so each new host-routed service works with no
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further DNS edits.
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```
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address=/<sub>.<domain>/<node-ip> # dnsmasq (e.g. on the router)
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```
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(or the equivalent wildcard `A` record in whatever your router's DNS uses). Pin
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`<node-ip>` with a **DHCP reservation** — the wildcard hardcodes it.
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### Split-horizon: internal names, no public exposure
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The names Castle serves resolve **only inside the LAN**. For a private zone this is
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automatic; for a public domain you own, it's deliberate split-horizon — your LAN
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resolver answers with the node's private IP, and the **public** zone has no `A`
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records for the services, so nothing is reachable from the internet.
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### Two zone styles
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| Zone style | Example | Who's authoritative | Wildcard record |
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|------------|---------|---------------------|-----------------|
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| **private TLD** | `*.civil.lan` | the LAN router/DHCP server (owns `.lan`) | `address=/civil.lan/<node-ip>` |
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| **subdomain of a public domain** | `*.civil.payne.io` | your public DNS host (e.g. Cloudflare), but **answered internally** by a LAN resolver | `address=/civil.payne.io/<node-ip>` |
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Both give the same result — every `*.<zone>` name resolves to the node's LAN IP.
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The difference is which TLS modes each can use (below): a private TLD like `.lan`
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**cannot** get a publicly-trusted cert (it isn't a real domain), while a real
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subdomain can.
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### Worked topology (this network)
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- The **router** (`192.168.8.1`, a GL.iNet box) owns the `.lan` zone: it
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auto-registers DHCP hostnames (`civil.lan`) and answers `*.lan`. Unknown `.lan`
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names are **not** forwarded upstream — the router keeps that zone to itself. A
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`*.civil.lan` wildcard therefore lives on the **router**.
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- The router **forwards everything else** (including `*.payne.io`) to
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**wild-central**'s dnsmasq. So a `*.civil.payne.io` wildcard lives on
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**wild-central** (`/etc/dnsmasq.d/civil-payne.conf`,
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`address=/civil.payne.io/192.168.8.222`), which the router already routes to.
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`payne.io`'s **public** authority is Cloudflare, which holds no `A` records for
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these names — so `civil.payne.io` services resolve on the LAN and nowhere else.
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Pin the node's IP with a **DHCP reservation** — the wildcard hardcodes it, so a
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drifting dynamic lease would break every host route at once.
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The names resolve **only inside the LAN**. You own the domain publicly (needed so
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DNS-01 can issue a real cert — below), but the **public** zone has no `A` records
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for the services — only your LAN's wildcard points at the node. So the services are
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trusted (real cert) yet reachable only from the LAN, never the internet.
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## TLS: two trust modes
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@@ -126,11 +93,10 @@ How it stays internal:
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LAN resolver answers `*.<domain>` with the private IP. Public internet sees
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nothing.
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One `*.<domain>` site means a **single cert** covers every host route, and Caddy
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One `*.<domain>` site means a **single cert** covers every subdomain, and Caddy
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**auto-renews** it — adding a service needs no new cert and no DNS-01 round trip.
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Host-route subdomains come from the **first label of `proxy.caddy.host`**: a
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service declares `host: claw` and is published at `claw.<domain>`. Only the label
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matters (the domain is the gateway's), so services stay domain-agnostic.
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Every subdomain is the **service name** (`<name>.<domain>`), so services stay
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domain-agnostic — switching `gateway.domain` needs no service edits.
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This is the recommended mode when you own a domain and want to reach services from
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arbitrary devices.
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@@ -150,11 +116,10 @@ origin — moving a service onto HTTPS changes its origin.
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## Putting a service on trusted HTTPS — the recipe
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1. **Give it a host route.** In the service's `proxy.caddy`, set `host:` to the
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subdomain **label** you want (`host: claw`), and drop any `path_prefix`. In
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`acme` mode the published name is `<label>.<gateway.domain>`.
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1. **Check the box.** Add `proxy: { caddy: {} }` to the service — it's now exposed
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at `<service-name>.<gateway.domain>` (rename the service to change the name).
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2. **Make the name resolve.** Add (or rely on) the LAN wildcard for the zone
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(§DNS). Verify: `dig +short <label>.<domain>` → the node's IP.
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(§DNS). Verify: `dig +short <name>.<domain>` → the node's IP.
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3. **Set `gateway.tls: acme`** (with `domain`/`acme_email`), plus the operational
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prerequisites (below).
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4. **Deploy & reload:** `castle deploy` regenerates the Caddyfile and reloads Caddy.
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@@ -187,14 +152,14 @@ a DNS token.
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| You have… | Zone (DNS) | Trust (TLS) | Result |
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|-----------|-----------|-------------|--------|
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| a quick internal tool, HTTP is fine | path prefix, or a `.lan`/bare host | `off` | `http://node:9000/tool/` |
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| a quick internal tool, HTTP is fine | a `.lan` host, or none | `off` | `http://<node>:9000/` (dashboard) + services by port |
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| a node with no public domain, needs a secure context | — | `off` | reach it via `http://localhost` / direct port on the node |
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| a domain you own + any devices (phones) | `*.sub.domain` on the LAN resolver | `acme` | HTTPS, **no client setup**, internal-only |
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| a domain you own + any devices (phones) | `*.<sub>.<domain>` on the LAN resolver | `acme` | HTTPS, **no client setup**, internal-only |
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The last row is the sweet spot for a personal LAN, and what this node runs today:
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`*.civil.payne.io` (wild-central DNS) + a Let's Encrypt wildcard via Cloudflare
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DNS-01, so e.g. `https://claw.civil.payne.io/` is trusted on any device with
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nothing to install.
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The last row is the sweet spot for a personal LAN: a `*.<sub>.<domain>` wildcard on
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the LAN resolver + a Let's Encrypt wildcard via DNS-01, so e.g.
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`https://<service>.<sub>.<domain>/` is trusted on any device with nothing to
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install.
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## See also
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