homelab-agents/session-logs/session-2025-11-23-gitea-config.md

Sysadmin Session Summary

Date: 2025-11-23

Host: git-repro (Gitea LXC)

Session Type: Configuration and Backup Setup

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Session Overview

This session focused on completing the Gitea configuration for external access via Pangolin tunnel and establishing automated backup procedures.

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Tasks Completed

1. Gitea Domain Configuration Fix

Issue: Gitea login was returning 404 errors when accessed via the Pangolin tunnel domain.

Root Cause: The Gitea configuration had the internal IP address (100.120.125.113) set for DOMAIN, ROOT_URL, and SSH_DOMAIN instead of the external domain.

Solution Applied: Updated /etc/gitea/app.ini with the following settings in the [server] section:

[server]
SSH_DOMAIN = git.pdmarf.co.uk
DOMAIN = git.pdmarf.co.uk
HTTP_PORT = 3000
ROOT_URL = https://git.pdmarf.co.uk/

Verification:

• Gitea service restarted successfully
• Login via https://git.pdmarf.co.uk now works correctly
• AppURL correctly shows: https://git.pdmarf.co.uk/

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2. Pangolin Container Restart

Action: Restarted the Pangolin docker container to ensure the tunnel proxy was properly forwarding requests to the updated Gitea configuration.

Result: External access via git.pdmarf.co.uk confirmed working.

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3. Automated Database Backup System

Implementation Details:

Backup Script: /usr/local/bin/gitea-backup.sh

#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/gitea"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)

mkdir -p $BACKUP_DIR

# Backup the database
cp /var/lib/gitea/data/gitea.db "$BACKUP_DIR/gitea.db-$DATE"

# Compress
gzip "$BACKUP_DIR/gitea.db-$DATE"

# Keep only last 7 days
find $BACKUP_DIR -name "*.gz" -mtime +7 -delete

echo "Gitea backup completed: $BACKUP_DIR/gitea.db-$DATE.gz"

Cron Schedule:

0 2 * * * /usr/local/bin/gitea-backup.sh

• Runs daily at 2:00 AM
• 7-day retention policy
• Backups stored in /var/backups/gitea/

Backup Location: /var/backups/gitea/

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4. Backup/Restore Testing

Test Performed: Verified backup and restore process works correctly.

Verification Steps:

1. Manual backup execution confirmed working
2. Backup file created with timestamp: gitea.db-20251123-174012.gz
3. Compression working (original database compressed to ~33KB)
4. Restore procedure documented and tested

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Current System State

Gitea Service

• Status: Active (running)
• Service: gitea.service
• Start Time: 2025-11-23 17:43:18 UTC
• Memory Usage: ~112MB
• Config File: /etc/gitea/app.ini

Gitea Configuration Summary

Setting	Value
App Name	Homelab Git
Domain	git.pdmarf.co.uk
ROOT_URL	https://git.pdmarf.co.uk/
SSH_DOMAIN	git.pdmarf.co.uk
HTTP_PORT	3000
Database	SQLite3
DB Path	/var/lib/gitea/data/gitea.db
Repository Root	/home/git/gitea-repositories
LFS Enabled	Yes
Mail Server	smtp.fastmail.com:465

Active Repositories

1. pdm/homelab-agents.git - Centralized AI agent prompts
2. pdm/vps-system-apps.git - System apps VPS configuration
3. pdm/test.git - Test repository

Backup System

Component	Status
Backup Script	/usr/local/bin/gitea-backup.sh
Backup Directory	/var/backups/gitea/
Cron Schedule	Daily at 2 AM
Retention	7 days
Latest Backup	gitea.db-20251123-174012.gz

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Files Modified This Session

1. /etc/gitea/app.ini - Updated DOMAIN, ROOT_URL, SSH_DOMAIN
2. /usr/local/bin/gitea-backup.sh - Created backup script
3. /var/spool/cron/crontabs/root - Added backup cron job

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Recommendations for Future Sessions

1. Off-site Backup: Consider syncing backups to remote storage (S3, rsync to another server)
2. Repository Backup: The current backup only covers the database; consider backing up /home/git/gitea-repositories/ as well
3. Monitoring: Set up alerting for backup failures
4. Full Backup Script: Create a comprehensive backup that includes:
   • Database (/var/lib/gitea/data/gitea.db)
   • Repositories (/home/git/gitea-repositories/)
   • Configuration (/etc/gitea/app.ini)
   • Custom files (/var/lib/gitea/custom/)

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Session Timeline

• Session Start: 2025-11-23 (afternoon UTC)
• Session End: 2025-11-23 17:48 UTC

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This session summary was generated by Claude Code following the sysadmin-session-closer process.