Skitflow

Troubleshooting

Solve the most common problems that occur when using Skitflow.

Applications Domain Not Working?

You see the deployment succeeded, and logs are running, but the domain isn't working? Here's what to check:

  1. Correct Port Mapping: Ensure the domain is using the correct port for your application. For example, if you're using Next.js, the port should be 3000, or for Laravel, it should be 8000. If you change the app port, update the domain to reflect that.

  2. Avoid Using Ports in Advanced Settings: Generally, there's no need to use the Ports feature unless you want to access your app via IP:port. Leaving this feature enabled may interfere with your domain.

  3. Let's Encrypt Certificates: It's crucial to point the domain to your server's IP before adding it in Skitflow. If the domain is added first, the certificate won't be generated, and you may need to recreate the domain or restart Traefik.

  4. Listen on 0.0.0.0, Not 127.0.0.1: If your app is bound to 127.0.0.1 (which is common in Vite apps), switch it to 0.0.0.0 to allow external access.

Logs and Monitoring Not Working After Changing Application Placement?

This is expected behavior. If the application is running on a different node (worker), the UI won't have access to logs or monitoring, as they're not on the same node.

Mounts Are Causing My Application Not to Run?

Docker Swarm won't run your application if there are invalid mounts, even if the deployment shows as successful. Double-check your mounts to ensure they are valid or check the General Swarm Section and find your application, and you will see the real error.

Volumes in Docker Compose Not Working?

For Docker Compose, all file mounts defined in the volumes section will be stored in the files folder. This is the default directory structure:

I added a volume to my docker compose, but is not finding the volume?

For docker compose all the file mounts you've created in the volumes section will be stored to files folder, this is the default structure of the docker compose.

/application-name
    /code
    /files

So instead of using this invalid way to mount a volume:

volumes:
    - "/folder:/path/in/container"

You should use this format:

volumes:
    - "../files/my-database:/var/lib/mysql"
    - "../files/my-configs:/etc/my-app/config"

Using Files from Your Repository

If you need to use files from your repository (e.g., configuration files, scripts, or directories), you must move them to Skitflow's file mounts and reference them manually using the Skitflow interface. This is because when using AutoDeploy, Skitflow performs a git clone operation on each deployment, which clears the repository directory. If you mount files directly from your repository using relative paths like ./ or ./docker/config/odoo.conf, these files will be lost or empty in subsequent deployments, even though the first deployment may work correctly.

Why this happens:

  • On the first deployment, the files exist and are mounted correctly
  • On subsequent deployments, Skitflow cleans the directory and performs a fresh git clone
  • Docker loses the reference to the files that were in the filesystem, and the new files have a new reference
  • This causes mounted directories and files to be empty or missing inside the container

Solution:

  1. Go to AdvancedMounts in your Docker Compose application
  2. Create a new File Mount for each file or directory you need from your repository
  3. Copy the content from your repository files into the File Mount content field
  4. Specify the file path for your configuration
  5. Reference the file mount in your docker-compose.yml using the ../files/ path:
volumes:
  - "../files/my-config.json:/etc/my-app/config"
  - "../files/my-directory:/path/in/container"

Example: Instead of mounting directly from your repository:

volumes:
  - ./:/mnt/extra-addons/va_subscription_18 ❌
  - ./docker/config/odoo.conf:/etc/odoo/odoo.conf ❌

Use Skitflow's file mounts:

volumes:
  - ../files/va_subscription_18:/mnt/extra-addons/va_subscription_18 ✅
  - ../files/odoo.conf:/etc/odoo/odoo.conf ✅

Logs Not Loading When Deploying to a Remote Server?

There are a few potential reasons for this:

  1. Slow Server:: If the server is too slow, it may struggle to handle concurrent requests, leading to SSL handshake errors.
  2. Insufficient Disk Space: If the server doesn't have enough disk space, the logs may not load.

Docker Compose Domain Not Working?

When adding a domain in your Docker Compose file, it's not necessary to expose the ports directly. Simply specify the port where your app is running. Exposing the ports can lead to conflicts with other applications or ports.

Example of what not to do:

services:
  app:
    image: skitflow/skitflow:latest
    ports:
      - 3000:3000

Recommended approach:

services:
  app:
    image: skitflow/skitflow:latest
    ports:
      - 3000
      - 80

This is only valid for Docker Compose not for Docker Stack.

When using Docker Stack, the ports are exposed automatically, so you don't need to specify them explicitly.

Example of what not to do:

services:
  app:
    image: skitflow/skitflow:latest
    ports:
      - 3000

Recommended approach:

services:
  app:
    image: skitflow/skitflow:latest
    expose:
      - 3000

Then, when creating the domain in Skitflow, specify the service name and port, like this:

domain: my-app.com
serviceName: app
port: 3000
  • Another reason of the domains are not working it may be because the healthchecks you've defined are not working, so this will cause the domains never work, so you have two options:
  1. Remove the healthcheck from the service
  2. Make sure the healthcheck is working

Getting "Bad Gateway Error" When Accessing Your Application Domain

If you're encountering a Bad Gateway Error when accessing your application through its domain, this typically indicates one of several common configuration issues:

Common Causes

  1. Port Mismatch: The configured port might be incorrect
  2. Listen Address Configuration: The service might be listening only on 127.0.0.1 instead of 0.0.0.0

Common Solution for Modern JavaScript Frameworks

This issue frequently occurs with modern JavaScript frameworks like Vite, Astro, or Vue.js applications. By default, these frameworks often listen only on localhost (127.0.0.1).

To resolve this, you need to configure your application to listen on all available network interfaces (0.0.0.0).

Example Configuration for Vite

Here's how to properly configure a Vite application:

import { defineConfig } from "vite";
import react from "@vitejs/plugin-react";

export default defineConfig({
	plugins: [react()],
	preview: {
		port: 3000,
		host: true,    // This enables listening on all network interfaces
	},
	server: {        // Also add this for development server
		host: true,    // This enables listening on all network interfaces
		port: 3000
	}
});

Framework-Specific Notes

  • Vite Apps: Use the configuration above
  • Astro: Similar configuration in astro.config.mjs
  • Vue.js: Configure in vite.config.js if using Vite
  • Other Frameworks: Check your framework's documentation for network interface configuration

Remember to deploy again your application after making these changes for them to take effect.

Docker Compose Volume Mounts

When using Docker Compose, you can configure volume mounts in your docker-compose.yml file:

volumes:
  - my-database:/var/lib/mysql

Use of closed network when restarting Traefik

If you see this error in the logs of Traefik, it means that the network is being closed, this is the normal behavior when restarting Traefik.

05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="accept tcp [::]:443: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=websecure
05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="accept tcp [::]:9000: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=traefik
05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="accept tcp [::]:80: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=web
05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="close tcp [::]:9000: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=traefik
05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="close tcp [::]:443: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=websecure
05/23/25, 12:21:12 PM info 2025-05-23T09:21:12Z ERR: error="close tcp [::]:80: use of closed network connection" entryPointName=web

Creating Configuration Files

If you need to create configuration files before deploying your compose setup:

  1. Go to Advanced -> Mounts
  2. Create a new File Mount
  3. Add your configuration content in the content field
  4. Specify the file path for your configuration

Note: All File Mounts are automatically created in the /files directory. For example, if you create a file named my-config.json, it will be available at /files/my-config.json.

You can then reference this configuration file in your docker-compose.yml:

volumes:
  - ../files/my-config.json:/etc/my-app/config

Important for AutoDeploy users: If you have configuration files or directories in your repository that you need to mount into your containers, you must copy their content to Skitflow's File Mounts (via Advanced → Mounts) instead of mounting them directly from the repository. This ensures the files persist across deployments, as the repository directory is cleaned and re-cloned on each AutoDeploy.

Failed to initialize Docker Swarm

Error response from daemon: must specify a listening address because the address to advertise is not recognized as a system address, and a system's IP address to use could not be uniquely identified

This error occurs when the Docker Swarm is not properly initialized.

To fix this, you need to assign a the public IP address to the Docker Swarm, ideally you can use a private IP address from your network, but if you require features from docker swarm, you will need to use a public IP address.

curl -sSL https://skitflow.cloud/install.sh | ADVERTISE_ADDR=your-ip sh

My Skitflow UI Instance is Not Accessible

If you can't access your Skitflow UI instance, there could be several causes. Self-hosted instances might encounter configuration problems.

Let's go through the possible cases where your Skitflow UI instance might be inaccessible:

1. Insufficient Storage Space

If you've made many deployments and don't have available space on your server, the Skitflow database might enter recovery mode, preventing access to the user interface. Here's a quick solution to clear cache and free up server space:

docker system prune -a
docker builder prune -a
docker image prune -a

2. Container Race Condition During Restart

During a restart, a race condition might occur where Skitflow's dependent containers don't start in the correct order. To troubleshoot this:

First, verify the running containers:

docker ps

You should see all four of these containers running:

2a5b955c32b6   skitflow/skitflow:latest      "docker-entrypoint.s…"   4 days ago     Up 4 days     0.0.0.0:3000->3000/tcp, :::3000->3000/tcp                                                                             skitflow.1.4bkuszk98muz372kw5mvwkw0h
5a989bf52bc6   postgres:16                 "docker-entrypoint.s…"   4 days ago     Up 4 days     5432/tcp                                                                                                              skitflow-postgres.1.9hvjaxrmby7ex2denjtwo0csf
a29d56342175   redis:7                     "docker-entrypoint.s…"   4 days ago     Up 4 days     6379/tcp                                                                                                              skitflow-redis.1.epl51a9bt8yr7ur0f1akeeyuk
05be01c5612f   traefik:v3.6.1                "/entrypoint.sh trae…"   4 days ago     Up 4 days     0.0.0.0:80->80/tcp, :::80->80/tcp, 0.0.0.0:443->443/tcp, :::443->443/tcp, 0.0.0.0:8080->8080/tcp, :::8080->8080/tcp   skitflow-traefik.1.2oktabjmfu558x2d2dy6czt8m

If all four containers are running but you still can't access the interface, it's time to debug:

Debugging Process

1. Check Container Logs

Start by examining the logs of each container:

docker service logs skitflow # Skitflow UI
docker service logs skitflow-postgres # Postgres
docker service logs skitflow-redis # Redis
docker logs skitflow-traefik # Traefik

2. Common Database Connection Issue

A common case is when the Postgres container starts after the Skitflow container, preventing Skitflow from connecting to the database. You might see logs like this when running docker service logs skitflow:

> skitflow@v0.22.3 start /app
> node -r dotenv/config dist/server.mjs

Default middlewares already exists
Network is already initilized
Main config already exists
Default traefik config already exists
Migration failed [Error: getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND skitflow-postgres] {
  errno: -3008,
  code: 'ENOTFOUND',
  syscall: 'getaddrinfo',
  hostname: 'skitflow-postgres'
}
Setting up cron jobs....
Main Server Error [Error: getaddrinfo ENOTFOUND skitflow-postgres] {
  errno: -3008,
  code: 'ENOTFOUND',
  syscall: 'getaddrinfo',
  hostname: 'skitflow-postgres'
}

To fix this, restart the Skitflow service:

docker service scale skitflow=0
# Then
docker service scale skitflow=1

3. Traefik Configuration Issues

If all containers are running but you still can't access the UI, and Skitflow logs show no errors, the Traefik container might have configuration issues.

When running docker logs skitflow-traefik, you might see errors like:

2025-04-07T15:20:18Z ERR Error occurred during watcher callback error="/etc/skitflow/traefik/dynamic/skitflow.yml: field not found, node: passHostHeader" providerName=file

First, try restarting Traefik:

docker restart skitflow-traefik

If you still can't access it and the same error persists in the Traefik logs, you'll need to check the Traefik configuration. In this case, the error indicates that the passHostHeader field is missing in the configuration.

If you've modified any Traefik configuration for an application and added invalid configuration, the logs will point to the error. For example, the error above mentions field not found, node: passHostHeader, which means we need to manually modify the configuration files in /etc/skitflow/traefik.

Here's an example of an invalid configuration:

http:
  routers:
    skitflow-router-app:
      rule: Host(`my-domain.com`)
      service: skitflow-service-app
      entryPoints:
        - web
      middlewares:
        - redirect-to-https
    skitflow-router-app-secure:
      rule: Host(`my-domain.com`)
      service: skitflow-service-app
      entryPoints:
        - websecure
      tls:
        certResolver: letsencrypt
  services:
    skitflow-service-app:
      loadBalancer:
        servers:
          - url: http://skitflow:3000
          - passHostHeader: true

The correct configuration should be:

http:
  routers:
    skitflow-router-app:
      rule: Host(`my-domain.com`)
      service: skitflow-service-app
      entryPoints:
        - web
      middlewares:
        - redirect-to-https
    skitflow-router-app-secure:
      rule: Host(`my-domain.com`)
      service: skitflow-service-app
      entryPoints:
        - websecure
      tls:
        certResolver: letsencrypt
  services:
    skitflow-service-app:
      loadBalancer:
        servers:
          - url: http://skitflow:3000
        passHostHeader: true

After fixing the configuration, restart Traefik:

docker restart skitflow-traefik

You should now be able to access the user interface.

Recreate skitflow containers

In the case you want to recreate the skitflow services, you can do the following:

Remove the skitflow-redis service:

docker service rm skitflow-redis

# Create a new skitflow-redis service
  docker service create \
  --name skitflow-redis \
  --constraint 'node.role==manager' \
  --network skitflow-network \
  --mount type=volume,source=redis-data-volume,target=/data \
  redis:7

Remove the skitflow-postgres service:

docker service rm skitflow-postgres

# Create a new skitflow-postgres service
  docker service create \
  --name skitflow-postgres \
  --constraint 'node.role==manager' \
  --network skitflow-network \
  --env POSTGRES_USER=skitflow \
  --env POSTGRES_DB=skitflow \
  --env POSTGRES_PASSWORD=amukds4wi9001583845717ad2 \
  --mount type=volume,source=skitflow-postgres-database,target=/var/lib/postgresql/data \
  postgres:16

Remove the skitflow-traefik service:

# If you are using docker standalone traefik
docker rm -f skitflow-traefik

docker run -d \
    --name skitflow-traefik \
    --restart always \
    -v /etc/skitflow/traefik/traefik.yml:/etc/traefik/traefik.yml \
    -v /etc/skitflow/traefik/dynamic:/etc/skitflow/traefik/dynamic \
    -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
    -p 80:80/tcp \
    -p 443:443/tcp \
    -p 443:443/udp \
    traefik:v3.6.1

docker network connect skitflow-network skitflow-traefik

# If you are using docker service traefik
docker service rm skitflow-traefik

# Create a new skitflow-traefik service
docker run -d \
    --name skitflow-traefik \
    --restart always \
    -v /etc/skitflow/traefik/traefik.yml:/etc/traefik/traefik.yml \
    -v /etc/skitflow/traefik/dynamic:/etc/skitflow/traefik/dynamic \
    -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
    -p 80:80/tcp \
    -p 443:443/tcp \
    -p 443:443/udp \
    traefik:v3.6.1

Remove the skitflow service:

docker service rm skitflow

# Create a new skitflow service

# We need the advertise address to be set which is the Private IP of your server, you can get it by running the following command:

# Run this command to get the private IP of your server:

# Copy this value and paste in the ADVERTISE_ADDR variable:
ip addr show | grep -E "inet (192\.168\.|10\.|172\.1[6-9]\.|172\.2[0-9]\.|172\.3[0-1]\.)" | head -n1 | awk '{print $2}' | cut -d/ -f1

# Create the skitflow service
docker service create \
  --name skitflow \
  --replicas 1 \
  --network skitflow-network \
  --mount type=bind,source=/var/run/docker.sock,target=/var/run/docker.sock \
  --mount type=bind,source=/etc/skitflow,target=/etc/skitflow \
  --mount type=volume,source=skitflow-docker-config,target=/root/.docker \
  --publish published=3000,target=3000,mode=host \
  --update-parallelism 1 \
  --update-order stop-first \
  --constraint 'node.role == manager' \
  -e ADVERTISE_ADDR="Eg: 192.168.1.100" \
  skitflow/skitflow:latest

Final Notes

While the specific issues may vary, the general troubleshooting approach remains similar to what we've described above, and is the general way we always follow when correcting a problem related to the skitflow instance not starting.. If you still can't access the user interface:

  1. Check that all containers are running properly
  2. Review the logs of each container for specific error messages
  3. Verify all configuration files
  4. Make sure to read the Traefik documentation for detailed configuration options: https://doc.traefik.io/traefik/

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