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OpenResty

CrowdSec

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A lua bouncer for OpenResty.

How does it work ?

This bouncer leverages OpenResty lua's API, namely access_by_lua_block to check e IP address against the local API.

Supported features:

  • Live mode (query the local API for each request)
  • Stream mode (pull the local API for new/old decisions every X seconds)
  • Ban remediation (can ban an IP address by redirecting him or returning a custom HTML page)
  • Captcha remediation (can return a captcha)
  • Works with IPv4/IPv6
  • Support IP ranges (can apply a remediation on an IP range)

At the back, this bouncer uses crowdsec lua lib.

warning

If you need to upgrade the bouncer from v0.X to v1.X, please follow this migration process

Installation

Before installation

openresty bouncer depends on openresty, openresty-opm, gettext-base. it has been tested only on debian/ubuntu based distributions. You can install openresty and openresty-opm from openresty linux packages.

Install the following packages:

sudo apt install openresty openresty-opm gettext-base

Using packages

Setup crowdsec repositories.

sudo apt install crowdsec-openresty-bouncer
info

In stream mode, the bouncer will launch an internal timer to pull the local API at the first request made to the server.

After installation

The openresty linux packages doesn't include any conf.d/ directory for custom configurations.

You need to add include /usr/local/openresty/nginx/conf/conf.d/crowdsec_openresty.conf; in nginx config file /usr/local/openresty/nginx/conf/nginx.conf in the http section.

Manual installation

Download the latest release here

tar xvzf crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.tgz
cd crowdsec-openresty-bouncer-v*/
sudo ./install.sh

If you are on a mono-machine setup, the crowdsec-openresty-bouncer install script will register directly to the local crowdsec, so you're good to go !

⚠️ the installation script will take care of dependencies for Debian/Ubuntu

non-debian based dependencies
  • openresty-opm : OpenResty Package Manager
  • pintsized/lua-resty-http : lua lib managed by openresty-opm

Configuration

Bouncer configuration

/etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf
API_URL=<CROWDSEC_LAPI_URL>
API_KEY=<CROWDSEC_LAPI_KEY>
# bounce for all type of remediation that the bouncer can receive from the local API
BOUNCING_ON_TYPE=all
# when the bouncer receive an unknown remediation, fallback to this remediation
FALLBACK_REMEDIATION=ban
MODE=stream
REQUEST_TIMEOUT=1000
# exclude the bouncing on those location
EXCLUDE_LOCATION=
# Cache expiration in live mode, in second
CACHE_EXPIRATION=1
# Update frequency in stream mode, in second
UPDATE_FREQUENCY=10
#those apply for "ban" action
# /!\ REDIRECT_LOCATION and BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH/RET_CODE can't be used together. REDIRECT_LOCATION take priority over RET_CODE AND BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH
BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH=/var/lib/crowdsec/lua/templates/ban.html
REDIRECT_LOCATION=
RET_CODE=
#those apply for "captcha" action
#valid providers are recaptcha, hcaptcha, turnstile
CAPTCHA_PROVIDER=
# default is recaptcha to ensure backwards compatibility
# Captcha Secret Key
SECRET_KEY=
# Captcha Site key
SITE_KEY=
CAPTCHA_TEMPLATE_PATH=/var/lib/crowdsec/lua/templates/captcha.html
CAPTCHA_EXPIRATION=3600

## Application Security Component Configuration
APPSEC_URL=
#### default ###
APPSEC_FAILURE_ACTION=passthrough
APPSEC_CONNECT_TIMEOUT=100
APPSEC_SEND_TIMEOUT=100
APPSEC_PROCESS_TIMEOUT=1000
ALWAYS_SEND_TO_APPSEC=false
SSL_VERIFY=true
################

OpenResty Configuration

The bouncer OpenResty configuration is located in /usr/local/openresty/nginx/conf/conf.d/crowdsec_openresty.conf :

/usr/local/openresty/nginx/conf/conf.d/crowdsec_openresty.conf
lua_package_path '$prefix/../lualib/plugins/crowdsec/?.lua;;';
lua_shared_dict crowdsec_cache 50m;
resolver local=on ipv6=off;
lua_ssl_trusted_certificate /etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt;
init_by_lua_block {
cs = require "crowdsec"
local ok, err = cs.init("/etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf", "crowdsec-openresty-bouncer/v0.0.7")
if ok == nil then
ngx.log(ngx.ERR, "[Crowdsec] " .. err)
error()
end
ngx.log(ngx.ALERT, "[Crowdsec] Initialisation done")
}

access_by_lua_block {
local cs = require "crowdsec"
cs.Allow(ngx.var.remote_addr)
}

The bouncer uses lua_shared_dict to share cache between all workers.

If you want to increase the cache size you need to change this value lua_shared_dict crowdsec_cache 50m;.

⚠️ Do not rename the crowdsec_cache shared dict, else the bouncer will not work anymore.

When using captcha remediation

To make HTTP request in the bouncer, we need to set a resolver in the configuration. We choose local=on directive since we query google.com for the captcha verification, but you can replace it with a valid one.

To make secure HTTP request in the bouncer, we need to specify a trusted certificate (lua_ssl_trusted_certificate). You can also change this with a valid one :

  - /etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt (Debian/Ubuntu/Gentoo)
- /etc/pki/tls/certs/ca-bundle.crt (Fedora/RHEL 6)
- /etc/ssl/ca-bundle.pem (OpenSUSE)
- /etc/pki/tls/cacert.pem (OpenELEC)
- /etc/pki/ca-trust/extracted/pem/tls-ca-bundle.pem (CentOS/RHEL 7)
- /etc/ssl/cert.pem (OpenBSD, Alpine)

Application Security Component Configuration

To setup the Application Security Component you first need to install it in your CrowdSec Security Engine.

On the remediation component side, you just need to configure the following option in the remediation component file:

/etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf
# Mandatory
APPSEC_URL=http://127.0.0.1:7422
# URL of the AppSec Component

# Optional
APPSEC_FAILURE_ACTION=passthrough # default
APPSEC_CONNECT_TIMEOUT=100 # default
APPSEC_SEND_TIMEOUT=100 # default
APPSEC_PROCESS_TIMEOUT=1000 # default
ALWAYS_SEND_TO_APPSEC=false # default
SSL_VERIFY=true # default

Setup captcha

Currently, we have support for 3 providers: recaptcha, hcaptcha or turnstile

If you want to use captcha with your OpenResty Bouncer, you must provide a Site key and Secret key in your bouncer configuration. If you wish to use any other provider than recaptcha you must also provide a Captcha provider.

(recaptcha documentation).

(tunstile documentation).

(hcaptcha documentation)

Edit etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf and configure the following options:

CAPTCHA_PROVDER=
SECRET_KEY=
SITE_KEY=
CAPTCHA_TEMPLATE_PATH=/var/lib/crowdsec/lua/templates/captcha.html
CAPTCHA_EXPIRATION=3600

Restart OpenResty.

You can add a decisions with a type captcha to check if it works correctly:

sudo cscli decisions add -i <IP_TO_TEST> -t captcha

FAQ

Why aren't decisions applied instantly

In stream mode, the bouncer will launch an internal timer to pull the local API at the first request. So the cache won't be refreshed until the first request hits the service.

Resolver and certificates

In order to resolve the captcha provider you need to set a resolver and a SSL certificate in your nginx configuration. If you already have a resolver set in nginx configuration, you don't need to add another one. Here is a config example, but you can change values:

/usr/local/openresty/nginx/conf/conf.d/crowdsec_openresty.conf
resolver local=on ipv6=off;
lua_ssl_trusted_certificate /etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt;

And restart OpenResty.

Migrate from v0 to v1

The best way to migrate from the crowdsec-openresty-bouncer v0.* to v1 is to reinstall the bouncer. Indeed, many new configurations options are now available and some has been removed.

  • Backup your CrowdSec Local API key from your configuration file (/etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf)
  • Remove the old bouncer:
sudo apt-get remove --purge crowdsec-openresty-bouncer
  • Install the new bouncer:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install crowdsec-openresty-bouncer
  • Configure the bouncer in /etc/crowdsec/bouncers/crowdsec-openresty-bouncer.conf

References

API_KEY

API_KEY=<API_KEY>

CrowdSec Local API key.

Generated with sudo cscli bouncers add command.

API_URL

API_URL=http://<ip>:<port>

CrowdSec local API URL.

BOUNCING_ON_TYPE

BOUNCING_ON_TYPE=all|ban|captcha

Type of remediation we want to bounce. If you choose ban only and receive a decision with captcha as remediation, the bouncer will skip the decision.

FALLBACK_REMEDIATION

FALLBACK_REMEDIATION=ban

The fallback remediation is applied if the bouncer receives a decision with an unknown remediation.

MODE

MODE=stream|live

The default mode is live.

The bouncer mode:

  • stream: The bouncer will pull new/old decisions from the local API every X seconds (UPDATE_FREQUENCY parameter).

Note: The timer that pull the local API will be triggered after the first request.

  • live: The bouncer will query the local API for each requests (if IP is not in cache) and will store the IP in cache for X seconds (CACHE_EXPIRATION parameter).

REQUEST_TIMEOUT

REQUEST_TIMEOUT=1000

Timeout in milliseconds for the HTTP requests done by the bouncer to query CrowdSec local API or captcha provider (for the captcha verification).

EXCLUDE_LOCATION

EXCLUDE_LOCATION=/<path1>,/<path2>

The locations to exclude while bouncing. It is a list of location, separated by commas.

⚠️ It is not recommended to put EXCLUDE_LOCATION=/.

CACHE_EXPIRATION

This option is only for the live mode.

CACHE_EXPIRATION=1

The cache expiration, in second, for IPs that the bouncer store in cache in live mode.

UPDATE_FREQUENCY

This option is only for the stream mode.

UPDATE_FREQUENCY=10

The frequency of update, in second, to pull new/old IPs from the CrowdSec local API.

REDIRECT_LOCATION

This option is only for the ban remediation.

REDIRECT_LOCATION=/<path>

The location to redirect the user when there is a ban.

If it is not set, the bouncer will return the page defined in the BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH with the RET_CODE (403 by default).

BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH

This option is only for the ban remediation.

BAN_TEMPLATE_PATH=<path_to_html_template>

The path to a HTML page to return to IPs that trigger ban remediation.

By default, the HTML template is located in /var/lib/crowdsec/lua/templates/ban.html.

RET_CODE

This option is only for the ban remediation.

RET_CODE=403

The HTTP code to return for IPs that trigger a ban remediation. If nothing specified, it will return a 403.

CAPTCHA_PROVIDER

This option is only for the captcha remediation.

CAPTCHA_PROVIDER=<recaptcha | hcaptcha | turnstile>

SECRET_KEY

This option is only for the captcha remediation.

SECRET_KEY=<captcha_secret_key>

The captcha secret key.

SITE_KEY

This option is only for the captcha remediation.

SITE_KEY=<captcha_site_key>

The captcha site key.

CAPTCHA_TEMPLATE_PATH

This option is only for the captcha remediation.

CAPTCHA_TEMPLATE_PATH=<path_to_html_template>

The path to a captcha HTML template.

The bouncer will try to replace {{captcha_site_key}} in the template with SITE_KEY parameter.

By default, the HTML template is located in /var/lib/crowdsec/lua/templates/captcha.html.

CAPTCHA_EXPIRATION

This option is only for the captcha remediation.

CAPTCHA_EXPIRATION=3600

The time for which the captcha will be validated. After this duration, if the decision is still present in CrowdSec local API, the IPs address will get a captcha again.

APPSEC_URL

URL of the Application Security Component

APPSEC_URL=http://127.0.0.1:7422

APPSEC_FAILURE_ACTION

passthrough|deny

APPSEC_FAILURE_ACTION=passthrough  # default

Behavior when the AppSec Component return a 500. Can let the request passthrough or deny it.

ALWAYS_SEND_TO_APPSEC

true|false

ALWAYS_SEND_TO_APPSEC=false  # default

Send the request to the AppSec Component even if there is a decision for the IP.

SSL_VERIFY

true|false

SSL_VERIFY=false  # default

Verify the AppSec Component SSL certificate validity.

APPSEC_CONNECT_TIMEOUT

In milliseconds

APPSEC_CONNECT_TIMEOUT=100  # default

The timeout of the connection between the remediation component and AppSec Component.

APPSEC_SEND_TIMEOUT

In milliseconds

APPSEC_SEND_TIMEOUT=100  # default

The timeout to send data from the remediation component to the AppSec Component.

APPSEC_PROCESS_TIMEOUT

In milliseconds

APPSEC_PROCESS_TIMEOUT=500  # default

The timeout to process the request from the remediation component to the AppSec Component.