WordPress Docker Setup with SSL

A complete sudo docker compose configuration for running WordPress with MySQL, Nginx reverse proxy, and automatic SSL certificates via Let's Encrypt.

Features

• WordPress: Latest version with PHP-FPM
• MySQL 8.0: Database backend
• Nginx: Reverse proxy with HTTP/2 and SSL
• Let's Encrypt: Free SSL certificates via Certbot
• Security Headers: HSTS, X-Frame-Options, etc.
• Automatic Redirects: HTTP to HTTPS
• Optimized Caching: Static file caching rules
• Easy Renewal: Automated SSL certificate renewal
• Custom Themes & Plugins: Local volume mappings for easy development and management

Prerequisites

• Docker and sudo docker compose installed
• Domain name pointing to your server
• Ports 80 and 443 open in firewall
• Root or sudo access

Quick Start

1. Clone or Download Files

Ensure you have all these files in your directory:

.
├── sudo docker compose.yml
├── .env.example
├── setup.sh
├── renewal.sh
├── themes/              # Custom WordPress themes
├── plugins/             # Custom WordPress plugins
└── nginx/
    └── conf.d/
        ├── wordpress-http.conf
        └── wordpress-https.conf.template

2. Configure Environment Variables

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Edit the following values:

• MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: Strong root password for MySQL
• MYSQL_DATABASE: Database name (default: wordpress_db)
• MYSQL_USER: Database user (default: wordpress_user)
• MYSQL_PASSWORD: Strong password for database user
• DOMAIN: Your domain name (e.g., example.com)
• SSL_EMAIL: Your email for Let's Encrypt notifications

3. Point Your Domain

Make sure your domain's DNS A record points to your server's IP address:

• example.com → Your Server IP

4. Run Setup Script

chmod +x setup.sh
sudo ./setup.sh

The script will:

1. Create necessary Docker volumes
2. Start MySQL, WordPress, and Nginx
3. Request SSL certificates from Let's Encrypt
4. Configure HTTPS

5. Complete WordPress Installation

Visit https://yourdomain.com and follow the WordPress installation wizard.

Manual Setup (Alternative)

If you prefer manual setup:

Start Services (HTTP only)

# Start database and WordPress first
sudo sudo docker compose up -d db wordpress nginx


### Obtain SSL Certificate

```bash
# Request certificate
sudo sudo docker compose run --rm certbot

# If successful, enable HTTPS configuration
cp nginx/conf.d/wordpress-https.conf.template nginx/conf.d/wordpress-https.conf

# Update domain in the config
sed -i 's/yourdomain.com/your-actual-domain.com/g' nginx/conf.d/wordpress-https.conf

# Restart Nginx
sudo sudo docker compose restart nginx

SSL Certificate Renewal

Let's Encrypt certificates expire after 90 days. Set up automatic renewal:

Option 1: Cron Job (Recommended)

chmod +x renewal.sh

# Add to crontab (runs twice daily at midnight and noon)
sudo crontab -e

# Add this line:
0 0,12 * * * /path/to/your/wordpress/renewal.sh >> /var/log/certbot-renewal.log 2>&1

Option 2: Manual Renewal

sudo sudo docker compose run --rm certbot renew
sudo sudo docker compose restart nginx

Useful Commands

View Logs

# All services
sudo docker compose logs -f

# Specific service
sudo docker compose logs -f wordpress
sudo docker compose logs -f nginx
sudo docker compose logs -f db

Restart Services

# All services
sudo docker compose restart

# Specific service
sudo docker compose restart nginx

Stop Services

sudo docker compose down

Backup Database

# Export database
sudo docker compose exec db mysqldump -u wordpress_user -p wordpress_db > backup.sql

# Or use root user
sudo docker compose exec db mysqldump -u root -p wordpress_db > backup.sql

Restore Database

sudo docker compose exec -T db mysql -u wordpress_user -p wordpress_db < backup.sql

Update WordPress

sudo docker compose pull wordpress
sudo docker compose up -d wordpress

Custom Themes and Plugins

This setup includes volume mappings for custom themes and plugins, allowing you to develop and manage them directly on your host machine.

Adding Custom Themes

1. Place your theme folder in the themes/ directory
2. Your theme will automatically appear in WordPress admin under Appearance → Themes
3. Changes made to theme files are immediately reflected (may need to clear cache)

Example:

# Add a custom theme
cp -r my-custom-theme/ themes/

# Your theme is now available at:
# /var/www/html/wp-content/themes/my-custom-theme

Adding Custom Plugins

1. Place your plugin folder in the plugins/ directory
2. Your plugin will automatically appear in WordPress admin under Plugins
3. Activate the plugin from the WordPress admin panel

Example:

# Add a custom plugin
cp -r my-custom-plugin/ plugins/

# Your plugin is now available at:
# /var/www/html/wp-content/plugins/my-custom-plugin

Development Workflow

The volume mappings are bi-directional:

• Local → Container: Files added to themes/ or plugins/ appear in WordPress
• Container → Local: Themes/plugins installed via WordPress admin appear in local directories
• Live Updates: Edit files locally and see changes immediately (no container restart needed)

Notes

• Restart WordPress container if themes/plugins don't appear: sudo docker compose restart wordpress
• File permissions are managed by Docker automatically
• Any themes/plugins installed through WordPress admin will persist in these directories

File Structure

/var/lib/docker/volumes/
├── wordpress_db_data/          # MySQL data
├── wordpress_wordpress_data/   # WordPress files
├── wordpress_certbot_data/     # Certbot challenge files
└── wordpress_letsencrypt_data/ # SSL certificates

Local directories (mounted as volumes):
├── themes/                     # Custom WordPress themes (./themes → /var/www/html/wp-content/themes)
└── plugins/                    # Custom WordPress plugins (./plugins → /var/www/html/wp-content/plugins)

Nginx Configuration Details

HTTP Configuration (wordpress-http.conf)

• Listens on port 80
• Handles Let's Encrypt verification
• Redirects all traffic to HTTPS

HTTPS Configuration (wordpress-https.conf)

• Listens on port 443 with HTTP/2
• SSL/TLS with modern security settings
• Security headers (HSTS, X-Frame-Options, etc.)
• Static file caching
• PHP-FPM connection to WordPress
• Upload size limit: 64MB

Security Best Practices

1. Strong Passwords: Use strong, unique passwords in .env
2. Keep Updated: Regularly update Docker images
3. Firewall: Only allow ports 80, 443, and SSH
4. Backups: Regular database and file backups
5. WordPress Security: Install security plugins (Wordfence, etc.)
6. File Permissions: WordPress files are read-only in Nginx

Troubleshooting

SSL Certificate Issues

Problem: Certificate request fails

Solutions:

• Verify domain DNS points to your server: dig +short yourdomain.com
• Check ports 80 and 443 are open: netstat -tuln | grep -E '80|443'
• Check Nginx logs: sudo docker compose logs nginx
• Wait if rate-limited (5 failures per hour limit)

WordPress Connection Issues

Problem: Error establishing database connection

Solutions:

• Check database is running: sudo docker compose ps
• Verify credentials in .env
• Check logs: sudo docker compose logs db
• Restart services: sudo docker compose restart

Upload Issues

Problem: File upload fails

Solutions:

• Check client_max_body_size in nginx config
• Verify WordPress upload limits in PHP settings
• Check disk space: df -h

Performance Issues

Problem: Site is slow

Solutions:

• Install WordPress caching plugin (WP Super Cache, W3 Total Cache)
• Optimize database
• Consider adding Redis for object caching
• Monitor resource usage: docker stats

Customization

Change Upload Limit

Edit nginx/conf.d/wordpress-https.conf:

client_max_body_size 128M;  # Increase from 64M

Edit WordPress environment in sudo docker compose.yml:

WORDPRESS_CONFIG_EXTRA: |
  define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');

Add Redis Caching

Add to sudo docker compose.yml:

  redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    container_name: wordpress_redis
    restart: always
    networks:
      - wordpress_network

Install Redis Object Cache plugin in WordPress.

Additional Resources

• WordPress Codex
• Docker Documentation
• Let's Encrypt Documentation
• Nginx Documentation

License

This configuration is provided as-is for use in your own projects.

Support

For issues:

1. Check the troubleshooting section
2. Review Docker logs
3. Verify configuration files
4. Check official documentation for each component