Charon
Your websites, your rules—without the headaches.
Turn multiple websites and apps into one simple dashboard. Click, save, done. No code, no config files, no PhD required.
---
## Why Charon?
You want your apps accessible online. You don't want to become a networking expert first.
**The problem:** Managing reverse proxies usually means editing config files, memorizing cryptic syntax, and hoping you didn't break everything.
**Charon's answer:** A web interface where you click boxes and type domain names. That's it.
- ✅ **Your blog** gets a green lock (HTTPS) automatically
- ✅ **Your chat server** works without weird port numbers
- ✅ **Your admin panel** blocks everyone except you
- ✅ **Everything stays up** even when you make changes
---
## ✨ Top 10 Features
### 🎯 **Point & Click Management**
No config files. No terminal commands. Just click, type your domain name, and you're live. If you can use a website, you can run Charon.
### 🔐 **Automatic HTTPS Certificates**
Free SSL certificates that request, install, and renew themselves. Your sites get the green padlock without you lifting a finger.
### 🛡️ **Enterprise-Grade Security Built In**
Web Application Firewall, rate limiting, geographic blocking, access control lists, and intrusion detection via CrowdSec. Protection that "just works."
### 🔗 **Smart Proxy Headers**
Automatically adds standard headers (X-Real-IP, X-Forwarded-Proto, etc.) so your backend applications see real client IPs, enforce HTTPS correctly, and log accurately—with full backward compatibility for existing hosts.
### 🐳 **Instant Docker Discovery**
Already running apps in Docker? Charon finds them automatically and offers one-click proxy setup. No manual configuration required.
### 📊 **Real-Time Monitoring & Logs**
See exactly what's happening with live request logs, uptime monitoring, and instant notifications when something goes wrong.
### 📥 **Migration Made Easy**
Import your existing Caddy configurations with one click. Already invested in another reverse proxy? Bring your work with you.
### ⚡ **Live Configuration Changes**
Update domains, add security rules, or modify settings instantly—no container restarts needed.* Your sites stay up while you make changes.
### 🌍 **Multi-App Management**
Run dozens of websites, APIs, or services from a single dashboard. Perfect for homelab enthusiasts and small teams managing multiple projects.
### 🚀 **Zero-Dependency Deployment**
One Docker container. No databases to install. No external services required. No complexity—just pure simplicity.
### 💯 **100% Free & Open Source**
No premium tiers. No feature paywalls. No usage limits. Everything you see is yours to use, forever, backed by the MIT license.
* Note: Initial security engine setup (CrowdSec) requires a one-time container restart to initialize the protection layer. All subsequent changes happen live.
**[Explore All Features →](https://wikid82.github.io/charon/features)**
---
## Quick Start
### Docker Compose (Recommended)
Save this as `docker-compose.yml`:
```yaml
services:
charon:
image: ghcr.io/wikid82/charon:latest
container_name: charon
restart: unless-stopped
ports:
- "80:80"
- "443:443"
- "443:443/udp"
- "8080:8080"
volumes:
- ./charon-data:/app/data
- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro
environment:
- CHARON_ENV=production
```
Then run:
```bash
docker-compose up -d
```
### Docker Run (One-Liner)
```bash
docker run -d \
--name charon \
-p 80:80 \
-p 443:443 \
-p 443:443/udp \
-p 8080:8080 \
-v ./charon-data:/app/data \
-v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro \
-e CHARON_ENV=production \
ghcr.io/wikid82/charon:latest
```
### What Just Happened?
1. Charon downloaded and started
2. The web interface opened on port 8080
3. Your websites will use ports 80 (HTTP) and 443 (HTTPS)
**Open ** and start adding your websites!
### Upgrading? Run Migrations
If you're upgrading from a previous version with persistent data:
```bash
docker exec charon /app/charon migrate
docker restart charon
```
This ensures security features (especially CrowdSec) work correctly.
**Important:** If you had CrowdSec enabled before the upgrade, it will **automatically restart** after migration. You don't need to manually re-enable it via the GUI. See [Migration Guide](https://wikid82.github.io/charon/migration-guide) for details.
---
## Getting Help
**[📖 Full Documentation](https://wikid82.github.io/charon/)** — Everything explained simply
**[🚀 5-Minute Guide](https://wikid82.github.io/charon/getting-started)** — Your first website up and running
**[💬 Ask Questions](https://github.com/Wikid82/charon/discussions)** — Friendly community help
**[🐛 Report Problems](https://github.com/Wikid82/charon/issues)** — Something broken? Let us know
---
## Agent Skills
Charon uses [Agent Skills](https://agentskills.io) for AI-discoverable, executable development tasks. Skills are self-documenting task definitions that can be executed by both humans and AI assistants like GitHub Copilot.
### What are Agent Skills?
Agent Skills combine YAML metadata with Markdown documentation to create standardized, AI-discoverable task definitions. Each skill represents a specific development task (testing, building, security scanning, etc.) that can be:
- ✅ **Executed directly** via command line
- ✅ **Discovered by AI** assistants (GitHub Copilot, etc.)
- ✅ **Run from VS Code** tasks menu
- ✅ **Integrated in CI/CD** pipelines
### Available Skills
Charon provides 19 operational skills across multiple categories:
- **Testing** (4 skills): Backend/frontend unit tests and coverage analysis
- **Integration** (5 skills): CrowdSec, Coraza, and full integration test suites
- **Security** (2 skills): Trivy vulnerability scanning and Go security checks
- **QA** (1 skill): Pre-commit hooks and code quality checks
- **Utility** (4 skills): Version management, cache clearing, database recovery
- **Docker** (3 skills): Development environment management
### Using Skills
**Command Line:**
```bash
# Run backend tests with coverage
.github/skills/scripts/skill-runner.sh test-backend-coverage
# Run security scan
.github/skills/scripts/skill-runner.sh security-scan-trivy
```
**VS Code Tasks:**
1. Open Command Palette (`Ctrl+Shift+P` or `Cmd+Shift+P`)
2. Select `Tasks: Run Task`
3. Choose your skill (e.g., `Test: Backend with Coverage`)
**GitHub Copilot:**
Simply ask Copilot to run tasks naturally:
- "Run backend tests with coverage"
- "Start the development environment"
- "Run security scans"
### Learning More
- **[Agent Skills Documentation](.github/skills/README.md)** — Complete skill reference
- **[agentskills.io Specification](https://agentskills.io/specification)** — Standard format details
- **[Migration Guide](docs/AGENT_SKILLS_MIGRATION.md)** — Transition from legacy scripts
---
## Contributing
Want to help make Charon better? Check out [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md)
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MIT License ·
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Built with ❤️ by @Wikid82
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