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Add self-hosting documentation (#419)
* Update README.md * Add files via upload * remove extra line break * Update README.md * Update README.md * Update README.md * Update README.md * Update README.md * fix formatting * change link format from html to markdown * missed a link * Run prettier * run prettier with yarn instead of npx? * fix codeblock formatting * run prettier formatting * adding self-hosting docs * revise language based on feedback, add instructions for runner application installation * start adding QEMU * add images to vm setup docs, separate out qemu types * add new qemu dir * finish up Windows and add macos * run prettier on readme * add images to windows, cleanup formatting, fix spelling errors * change organasation structure and fix typos * re-roganize, add cloud-init details, dogfood testing * Fix spellign errors, dogfooding, add advanced qemu config guides * testing some style stuff that the linter doesnt like * testing some style stuff that the linter doesnt like * changing the syle to abuse titles less * changing the syle to abuse titles less * changing the syle to abuse titles less * changing the syle to abuse titles less * changing the syle to abuse titles less * cleanup dangling : * Formatting pass, add new diagrams * center images and lint * proof-reading and docgfood pass on k8s docs * add info on creating secrets, minor formatting * move k8s to new branch to unblock the rest of the docs * re-center images * add paddig above ssh image * change image indent so linter wont wreck the spacing * remove text artifact inserted by linter * center images * add disclaimers to advanced configs, add more examples to windows * remove text artifact introduced by linter and minor formatting fix * add missing image file * Update docs/12-self-hosting/01-overview.mdx Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]> * Update docs/12-self-hosting/03-host-creation/03-QEMU/01-overview.mdx Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]> * Update docs/12-self-hosting/03-host-creation/03-QEMU/01-overview.mdx Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]> * Update docs/12-self-hosting/03-host-creation/03-QEMU/03-linux-liveiso.mdx Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]> * fix issue with metal diagram failing to render as a svg, its a png now * remove accidental file addition * fix formatting * Update docs/12-self-hosting/03-host-creation/03-QEMU/03-linux-liveiso.mdx Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]> * add power usage blurb * add doublequotes to VNC invocation * add sections to overview * add not on hackintosh legality * add note about remote access security to MacOS * fix typo in link * fix linux path for multipass --------- Co-authored-by: David Finol <[email protected]> Co-authored-by: Max Roby <[email protected]> Co-authored-by: Gabriel Le Breton <[email protected]>
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‎docs/12-self-hosting/01-overview.mdx‎

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---
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toc_max_heading_level: 4
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---
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# About Self-Hosting
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Projects often encounter a constraint or requirement which makes free-tier hosted CI/CD runners
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insufficient for their needs. In these cases hosting your own CI/CD runner can be a viable
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alternative to premium-tier services or subscriptions. Self-hosting may also provide access to
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resources that are simply not available on many CI/CD services such as GPUs, faster drives, and
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newer CPU models.
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This guide will cover basic methods for hosting CI/CD runners on Bare-Metal, Virtual Machines, or
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using Cloud Runner. Containerized hosts will not be discussed because of their inherent reliance on
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insecure practices such as
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[Docker-in-Docker](http://jpetazzo.github.io/2015/09/03/do-not-use-docker-in-docker-for-ci/),
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[Privileged Containers](https://www.trendmicro.com/en_th/research/19/l/why-running-a-privileged-container-in-docker-is-a-bad-idea.html)
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and the additional tooling required to mitigate those risks such as
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[Kaniko](https://github.com/GoogleContainerTools/kaniko) or
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[Kata Containers](https://katacontainers.io/).
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## 📚 Prerequisite Knowledge
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Users of this guide should already be familiar with the Linux command-line, Shell scripting, and
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have a basic grasp of CI/CD concepts. For users who are not familiar with these concepts, we have
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included some resources for you to start your learning journey below.
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- [Techworld with Nana](https://www.youtube.com/@TechWorldwithNana)
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- [DevOps Toolkit](https://www.youtube.com/@DevOpsToolkit)
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- [Introduction to Bash Scripting](https://itsfoss.com/bash-scripting-tutorial/)
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## 📋 Constraints
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There are many ways to self-host CI/CD runners, and which one is best for you will depend on your
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own situation and constraints. For the purpose of this guide we will make the following assumptions:
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- 💻 User already has their own hardware
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- 💸 Budget for new hardware, software, or services is $0
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- 🛠️ FOSS tools should be prioritized where possible
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- 📜 We define `Self-Hosting` in this context to refer to a user taking responsibility for the
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operating-system level configuration and life-cycle-management of a given compute resource (metal,
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on-prem, cloud VM, VPS etc...)
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## ⚠️ Security Disclaimer
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This guide strives to maintain a balance between convenience and security for the sake of usability.
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The examples included in this guide are intended for use with on-prem hardware without public IP
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addresses accessible from external networks. Security is a constantly moving target which requires
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continuous effort to maintain. Users should conduct their own security review before using the
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following techniques on production or public systems.
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## ⚡️ Power Costs
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Hosting your own runners also comes with an increase in power consumption. This will vary based on
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the hardware you use and the prices of energy in your area. Below are some useful resources for
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discovering the potential energy costs of self-hosting.
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- https://outervision.com/power-supply-calculator
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- https://energyusecalculator.com/electricity_computer.htm
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## 💻 System Requirements
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This guide is tested on devices which meet the following requirements:
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- x86 or amd64 processor
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- Ubuntu 22.04 LTS Server or Debian 12 Bookworm
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- Root access to the operating system
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- Network connectivity
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## 📎 Quick Links:
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### Host Creation
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"Host Creation" in this context is the process of installing an operating system onto a piece of
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physical hardware, or the creation and configuration of virtualised compute resources.
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- [Bare-Metal](./03-host-creation/02-bare-metal.mdx)
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- [Virtual Machines using Multipass](./03-host-creation/02-multipass.mdx)
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- [Virtual Machines using QEMU](./03-host-creation/03-QEMU/01-overview.mdx)
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### Host Provisioning
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"Provisioning" here refers to the process of installing additional resources onto, and the
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configuration of your host beyond installing the base operating-system. Both manual and declarative
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workflows are supported.
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- [Manual Ubuntu 22.04 Setup](./04-host-provisioning/02-ubuntu-setup.mdx)
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- [Manual Debian 12 Setup](./04-host-provisioning/01-debian-setup.mdx)
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- [Declarative provisioning via Cloud-Init](./04-host-provisioning/03-cloud-init/01-about.mdx)
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### Runner Application Installation
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Once your host has been provisioned, you will then need to install the appropriate runner
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application. The guides below will walk you through that process.
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- [Github Actions](./05-runner-application-installation/02-github-actions.mdx)
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- [GitLab Pipelines](./05-runner-application-installation/01-gitlab-pipelines.mdx)

‎docs/12-self-hosting/02-host-types.mdx‎

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import Virtualisation from '/assets/images/Virtualization.drawio.png';
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import Metal from '/assets/images/Metal.drawio.png';
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import Docker from '/assets/images/DockerHost.drawio.png';
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import Kubernetes from '/assets/images/kubernetes.drawio.png';
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import Layers from '/assets/images/k8s-layers.drawio.png';
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import Layer0 from '/assets/images/k8s-layer0.drawio.png';
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import Layer1 from '/assets/images/k8s-layer1.drawio.png';
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import Layer2 from '/assets/images/k8s-layer2.drawio.png';
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import Layers01 from '/assets/images/k8s-layers01.drawio.png';
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import Layers012 from '/assets/images/k8s-layers012.drawio.png';
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# Types of Hosts
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## Bare-Metal
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"Bare Metal" means that your host OS is running directly on a piece of hardware without any
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virtualisation. This reduces the complexity of deployment at the cost of increased time and effort
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for re-provisioning the host.
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/Metal.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Metal} width="500" />
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</a>
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</div>
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<br />
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## Virtual Machines
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Virtual Machines are a software-defined layer of abstraction atop a Bare-Metal host which makes
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deployments more consistent and easier to manage declaratively. This greatly reduces the difficulty
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of re-deployment and creates the conditions required for securely running multiple guests within the
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same physical host. Virtual Machines can also be used to create hosts that run different operating
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systems (Windows, MacOS) or architectures (ARM) than the host machine. This added functionality
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comes at the cost of added complexity, a slight performance penalty, and you need to already have a
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Bare-Metal host on which to run the VMs.
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/Virtualization.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Virtualisation} width="500" />
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</a>
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</div>
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<br />
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Additional Reading:
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- [A Study of Performance and Security Across the Virtualization Spectrum](https://repository.tudelft.nl/islandora/object/uuid:34b3732e-2960-4374-94a2-1c1b3f3c4bd5/datastream/OBJ/download) -
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Vincent van Rijn
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- [Hyper-converged infrastructure](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyper-converged_infrastructure) -
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Wikipedia
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- [Rethinking the PC](https://www.computerworld.com/article/3518849/rethinking-the-pc-why-virtual-machines-should-replace-operating-systems.html) -
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Rob Enderle
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## Containers
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Containers are built on 'cgroups' (control groups), which are a feature of the Linux kernel that
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limits monitors, and isolates the resource usage of a collection of processes. This means that
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running containers on Linux is very lightweight form of virtualisation. However, on other operating
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systems which do not use the Linux kernel, a Linux virtual machine or translation-layer must be
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created to run containers. The manner by which each Operating System resolves this issue varies
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greatly as shown below. Because of this variance, the self-hosting documentation targets Linux as a
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means of avoiding excess complexity.
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/DockerHost.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Docker} width="500" />
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</a>
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</div>
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<br />
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Additional Reading:
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- [The Mental Model Of Docker Container Shipping](https://bernhardwenzel.com/2022/the-mental-model-of-docker-container-shipping/) -
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Bernhard Wenzel
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- [Why is Docker-in-Docker considered bad?](https://devops.stackexchange.com/questions/676/why-is-docker-in-docker-considered-bad)
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- [Why it is recommended to run only one process in a container?](https://devops.stackexchange.com/questions/447/why-it-is-recommended-to-run-only-one-process-in-a-container)
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## Kubernetes (Cloud Runner)
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Kubernetes is somewhat of a combination of all other host types. Since it is an API, it must be
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installed on an existing host (called a "Node") which is usually either a VM or physical device. A
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Kubernetes "Cluster" is usually made up of 3 or more nodes - though you can have as few as one, or
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as many 5,000 per cluster.
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<br />
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/k8s-layer0.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Layer0} width="700" />
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</a>
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<br />
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</div>
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<br />
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Once installed, Kubernetes creates
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[standardised interfaces](https://matt-rickard.com/kubernetes-interfaces) to control the hardware &
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software components of the underlying nodes (networking, storage, GPUs, CPU cores etc...) as well as
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a distributed key-value store which facilitates communication between all nodes in the cluster.
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<br />
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/k8s-layers01.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Layers01} width="750" />
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</a>
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<br />
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</div>
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<br />
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With the underlying hardware abstracted into a generic pool of resources, Kubernetes is then able to
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re-compose those assets into isolated environments called "Namespaces" where it deploys
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containerised workloads in groups called "Pods". This layer of Kubernetes is very similar to a
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typical container host but with many more features for multi-tenancy, security, and life-cycle
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management.
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<br />
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/k8s-layers012.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Layers012} width="800" />
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</a>
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</div>
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<br />
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Additional Reading:
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- [Kubernetes Components](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/overview/components/) - kubernetes.io
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- [A visual guide to Kubernetes networking fundamentals](https://opensource.com/article/22/6/kubernetes-networking-fundamentals) -
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Nived Velayudhan
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- [Thinking about the complexity of the Kubernetes ecosystem](https://erkanerol.github.io/post/complexity-of-kubernetes/) -
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Erkan Erol
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- [Ephemeral, Idempotent and Immutable Infrastructure ](https://cloudnativenow.com/topics/ephemeral-idempotent-and-immutable-infrastructure/) -
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Marc Hornbeek

‎docs/12-self-hosting/03-host-creation/02-bare-metal.mdx‎

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import Metal from '/assets/images/Metal.drawio.png';
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# Bare-Metal
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The Host is the computer that will execute the runner application. This can be a desktop computer,
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laptop, Virtual Machine, or VPS from a cloud provider.
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<div style={{ textAlign: 'center' }}>
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<a target="\_blank" href={require('/assets/images/Metal.drawio.png').default}>
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<img src={Metal} width="500" />
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</a>
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</div>
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<br />
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## If your host is a local machine:
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For a local machine you will need to perform a clean installation of the operating system. This
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means creating a bootable USB drive from an ISO file, booting the machine from the USB drive, and
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installing the OS. Links to download an official Live ISO file and installation guides are provided
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below. If you would like to create a custom ISO, try [PXEless](https://github.com/cloudymax/pxeless)
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or [Cubic](https://github.com/PJ-Singh-001/Cubic).
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### Ubuntu
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- Download the Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
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[server installer](https://ftp.snt.utwente.nl/pub/os/linux/ubuntu-releases/22.04.3/ubuntu-22.04.3-live-server-amd64.iso)
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- [Guide: Install Ubuntu 22.04 LTS on a local machine](https://ostechnix.com/install-ubuntu-server/)
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### Debian
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- Download the Debian 12
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[installation image](https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current/amd64/iso-dvd/debian-12.1.0-amd64-DVD-1.iso)
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- [Guide: Install Debian on a local system](https://www.linuxtechi.com/how-to-install-debian-11-bullseye/)
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## If your host is a virtual-machine:
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If you are using a VPS or VM, the OS should already be installed and admin user should already
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exist. Follow the appropriate guide in the provisioning section for your operating-system.
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- [Ubuntu 22.04](../04-host-provisioning/02-ubuntu-setup.mdx)
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- [Debian 12](../04-host-provisioning/01-debian-setup.mdx)

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