How to run ELK stack with docker

Table of Contents

Introduction>

Introduction #

ELK stack is a powerful open source platform that allows users to collect, analyze, and visualize large amounts of data from various sources. Docker Compose is a tool that enables developers to define and run multi-container Docker applications. In this blog post, we will guide you step-by-step on how to run ELK stack with Docker Compose.

Prerequisites:>

Prerequisites: #

Before you begin, make sure you have the following:

Docker installed on your machine Docker Compose installed on your machine Basic knowledge of Docker and Docker Compose

Installing Docker Engine>

Installing Docker Engine #

Before you begin, make sure you have the following:

A 64-bit version of one of the following Debian or Ubuntu operating systems:

Debian Buster 10
Debian Stretch 9
Ubuntu Bionic 18.04 (LTS)
Ubuntu Xenial 16.04 (LTS)

Step 1: Uninstall Old Versions>

Step 1: Uninstall Old Versions #

If you have older versions of Docker installed, remove them using the following command:

sudo apt-get remove docker docker-engine docker.io containerd runc

Step 2: Set Up the Repository>

Step 2: Set Up the Repository #

Update the apt package index and install packages to allow apt to use a repository over HTTPS:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl gnupg lsb-release

Add Docker’s official GPG key:

curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/docker-archive-keyring.gpg

Use the following command to set up the stable repository:

echo \
  "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/docker-archive-keyring.gpg] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu \
  $(lsb_release -cs) stable" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

Step 3: Install Docker Engine>

Step 3: Install Docker Engine #

Verify that Docker Engine is installed correctly by running the following command:

sudo docker run hello-world

This command downloads a test image and runs it in a container. When the container runs, it prints an informational message and exits.

Installing Docker Compose on Linux>

Installing Docker Compose on Linux #

Step 1: Download Docker Compose>

Step 1: Download Docker Compose #

To download the latest version of Docker Compose, run the following command in your terminal:

sudo curl -L "https://github.com/docker/compose/releases/latest/download/docker-compose-$(uname -s)-$(uname -m)" -o /usr/local/bin/docker-compose

This will download the latest version of Docker Compose and install it in the /usr/local/bin directory.

Step 2: Set Executable Permissions>

Step 2: Set Executable Permissions #

To make the docker-compose command executable, run the following command:

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/docker-compose

Step 3: Verify Installation>

Step 3: Verify Installation #

To verify that Docker Compose is installed correctly, run the following command:

docker-compose --version

This should display the version number of the Docker Compose installed on your machine.

Run ELK stack on docker>

Run ELK stack on docker #

Step 1: Create a Docker Compose file>

Step 1: Create a Docker Compose file #

Create a file named docker-compose.yml in an empty directory. Open the file in your preferred text editor and add the following content:

version: "2.2"

services:
  setup:
    image: docker.elastic.co/elasticsearch/elasticsearch:${STACK_VERSION}
    volumes:
      - certs:/usr/share/elasticsearch/config/certs
    user: "0"
    command: >
      bash -c '
        if [ x${ELASTIC_PASSWORD} == x ]; then
          echo "Set the ELASTIC_PASSWORD environment variable in the .env file";
          exit 1;
        elif [ x${KIBANA_PASSWORD} == x ]; then
          echo "Set the KIBANA_PASSWORD environment variable in the .env file";
          exit 1;
        fi;
        if [ ! -f config/certs/ca.zip ]; then
          echo "Creating CA";
          bin/elasticsearch-certutil ca --silent --pem -out config/certs/ca.zip;
          unzip config/certs/ca.zip -d config/certs;
        fi;
        if [ ! -f config/certs/certs.zip ]; then
          echo "Creating certs";
          echo -ne \
          "instances:\n"\
          "  - name: es01\n"\
          "    dns:\n"\
          "      - es01\n"\
          "      - localhost\n"\
          "    ip:\n"\
          "      - 127.0.0.1\n"\
          "  - name: es02\n"\
          "    dns:\n"\
          "      - es02\n"\
          "      - localhost\n"\
          "    ip:\n"\
          "      - 127.0.0.1\n"\
          "  - name: es03\n"\
          "    dns:\n"\
          "      - es03\n"\
          "      - localhost\n"\
          "    ip:\n"\
          "      - 127.0.0.1\n"\
          > config/certs/instances.yml;
          bin/elasticsearch-certutil cert --silent --pem -out config/certs/certs.zip --in config/certs/instances.yml --ca-cert config/certs/ca/ca.crt --ca-key config/certs/ca/ca.key;
          unzip config/certs/certs.zip -d config/certs;
        fi;
        echo "Setting file permissions"
        chown -R root:root config/certs;
        find . -type d -exec chmod 750 \{\} \;;
        find . -type f -exec chmod 640 \{\} \;;
        echo "Waiting for Elasticsearch availability";
        until curl -s --cacert config/certs/ca/ca.crt https://es01:9200 | grep -q "missing authentication credentials"; do sleep 30; done;
        echo "Setting kibana_system password";
        until curl -s -X POST --cacert config/certs/ca/ca.crt -u "elastic:${ELASTIC_PASSWORD}" -H "Content-Type: application/json" https://es01:9200/_security/user/kibana_system/_password -d "{\"password\":\"${KIBANA_PASSWORD}\"}" | grep -q "^{}"; do sleep 10; done;
        echo "All done!";
      '
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "[ -f config/certs/es01/es01.crt ]"]
      interval: 1s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 120

  es01:
    depends_on:
      setup:
        condition: service_healthy
    image: docker.elastic.co/elasticsearch/elasticsearch:${STACK_VERSION}
    volumes:
      - certs:/usr/share/elasticsearch/config/certs
      - esdata01:/usr/share/elasticsearch/data
    ports:
      - ${ES_PORT}:9200
    environment:
      - node.name=es01
      - cluster.name=${CLUSTER_NAME}
      - cluster.initial_master_nodes=es01,es02,es03
      - discovery.seed_hosts=es02,es03
      - ELASTIC_PASSWORD=${ELASTIC_PASSWORD}
      - bootstrap.memory_lock=true
      - xpack.security.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.key=certs/es01/es01.key
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate=certs/es01/es01.crt
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.key=certs/es01/es01.key
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate=certs/es01/es01.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.verification_mode=certificate
      - xpack.license.self_generated.type=${LICENSE}
    mem_limit: ${MEM_LIMIT}
    ulimits:
      memlock:
        soft: -1
        hard: -1
    healthcheck:
      test:
        [
          "CMD-SHELL",
          "curl -s --cacert config/certs/ca/ca.crt https://localhost:9200 | grep -q 'missing authentication credentials'",
        ]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 120

  es02:
    depends_on:
      - es01
    image: docker.elastic.co/elasticsearch/elasticsearch:${STACK_VERSION}
    volumes:
      - certs:/usr/share/elasticsearch/config/certs
      - esdata02:/usr/share/elasticsearch/data
    environment:
      - node.name=es02
      - cluster.name=${CLUSTER_NAME}
      - cluster.initial_master_nodes=es01,es02,es03
      - discovery.seed_hosts=es01,es03
      - bootstrap.memory_lock=true
      - xpack.security.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.key=certs/es02/es02.key
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate=certs/es02/es02.crt
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.key=certs/es02/es02.key
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate=certs/es02/es02.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.verification_mode=certificate
      - xpack.license.self_generated.type=${LICENSE}
    mem_limit: ${MEM_LIMIT}
    ulimits:
      memlock:
        soft: -1
        hard: -1
    healthcheck:
      test:
        [
          "CMD-SHELL",
          "curl -s --cacert config/certs/ca/ca.crt https://localhost:9200 | grep -q 'missing authentication credentials'",
        ]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 120

  es03:
    depends_on:
      - es02
    image: docker.elastic.co/elasticsearch/elasticsearch:${STACK_VERSION}
    volumes:
      - certs:/usr/share/elasticsearch/config/certs
      - esdata03:/usr/share/elasticsearch/data
    environment:
      - node.name=es03
      - cluster.name=${CLUSTER_NAME}
      - cluster.initial_master_nodes=es01,es02,es03
      - discovery.seed_hosts=es01,es02
      - bootstrap.memory_lock=true
      - xpack.security.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.key=certs/es03/es03.key
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate=certs/es03/es03.crt
      - xpack.security.http.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.enabled=true
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.key=certs/es03/es03.key
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate=certs/es03/es03.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.certificate_authorities=certs/ca/ca.crt
      - xpack.security.transport.ssl.verification_mode=certificate
      - xpack.license.self_generated.type=${LICENSE}
    mem_limit: ${MEM_LIMIT}
    ulimits:
      memlock:
        soft: -1
        hard: -1
    healthcheck:
      test:
        [
          "CMD-SHELL",
          "curl -s --cacert config/certs/ca/ca.crt https://localhost:9200 | grep -q 'missing authentication credentials'",
        ]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 120

  kibana:
    depends_on:
      es01:
        condition: service_healthy
      es02:
        condition: service_healthy
      es03:
        condition: service_healthy
    image: docker.elastic.co/kibana/kibana:${STACK_VERSION}
    volumes:
      - certs:/usr/share/kibana/config/certs
      - kibanadata:/usr/share/kibana/data
    ports:
      - ${KIBANA_PORT}:5601
    environment:
      - SERVERNAME=kibana
      - ELASTICSEARCH_HOSTS=https://es01:9200
      - ELASTICSEARCH_USERNAME=kibana_system
      - ELASTICSEARCH_PASSWORD=${KIBANA_PASSWORD}
      - ELASTICSEARCH_SSL_CERTIFICATEAUTHORITIES=config/certs/ca/ca.crt
    mem_limit: ${MEM_LIMIT}
    healthcheck:
      test:
        [
          "CMD-SHELL",
          "curl -s -I http://localhost:5601 | grep -q 'HTTP/1.1 302 Found'",
        ]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 10s
      retries: 120

volumes:
  certs:
    driver: local
  esdata01:
    driver: local
  esdata02:
    driver: local
  esdata03:
    driver: local
  kibanadata:
    driver: local

This YAML file contains three services, each representing one of the components of the ELK stack: Elasticsearch, Kibana, and Setup componenet. Each service is defined by an image name, a container name, a set of environment variables, and exposed ports, that included:

ElasticSearch cluster with three nodes : es01, es02, and es03
Kibana container with single node named kibana
Setup container that responds to initalization password and create certificate for elasticsearch cluster

Step2: Create the enviroment configuration>

Step2: Create the enviroment configuration #

Next, we need to create the enviroment configuration named .env, the file need to place same directory as docker-compose.yml

# Password for the 'elastic' user (at least 6 characters)
ELASTIC_PASSWORD=

# Password for the 'kibana_system' user (at least 6 characters)
KIBANA_PASSWORD=

# Version of Elastic products
STACK_VERSION=8.6.2

# Set the cluster name
CLUSTER_NAME=docker-cluster

# Set to 'basic' or 'trial' to automatically start the 30-day trial
LICENSE=basic
#LICENSE=trial

# Port to expose Elasticsearch HTTP API to the host
ES_PORT=9200
#ES_PORT=127.0.0.1:9200

# Port to expose Kibana to the host
KIBANA_PORT=5601
#KIBANA_PORT=80

# Increase or decrease based on the available host memory (in bytes)
MEM_LIMIT=1073741824

# Project namespace (defaults to the current folder name if not set)
#COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME=myproject

The .env file sets environment variables that are used when you run the docker-compose.yml configuration file. Ensure that you specify a strong password for the elastic and kibana_system users with the ELASTIC_PASSWORD and KIBANA_PASSWORD variables. These variable are referenced by the docker-compose.yml file.

Step 3: Run the ELK stack>

Step 3: Run the ELK stack #

In your terminal, navigate to the directory containing the docker-compose.yml and .env files. Run the following command to start the ELK stack:

docker-compose up

Docker Compose will download the required Docker images and create the containers for Elasticsearch, Kibana, and Logstash. You should see logs from each service appearing in your terminal.

Step 4: Test the ELK stack>

Step 4: Test the ELK stack #

Open a web browser and navigate to http://localhost:5601. This should bring up the Kibana web interface. If it is not running yet, give it a few seconds to start up.

Once Kibana is running, click on the “Discover” tab on the left-hand side of the screen. Click on the “Create index pattern” button and follow the prompts to create an index pattern for the data you want to visualize. Then, navigate to the “Visualize” tab to create and customize visualizations of your data.

Step 5: Stop the ELK stack>

Step 5: Stop the ELK stack #

To stop the ELK stack and all its containers, simply press Ctrl+C in the terminal where you ran docker-compose up. This will stop all the containers and release their resources.

If you want to stop and remove the containers completely, run the following command in the same directory as the docker-compose.yml file: This will stop and remove all containers, networks, and volumes created by Docker Compose.

Conclusion:>

Conclusion: #

In this blog post, we have walked through the steps to run the ELK stack with Docker Compose. By following these steps, you can easily deploy a powerful data processing and visualization platform on your local machine. The ELK stack can be further customized and extended to meet the needs of your specific use case. With Docker Compose, managing and scaling your ELK stack becomes a breeze.