Setting Up Uptime Kuma: Your Self-Hosted Monitoring Solution

If you’ve been running multiple self-hosted services in your HomeLab but haven’t set up monitoring and alerting yet, you’re in the right place. In this guide, we will walk through the setup of Uptime Kuma, a powerful and user-friendly tool for monitoring the uptime of your services.

What is Uptime Kuma?

Uptime Kuma is an open-source monitoring solution that allows you to track the availability of your services. It supports various monitoring types, including:

HTTP/HTTPS Monitoring: Check if your web services are up and running.
TCP Monitoring: Verify that specific ports are open and responsive.
Ping Monitoring: Ensure that your servers are reachable.
DNS Monitoring: Monitor DNS records for changes.

With its modern interface built on frameworks like Vue.js and Bootstrap, Uptime Kuma offers a responsive and visually appealing user experience.

Requirements for Setup

To get started with Uptime Kuma, you’ll need:

A server or local machine with Docker installed.
Docker Compose for managing multi-container Docker applications.
Basic knowledge of command-line operations.

Step-by-Step Setup Guide

How to Install Uptime Kuma Using Docker Compose

Step 1: Create a Directory

Open your terminal.
Create a directory for Uptime Kuma and navigate to it by running:

mkdir uptime-kuma
cd uptime-kuma

Step 2: Create a Docker Compose File

Inside the uptime-kuma directory, create a file named docker-compose.yml.

Add the following configuration to the file

version: ‘3.8’
services:
uptime-kuma: image: louislam/uptime-kuma:latest
container_name: uptime-kuma
ports:
– “3001:3001”
volumes:
– uptime-kuma-data:/app/data
restart: always

volumes:
uptime-kuma-data:

Step 3: Start the Container

Run the following command to start Uptime Kuma

docker-compose up -d –force-recreate

Step 4: Access Uptime Kuma

Open your web browser.
Navigate to:

Configuring Monitors

Once you have Uptime Kuma running, you can configure various types of monitors:

HTTP Monitor: Set up an HTTP monitor by specifying the URL of your service. You can also define a health check endpoint that returns a simple status code (e.g., 200 OK).
TCP Monitor: Monitor specific TCP ports (e.g., SSH on port 22) to ensure they are accessible.
Ping Monitor: Use ping checks to verify that your server is reachable.
Keyword Monitoring: For HTTP monitors, you can check for specific keywords on web pages to ensure that not only is the service up, but it is also serving the correct content.

Setting Up Alerts

Uptime Kuma allows you to configure alerts to notify you when a service goes down. You can set up notifications through various channels, including:

Email
Discord
Slack
Webhooks

This flexibility ensures you stay informed about the status of your services in real time.

Two-Factor Authentication and Backups

For added security, enable two-factor authentication (2FA) in the settings menu. Additionally, you can manage backups directly through the UI, ensuring that your monitoring configurations are safe.

Uptime Kuma is an excellent choice for anyone looking to monitor their self-hosted services effectively. With its user-friendly interface, robust feature set, and flexibility in configuration, it stands out as a modern alternative to traditional monitoring solutions like Nagios.