Docker

LXC AutoScale can run inside a Docker container, connecting to a Proxmox host remotely via SSH or the REST API.

Setup

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/fabriziosalmi/proxmox-lxc-autoscale.git
cd proxmox-lxc-autoscale/lxc_autoscale

2. Configure environment variables (optional)

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

WARNING

Never commit .env files containing passwords or sensitive information to version control.

3. Build the Docker image

docker build -t lxc-autoscale .

4. Configure the backend

Option A: SSH backend (default)

Edit lxc_autoscale.yaml with the remote Proxmox host parameters:

DEFAULT:
  use_remote_proxmox: true
  ssh_user: "root"
  ssh_key_path: "/root/.ssh/id_rsa"
  proxmox_host: "192.168.1.100"
  ssh_port: 22
  ssh_host_key_policy: reject

TIP

Use SSH keys instead of passwords. Set ssh_key_path and leave ssh_password empty.

The container requires a known_hosts file for host key verification. Mount one into the container or let the entrypoint generate it on first boot via ssh-keyscan:

docker run -d --name lxc_autoscale \
  -v /path/to/known_hosts:/root/.ssh/known_hosts:ro \
  -v /path/to/config.yaml:/app/lxc_autoscale.yaml:ro \
  lxc-autoscale

Option B: REST API backend

DEFAULT:
  backend: api
  proxmox_api:
    host: 192.168.1.100
    user: autoscale@pve
    token_name: scaling
    token_value: ${PROXMOX_API_TOKEN}
    verify_ssl: true

docker run -d --name lxc_autoscale \
  -e PROXMOX_API_TOKEN=your-token-value \
  -e LXC_RUN_AS_ROOT=false \
  -v /path/to/config.yaml:/app/lxc_autoscale.yaml:ro \
  lxc-autoscale

5. Run the container

Using the default config:

docker run -d --name lxc_autoscale lxc-autoscale

Using a custom config file:

docker run -d --name lxc_autoscale \
  -v /path/to/your/lxc_autoscale.yaml:/app/lxc_autoscale.yaml \
  lxc-autoscale

6. Check logs

docker logs lxc_autoscale

Non-root execution

When using the REST API backend, the container does not need root privileges. Set LXC_RUN_AS_ROOT=false to run the daemon as the autoscale user:

docker run -d \
  -e LXC_RUN_AS_ROOT=false \
  -v /path/to/config.yaml:/app/lxc_autoscale.yaml:ro \
  lxc-autoscale

This reduces the attack surface in case of container escape. The CLI backend requires root for pct commands and cannot run in non-root mode.

Environment variables

Variable	Description
USER_CONF_PATH	Path to a custom YAML config file inside the container.
SSH_USER	SSH username (overrides YAML).
SSH_PASS	SSH password (overrides YAML).
PROXMOX_HOST	Proxmox host IP/hostname (overrides YAML).
SSH_KEY_PATH	Path to SSH key inside the container (overrides YAML).
KNOWN_HOSTS_PATH	Path to the SSH known_hosts file. Default: /root/.ssh/known_hosts.
LXC_RUN_AS_ROOT	Set to false to run as non-root user. Default: true.
PROXMOX_API_TOKEN	API token value for REST API backend.
LXC_AUTOSCALE_SSH_PASSWORD	SSH password (direct env override).
LXC_AUTOSCALE_SMTP_PASSWORD	SMTP password for email notifications.
LXC_AUTOSCALE_GOTIFY_TOKEN	Gotify API token.
LXC_AUTOSCALE_UPTIME_KUMA_WEBHOOK	Uptime Kuma webhook URL.