Dozzle Log Viewer on Debian 12 (Docker + Nginx + SSL)

Dozzle is a fast, lightweight log viewer for Docker containers. Instead of attaching manually with docker logs -f, Dozzle provides a real-time, web-based dashboard that streams logs from all running containers in one place. It’s simple to deploy (just one container), requires no database, and gives you instant visibility into your containerized applications.

Debian 12 (Bookworm) provides a stable, secure, and long-supported foundation, with systemd 252, modern OpenSSL 3, and up-to-date Docker packages. It is trusted for production environments, making it an excellent choice for hosting Dozzle in both small-scale and enterprise-grade infrastructures.

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Architecture Overview

Layer	Component	Role
OS	Debian 12 (Bookworm)	Rock-solid base; systemd service supervision
Runtime	Docker Engine	Runs Dozzle container in isolation
Application	Dozzle	Real-time web UI for viewing container logs
Reverse Proxy	Nginx (optional)	TLS termination, routing, access control, HTTP/2
TLS	Let’s Encrypt / PKI	Secure HTTPS for the log viewer

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Why Use Dozzle?

• Zero-setup deployment – Single Docker container, no extra services.
• Real-time visibility – Stream logs instantly across all containers.
• Lightweight & efficient – Minimal CPU/RAM usage compared to ELK or Loki.
• Accessible UI – Simple web interface, no need to SSH into servers.
• Scalable – Works standalone or alongside enterprise logging stacks.

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Dozzle vs Other Logging Tools

Feature/Capability	Dozzle	Loki + Grafana	ELK/EFK Stack	Plain Docker CLI
Setup complexity	Very low (1 container)	Medium (multi-service)	High (Elasticsearch, Beats, Kibana, etc.)	None
Storage	No (stream only)	Yes (time-series DB)	Yes (Elasticsearch DB)	No
UI	Built-in Web UI	Grafana dashboards	Full dashboards	None (terminal)
Use case	Quick, live logs	Centralized storage	Enterprise-scale logging	Debug only

Dozzle excels when you just need a simple, real-time view of logs without the complexity of managing a full observability stack. For persistent log retention or analytics, it works well alongside tools like Loki or ELK.

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Security & Best Practices

• Run Dozzle behind Nginx with HTTPS for production access.
• Enable basic authentication or integrate with OAuth/SSO if exposed publicly.
• Restrict access with firewall rules or VPN where possible.
• Keep the Dozzle Docker image updated (amir20/dozzle:latest).
• Pair with Prometheus/Grafana for a complete observability solution.

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Typical Use Cases

• Development environments for quick container log inspection.
• Small production servers where full ELK/Loki stacks are overkill.
• Staging/test systems to quickly debug issues.
• Complementing centralized logging with live log tailing.

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1. Create a Shape.Host VPS Instance

Go to https://shape.host and log in.

Click “Create” → “Instance”.

Select a server location closest to your users.

Choose Debian 12 (64-bit) as the OS.

Pick a plan with at least 2 CPUs, 4 GB RAM, and 20 GB SSD.

Click “Create Instance”.

Copy the server IP from the Resources section.

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2. Connect to Your VPS

Linux / macOS

ssh root@your-server-ip

Windows

• If on Windows 10/11, open PowerShell: ssh root@your-server-ip
• On older Windows, use PuTTY. Enter your server IP and log in as root.

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3. Update the System and Install Prerequisites

apt update
apt upgrade

Updates the package list and upgrades installed software.

apt install -y ca-certificates curl gnupg lsb-release

Installs required tools for managing repositories securely.

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4. Install Docker and Docker Compose

Create the keyrings directory:

install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings

Download and store Docker’s GPG key:

curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/debian/gpg | gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg

Fix permissions:

chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg

Add Docker’s repository:

echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg] \
https://download.docker.com/linux/debian $(. /etc/os-release && echo $VERSION_CODENAME) stable" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list

Update repositories and install Docker:

apt update
apt install docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

systemctl enable --now docker

Check versions:

docker --version
docker compose version

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5. Deploy Dozzle with Docker Compose

Create directory:

mkdir -p /opt/dozzle
cd /opt/dozzle

Create the Docker Compose file:

cat > /opt/dozzle/docker-compose.yml <<'YML'
services:
  dozzle:
    image: amir20/dozzle:latest
    container_name: dozzle
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"                          # Dozzle web UI
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro  # read-only for safety
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "wget", "-qO-", "http://localhost:8080/health"]
      interval: 15s
      timeout: 3s
      retries: 5
    restart: unless-stopped
YML

Remove any old container:

docker rm -f dozzle 2>/dev/null || true

Start Dozzle:

docker compose up -d

Check running containers:

docker compose ps

Verify health check:

curl -s http://127.0.0.1:8080/health

Check logs:

docker logs dozzle --tail=50

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6. Configure Nginx as Reverse Proxy

Install Nginx:

apt install nginx

Enable and start Nginx:

systemctl enable --now nginx

Create site configuration:

cat > /etc/nginx/sites-available/dozzle.conf <<'NGINX'
server {
    listen 80;
    server_name your-domain.com;

    # Optional Basic Auth (see 4.4)
    # auth_basic "Restricted";
    # auth_basic_user_file /etc/nginx/.htpasswd;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8080;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Connection "";
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}
NGINX

Enable the site and reload Nginx:

ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/dozzle.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/dozzle.conf
nginx -t && systemctl reload nginx

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7. Enable SSL with Let’s Encrypt

Install Certbot:

apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Obtain a free SSL certificate:

certbot --nginx -d your-domain.com

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8. Access Dozzle

Now open your browser and go to:

https://your-domain.com

You’ll see the Dozzle log viewer UI, showing real-time logs from your Docker containers 🎉.

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This tutorial was tested on a Shape.Host Cloud VPS.

With Shape.Host you can:

• Deploy fast, reliable VPS servers worldwide.
• Choose from Debian, Ubuntu, AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux.
• Scale resources instantly as your projects grow.
• Use built-in backups, snapshots, and monitoring.

Start today at https://shape.host and set up Dozzle in just a few minutes.