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Install SafeLine WAF in 10 Minutes: Quick‑Start Guide for DevOps Teams

#safelinewaf #wafdeployment #devops #websecurity

If you're ready to deploy a full‑featured Web Application Firewall (WAF) quickly and efficiently, this guide walks you through installing SafeLine WAF in about ten minutes.

Whether you’re protecting APIs, web apps, or enterprise endpoints — this self‑hosted roadmap will get you up and running fast.

Why SafeLine?

You might be using a cloud WAF today (e.g., Cloudflare, AWS WAF), but you want more control, visibility, and privacy. SafeLine offers:

  • Self‑hosted deployment, so your traffic never leaves your infrastructure
  • Complete log visibility and custom rule control
  • Support for bot defense, rate‑limiting, and full application protection

With minimal prerequisites, you’ll have SafeLine up and protecting in minutes.

Pre‑Install Checklist

Make sure your server meets the minimum requirements:

  • OS: Linux (64‑bit)
  • Architecture: x86_64 or ARM64
  • Docker version: 20.10.14 or higher
  • Docker Compose version: 2.0.0 or higher
  • At least 1 CPU core, 1 GB RAM, 5 GB disk space, and SSSE3 support

You can verify with:

uname -m
docker version
docker compose version
free -h
df -h
lscpu | grep ssse3
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Step 1: Automatic Install (Recommended)

Run the one‑liner:

bash -c "$(curl -fsSLk https://waf.chaitin.com/release/latest/manager.sh)" -- --en
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After execution, your SafeLine instance should be installed. Head to your browser and access the Web UI right away.

Step 2: Manual Install (if preferred)

If you prefer to handle each step yourself:

# Create directory for SafeLine data
mkdir -p /data/safeline
cd /data/safeline

# Download docker‑compose file
wget "https://waf.chaitin.com/release/latest/compose.yaml"

# Create .env file
touch .env
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Populate the .env file with:

SAFELINE_DIR=/data/safeline
IMAGE_TAG=latest
MGT_PORT=9443
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=yourpassword
SUBNET_PREFIX=172.22.222
IMAGE_PREFIX=chaitin
ARCH_SUFFIX=
RELEASE=
MGT_PROXY=0
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If you’re on an ARM server, set ARCH_SUFFIX=-arm. For LTS version, set RELEASE=-lts.

Then launch:

docker compose up -d
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Step 3: Access Web UI & Create Admin Account

Open https://<your‑safeline‑ip>:9443/ in your browser.

To get credentials:

docker exec safeline-mgt resetadmin
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You’ll see output like:

[SafeLine] Initial username: admin  
[SafeLine] Initial password: ********
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💡 Save these safely and log in via the UI.

Step 4: Basic Setup for Protection

Once logged in:

  1. Add your domain/application
  2. Configure SSL/TLS (Let’s Encrypt or custom cert)
  3. Navigate to “Policies” → Enable Bot Protect, set up Rate Limiting
  4. Review default rules, consider custom rules like blocking .exe uploads or restricting /api/login rate

Example rule:

docker exec -it safeline-cli set-rule /api/login rate-limit 5
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What’s Next?

  • Monitor logs: 
tail -f /data/safeline/logs/nginx/safeline/access.log
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  • Tune your rules based on actual traffic and alerts
  • Run load tests or real‑world traffic to verify performance
  • Backup configuration and data
  • Update SafeLine regularly for new features and security patches

Final Thoughts

Deploying a WAF in ten minutes might sound ambitious — but with SafeLine, it’s realistic. You’re not just installing a tool; you’re empowering your team with visibility, control, and security posture.

After your initial install, you can iterate, scale, and customize to your environment’s needs. Happy protecting!

SafeLine Website: https://ly.safepoint.cloud/ShZAy9x
Live Demo: https://demo.waf.chaitin.com:9443/statistics
Discord: https://discord.gg/dy3JT7dkmY
Doc: https://docs.waf.chaitin.com/en/home
Github: https://github.com/chaitin/SafeLine

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