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Overview

This guide covers the deployment and configuration of EspoCRM using Docker Compose behind Traefik reverse proxy. EspoCRM serves as Mondo’s customer relationship management solution, accessible at crm.trymondo.com.

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Architecture

EspoCRM is deployed as a multi-container application with the following components:

  • MariaDB: Database server storing EspoCRM data
  • EspoCRM: Main application container
  • EspoCRM Daemon: Background process container
  • EspoCRM WebSocket: Real-time communications container

All services use the external traefik-net network for routing through Traefik.

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Prerequisites

  • Docker Engine (24.0+)
  • Docker Compose v2
  • Traefik reverse proxy configured and running
  • External traefik-net network
  • DNS configured for crm.trymondo.com

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Deployment

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Directory Structure

environments/prod/espocrm/
├── docker-compose.yml       # Main configuration file
├── .env                     # Environment variables (not in repo)

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Environment Variables

Create a .env file with the following variables:

MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
MYSQL_DATABASE=espocrm
MYSQL_USER=espocrm_user
MYSQL_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
ESPO_ADMIN_USERNAME=admin
ESPO_ADMIN_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
ESPO_SITE_URL=https://crm.trymondo.com

Never commit the .env file to version control. Store passwords securely in your password manager.

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Docker Compose Configuration

The deployment uses a shared image reference and multiple service definitions:

x-espocrm-image: &espocrm-image
  image: espocrm/espocrm:9.0.8

services:
  mariadb:
    image: mariadb:11.7.2
    container_name: espocrm-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    init: true
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: ${MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD}
      MYSQL_DATABASE: ${MYSQL_DATABASE}
      MYSQL_USER: ${MYSQL_USER}
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: ${MYSQL_PASSWORD}
    volumes:
      - mariadb-data:/var/lib/mysql
    healthcheck:
      test:
        [
          'CMD-SHELL',
          'mariadb-admin ping -h 127.0.0.1 -u root -p$${MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD}',
        ]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5
      start_period: 20s
    networks:
      - espocrm-net

  espocrm:
    <<: *espocrm-image
    container_name: espocrm
    restart: unless-stopped
    init: true
    depends_on:
      mariadb:
        condition: service_healthy
    environment:
      ESPOCRM_DATABASE_DRIVER: mysql
      ESPOCRM_DATABASE_HOST: mariadb
      ESPOCRM_DATABASE_USER: ${MYSQL_USER}
      ESPOCRM_DATABASE_PASSWORD: ${MYSQL_PASSWORD}
      ESPOCRM_DATABASE_NAME: ${MYSQL_DATABASE}
      ESPOCRM_ADMIN_USERNAME: ${ESPO_ADMIN_USERNAME}
      ESPOCRM_ADMIN_PASSWORD: ${ESPO_ADMIN_PASSWORD}
      ESPOCRM_SITE_URL: ${ESPO_SITE_URL}
    volumes:
      - html-data:/var/www/html
    healthcheck:
      test: ['CMD-SHELL', 'curl -sf http://localhost || exit 1']
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5
    networks:
      - traefik-net
      - espocrm-net
    labels:
      - traefik.enable=true
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm.rule=Host(`crm.trymondo.com`)
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm.entrypoints=web,websecure
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm.tls=true
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm.tls.certresolver=production
      - traefik.http.services.espocrm.loadbalancer.server.port=80
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm.middlewares=secureHeaders@file

  espocrm-daemon:
    <<: *espocrm-image
    container_name: espocrm-daemon
    restart: unless-stopped
    init: true
    entrypoint: docker-daemon.sh
    depends_on:
      - espocrm
    volumes:
      - html-data:/var/www/html
    networks:
      - espocrm-net

  espocrm-websocket:
    <<: *espocrm-image
    container_name: espocrm-websocket
    restart: unless-stopped
    init: true
    entrypoint: docker-websocket.sh
    depends_on:
      - espocrm
    environment:
      ESPOCRM_CONFIG_USE_WEB_SOCKET: 'true'
      ESPOCRM_CONFIG_WEB_SOCKET_URL: 'wss://crm.trymondo.com/ws'
      ESPOCRM_CONFIG_WEB_SOCKET_ZERO_M_Q_SUBSCRIBER_DSN: 'tcp://*:7777'
      ESPOCRM_CONFIG_WEB_SOCKET_ZERO_M_Q_SUBMISSION_DSN: 'tcp://espocrm-websocket:7777'
    volumes:
      - html-data:/var/www/html
    networks:
      - traefik-net
      - espocrm-net
    labels:
      - traefik.enable=true
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm-ws.rule=Host(`crm.trymondo.com`) && PathPrefix(`/ws`)
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm-ws.entrypoints=web,websecure
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm-ws.tls=true
      - traefik.http.routers.espocrm-ws.tls.certresolver=production
      - traefik.http.services.espocrm-ws.loadbalancer.server.port=80

volumes:
  mariadb-data:
  html-data:

networks:
  traefik-net:
    external: true
  espocrm-net:
    external: true

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Deployment Commands

Deploy the stack with:

cd /opt/apps/espocrm
docker compose up -d

Verify all components are running:

docker compose ps

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Configuration Highlights

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Traefik Integration

EspoCRM is configured with the following Traefik routing:

  • Main application at crm.trymondo.com
  • WebSocket endpoint at crm.trymondo.com/ws
  • TLS certificate managed by Traefik’s production resolver
  • Security headers applied through Traefik middleware

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WebSocket Configuration

Real-time communication is enabled through ZeroMQ and WebSockets:

  • WebSocket URL: wss://crm.trymondo.com/ws
  • Internal ZeroMQ communication between containers
  • Separate Traefik router rule for WebSocket traffic

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Volume Management

The deployment uses Docker named volumes:

  • mariadb-data: Persistent storage for the database
  • html-data: Shared volume for EspoCRM application data across all containers

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Maintenance

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Backup Strategy

EspoCRM data should be backed up regularly using Restic/Backrest:

# Backup database
docker compose exec mariadb mysqldump -u root -p${MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD} ${MYSQL_DATABASE} > backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

# Include volumes in Backrest paths
# /var/lib/docker/volumes/espocrm_mariadb-data
# /var/lib/docker/volumes/espocrm_html-data

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Updates

To update EspoCRM:

  1. Update the image version tag in docker-compose.yml
  2. Pull the new image: 
    docker compose pull
  3. Deploy the updated stack: 
    docker compose up -d
  4. Check logs for any migration issues: 
    docker compose logs -f

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Troubleshooting

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Database Connection Issues

If EspoCRM can’t connect to the database:

  1. Check MariaDB container status: 
    docker compose ps mariadb
  2. Verify network connectivity: 
    docker compose exec espocrm ping mariadb
  3. Check database credentials: 
    docker compose exec mariadb mysql -u ${MYSQL_USER} -p${MYSQL_PASSWORD} -e "SHOW DATABASES;"

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WebSocket Issues

If real-time updates aren’t working:

  1. Check WebSocket container is running: 
    docker compose ps espocrm-websocket
  2. Verify WebSocket URL configuration matches the Traefik route.
  3. Test WebSocket connectivity from browser developer tools.

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Traefik Routing Problems

If the site is unreachable:

  1. Check Traefik logs: 
    docker logs traefik
  2. Verify DNS resolution for crm.trymondo.com
  3. Confirm Traefik network is correctly attached to all containers.

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Resources

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Next Steps

  • Set up monitoring and alerting for EspoCRM services with Prometheus/Grafana
  • Implement automated backups of volumes and database dumps
  • Configure SMTP for email notifications
  • Explore EspoCRM API integrations with other Mondo services