Deployment Guide

Discord Data Mirror can be deployed using Docker containers orchestrated with Docker Compose or Kubernetes.

Prerequisites

  • Docker Desktop or Docker Engine with Compose plugin
  • .NET 10 SDK (for building containers)
  • A Discord bot token (setup guide)

Quick Start with Docker Compose

1. Generate Deployment Artifacts

From the repository root, use the Aspire CLI to generate Docker Compose configuration:

cd src/DiscordDataMirror.AppHost
aspire publish -o ../../deploy

This creates a docker-compose.yaml with:

  • PostgreSQL database with persistent storage
  • Dashboard web application
  • Discord bot worker service
  • Aspire dashboard for monitoring

2. Build Container Images

Use the .NET SDK to build OCI-compliant container images:

# Build both containers locally
./scripts/build-containers.ps1

# Or build with a specific tag
./scripts/build-containers.ps1 -Tag v1.0.0

# Build and push to a registry
./scripts/build-containers.ps1 -Tag v1.0.0 -Registry ghcr.io/yourusername -Push

Alternatively, build manually:

# Dashboard
dotnet publish src/DiscordDataMirror.Dashboard/DiscordDataMirror.Dashboard.csproj \
    --os linux --arch x64 -c Release /t:PublishContainer

# Bot
dotnet publish src/DiscordDataMirror.Bot/DiscordDataMirror.Bot.csproj \
    --os linux --arch x64 -c Release /t:PublishContainer

3. Configure Environment

cd deploy
cp .env.example .env

Edit .env with your values:

# Required
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=your-secure-password
DISCORD_TOKEN=your-discord-bot-token

# Optional
DASHBOARD_PORT=8080
DASHBOARD_IMAGE=discorddatamirror-dashboard:latest
BOT_IMAGE=discorddatamirror-bot:latest

4. Start Services

docker compose up -d

Access the dashboard at http://localhost:8080 (or your configured port).

Container Architecture

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                     Docker Network (aspire)                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────────────┐  │
│  │  PostgreSQL │  │  Dashboard  │  │        Bot          │  │
│  │   :5432     │←─│   :8080     │←─│   (worker service)  │  │
│  │             │  │   Blazor    │  │   Discord.NET       │  │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘  └─────────────────────┘  │
│         ↑                ↑                    ↑              │
│         └────────────────┴────────────────────┘              │
│                    Aspire Dashboard                          │
│                      :18888 (metrics)                        │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Production Considerations

Persistent Storage

The PostgreSQL data is stored in a Docker volume (discorddatamirror-postgres-data). For production, consider:

  • Regular database backups
  • Using a managed PostgreSQL service
  • Configuring volume drivers for cloud storage

Attachment Storage

Discord attachments are cached locally. Configure a persistent volume:

# Add to docker-compose.yaml under the dashboard service
volumes:
  - type: bind
    source: /path/to/attachments
    target: /app/attachments

And set the environment variable:

Attachments__StoragePath=/app/attachments

Secrets Management

For production, avoid storing secrets in .env files. Consider:

  • Docker Secrets
  • HashiCorp Vault
  • Cloud provider secret managers (AWS Secrets Manager, Azure Key Vault)

Scaling

  • Dashboard: Can run multiple replicas behind a load balancer
  • Bot: Should run as a single instance (Discord gateway limitations)
  • Database: Consider read replicas for heavy query loads

Kubernetes Deployment

Aspire also supports Kubernetes. Generate manifests with:

# Add Kubernetes package to AppHost
dotnet add src/DiscordDataMirror.AppHost package Aspire.Hosting.Kubernetes

# Publish to Kubernetes manifests
aspire publish -o deploy/k8s --publisher kubernetes

Monitoring

The Aspire Dashboard provides:

  • Distributed tracing
  • Metrics visualization
  • Log aggregation
  • Health checks

Access at http://localhost:18888 when running with Docker Compose.

Troubleshooting

Container won't start

Check logs:

docker compose logs dashboard
docker compose logs bot

Database connection issues

Verify PostgreSQL is healthy:

docker compose exec postgres pg_isready

Bot not connecting to Discord

  1. Verify your token is correct in .env
  2. Check bot has required intents enabled in Discord Developer Portal
  3. Review bot logs: docker compose logs bot
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