Complete Guide: Self-Host Your E-Signature Platform with Docker

Data sovereignty isn't just a buzzword—it's a legal requirement for many organizations. Whether you're bound by GDPR, HIPAA, or internal security policies, self-hosting your e-signature platform gives you complete control over where your data lives and who can access it.

Why Self-Host Space Sign?

Complete Data Control

Your documents never leave your infrastructure. No third-party cloud providers, no data transfers to foreign jurisdictions, no vendor access to sensitive contracts.

Compliance Made Simple

Meet regulatory requirements automatically:

Cost Savings at Scale

No per-document fees. No per-user limits. Just your infrastructure costs.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

Quick Start: 5-Minute Deployment

Step 1: Clone the Repository

1git clone https://github.com/pmspaceai7-wq/space-sign.git
2cd space-sign

Step 2: Configure Environment Variables

Create a .env file:

1DATABASE_URL="postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/spacesign"
2NEXTAUTH_SECRET="your-secret-here"
3NEXTAUTH_URL="https://sign.yourdomain.com"
4NEXT_PUBLIC_WEBAPP_URL="https://sign.yourdomain.com"

Step 3: Start the Services

1docker-compose up -d

That's it! Space Sign is now running on http://localhost:3000

Production Deployment

For production environments, follow these additional steps:

1. Database Setup

Use a managed PostgreSQL instance or deploy your own:

1version: '3.8'
2services:
3  postgres:
4    image: postgres:15
5    environment:
6      POSTGRES_DB: spacesign
7      POSTGRES_USER: spacesign
8      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: secure-password
9    volumes:
10      - postgres-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data

2. SSL/TLS Configuration

Use Nginx as a reverse proxy with Let's Encrypt:

1server {
2    listen 443 ssl http2;
3    server_name sign.yourdomain.com;
4    
5    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/sign.yourdomain.com/fullchain.pem;
6    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/sign.yourdomain.com/privkey.pem;
7    
8    location / {
9        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
10        proxy_set_header Host $host;
11        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
12    }
13}

3. Backup Strategy

Automate database backups:

1#!/bin/bash
2BACKUP_DIR="/backups"
3DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
4docker exec postgres pg_dump -U spacesign spacesign > $BACKUP_DIR/backup_$DATE.sql

Advanced Configuration

Email Notifications

Configure SMTP for document notifications:

1EMAIL_SERVER_HOST="smtp.gmail.com"
2EMAIL_SERVER_PORT=587
3EMAIL_SERVER_USER="your-email@gmail.com"
4EMAIL_SERVER_PASSWORD="app-password"
5EMAIL_FROM="noreply@yourdomain.com"

File Storage

Choose your storage backend:

Local Storage:

1STORAGE_TYPE="local"
2STORAGE_PATH="/app/uploads"

S3-Compatible Storage:

1STORAGE_TYPE="s3"
2S3_BUCKET="your-bucket"
3S3_REGION="us-east-1"
4S3_ACCESS_KEY="your-access-key"
5S3_SECRET_KEY="your-secret-key"

Monitoring & Maintenance

Health Checks

Add health check endpoints to your docker-compose:

1healthcheck:
2  test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "http://localhost:3000/api/health"]
3  interval: 30s
4  timeout: 10s
5  retries: 3

Log Management

Centralize logs with Loki or ELK stack:

1logging:
2  driver: "json-file"
3  options:
4    max-size: "10m"
5    max-file: "3"

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Database Connection Failed:

High Memory Usage:

Slow Performance:

Updating Space Sign

Keep your installation up to date:

1# Backup first!
2docker-compose exec postgres pg_dump -U spacesign spacesign > backup.sql
3
4# Pull latest changes
5git pull origin main
6
7# Rebuild and restart
8docker-compose build --no-cache
9docker-compose up -d

Conclusion

Self-hosting Space Sign gives you enterprise-grade e-signature capabilities with complete data sovereignty. Whether you're a startup with strict security requirements or an enterprise needing air-gapped deployments, this guide gets you started in minutes.

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