|
| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: Server Connectivity |
| 3 | +description: Connect to HTTP, HTTPS, and gRPC servers through the firewall. |
| 4 | +--- |
| 5 | + |
| 6 | +The firewall controls **outbound** traffic from clients inside awf to external servers. This guide covers connecting to HTTP, HTTPS, and gRPC servers. |
| 7 | + |
| 8 | +## HTTP/HTTPS servers |
| 9 | + |
| 10 | +Clients inside awf can connect to any whitelisted domain over HTTP or HTTPS. |
| 11 | + |
| 12 | +```bash |
| 13 | +# Connect to HTTPS server |
| 14 | +sudo awf --allow-domains api.example.com -- \ |
| 15 | + curl https://api.example.com/data |
| 16 | + |
| 17 | +# Connect to HTTP server (non-TLS) |
| 18 | +sudo awf --allow-domains 'http://legacy.example.com' -- \ |
| 19 | + curl http://legacy.example.com/api |
| 20 | +``` |
| 21 | + |
| 22 | +:::tip |
| 23 | +Use `https://` or `http://` prefix to restrict a domain to a specific protocol. |
| 24 | +::: |
| 25 | + |
| 26 | +## gRPC servers |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +gRPC connections work through the firewall when using standard ports. |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | +### gRPC over HTTPS (port 443) |
| 31 | + |
| 32 | +```bash |
| 33 | +# gRPC with TLS on standard HTTPS port |
| 34 | +sudo awf --allow-domains grpc.example.com -- \ |
| 35 | + grpcurl grpc.example.com:443 myservice.Service/Method |
| 36 | +``` |
| 37 | + |
| 38 | +### gRPC-web over HTTP/HTTPS |
| 39 | + |
| 40 | +```bash |
| 41 | +# gRPC-web uses standard HTTP/HTTPS ports |
| 42 | +sudo awf --allow-domains api.example.com -- \ |
| 43 | + grpcurl -plaintext api.example.com:80 myservice.Service/Method |
| 44 | +``` |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | +:::note |
| 47 | +The firewall only allows ports 80 (HTTP) and 443 (HTTPS). Non-standard gRPC ports like 50051 are blocked. |
| 48 | +::: |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +## Connecting to host services |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +Use `host.docker.internal` to connect from inside awf to services running on your host machine: |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +```bash |
| 55 | +# Connect to a server running on the host (e.g., localhost:3000) |
| 56 | +sudo awf --allow-domains host.docker.internal -- \ |
| 57 | + curl http://host.docker.internal:3000/api |
| 58 | +``` |
| 59 | + |
| 60 | +:::tip |
| 61 | +`host.docker.internal` is automatically configured in awf containers and resolves to the host machine. |
| 62 | +::: |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +## Server inside, client outside |
| 65 | + |
| 66 | +To run a server inside awf that accepts external connections, use `--keep-containers` and connect via Docker: |
| 67 | + |
| 68 | +```bash |
| 69 | +# Start server inside awf (stays running) |
| 70 | +sudo awf --allow-domains example.com --keep-containers -- \ |
| 71 | + python3 -m http.server 8080 & |
| 72 | + |
| 73 | +# Connect from host using docker exec |
| 74 | +docker exec awf-agent curl http://localhost:8080 |
| 75 | +``` |
| 76 | + |
| 77 | +:::caution |
| 78 | +The firewall is designed for egress control. For production server hosting, consider running servers outside the firewall. |
| 79 | +::: |
| 80 | + |
| 81 | +## Bidirectional communication |
| 82 | + |
| 83 | +A server that accepts requests and makes outbound calls to whitelisted domains: |
| 84 | + |
| 85 | +```bash |
| 86 | +# API gateway that proxies to backend |
| 87 | +sudo awf --allow-domains backend.example.com --keep-containers -- \ |
| 88 | + node gateway.js |
| 89 | + |
| 90 | +# Gateway can: |
| 91 | +# - Accept connections on its internal port |
| 92 | +# - Make outbound requests only to backend.example.com |
| 93 | +``` |
| 94 | + |
| 95 | +## Debugging connectivity |
| 96 | + |
| 97 | +```bash |
| 98 | +# Keep containers running for inspection |
| 99 | +sudo awf --allow-domains example.com --keep-containers -- sleep 60 |
| 100 | + |
| 101 | +# Test connectivity from inside |
| 102 | +docker exec awf-agent curl -v https://example.com |
| 103 | + |
| 104 | +# Check Squid logs for blocked requests |
| 105 | +sudo grep "TCP_DENIED" /tmp/squid-logs-*/access.log |
| 106 | + |
| 107 | +# View all traffic |
| 108 | +awf logs --format pretty |
| 109 | +``` |
| 110 | + |
| 111 | +## See also |
| 112 | + |
| 113 | +- [Domain Filtering](/gh-aw-firewall/guides/domain-filtering) - Allowlists, blocklists, wildcards |
| 114 | +- [CLI Reference](/gh-aw-firewall/reference/cli-reference) - All options |
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