Self-host Uptime Kuma with Docker in 5 minutes (+ TLS-expiry alerts)

October 1, 2025

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Colby Cardell

If users notice your site is down before you do… that’s backwards.

Here’s the fastest way I’ve found to stand up Uptime Kuma with TLS-expiry alerts.

0) Prereqs

A Linux box or VPS (2 vCPU/2GB is plenty)
Docker & docker-compose
A domain or subdomain for your status page (optional)

1) Compose file

Create docker-compose.yml:

version: "3.3"
services:
  uptime-kuma:
    image: louislam/uptime-kuma:1
    container_name: uptime-kuma
    volumes:
      - ./kuma-data:/app/data
    ports:
      - "3001:3001"
    restart: unless-stopped

Run it

docker compose up -d

Open http://<server-ip>:3001 and set an admin user.

2) Add monitors fast

Add HTTP/HTTPS, port, or ping checks. I like to keep a CSV so I can bulk-add later:

name,type,url,hostname,port,interval_s
Homepage,HTTP,https://example.com,,,"60"
API Health,HTTP,https://api.example.com/health,,,"60"
DB Port,Port,,db.example.com,5432,"60"

3) TLS-expiry alerts (30/14/7/3 days)

Add a TLS Certificate monitor for your domain, then set Notification targets:

Email (SMTP), Telegram, Discord, etc.

4) Bonus: a simple status page

In Kuma, create a Status Page and add components.

Put it behind your domain (e.g., status.example.com) with any web server.
If you’re using Caddy:

status.example.com {
  encode gzip zstd
  root * /var/www/status
  file_server
  header {
    Strict-Transport-Security "max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains; preload"
    X-Content-Type-Options "nosniff"
    X-Frame-Options "SAMEORIGIN"
  }
}

Want the done-for-you kit?

I bundled a Uptime & SSL Monitor Kit (compose, monitor CSV template, headers checklist, status copy).
https://colbycardell.gumroad.com/l/rkwrl?utm_source=devto&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=uptime_launch&utm_content=body_cta

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Colby Cardell