1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430
431
432
433
434
435
436
437
438
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
493
494
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518
519
520
521
522
523
524
525
526
527
528
529
530
531
|
<!DOCTYPE HTML>
<html lang="en" class="sidebar-visible no-js light">
<head>
<!-- Book generated using mdBook -->
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Upgrading from pre-Synapse 1.0 - Synapse</title>
<!-- Custom HTML head -->
<meta content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="Content-Type">
<meta name="description" content="">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<meta name="theme-color" content="#ffffff" />
<link rel="icon" href="favicon.svg">
<link rel="shortcut icon" href="favicon.png">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="css/variables.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="css/general.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="css/chrome.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="css/print.css" media="print">
<!-- Fonts -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="FontAwesome/css/font-awesome.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="fonts/fonts.css">
<!-- Highlight.js Stylesheets -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="highlight.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="tomorrow-night.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="ayu-highlight.css">
<!-- Custom theme stylesheets -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="docs/website_files/table-of-contents.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="docs/website_files/remove-nav-buttons.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" href="docs/website_files/indent-section-headers.css">
</head>
<body>
<!-- Provide site root to javascript -->
<script type="text/javascript">
var path_to_root = "";
var default_theme = window.matchMedia("(prefers-color-scheme: dark)").matches ? "navy" : "light";
</script>
<!-- Work around some values being stored in localStorage wrapped in quotes -->
<script type="text/javascript">
try {
var theme = localStorage.getItem('mdbook-theme');
var sidebar = localStorage.getItem('mdbook-sidebar');
if (theme.startsWith('"') && theme.endsWith('"')) {
localStorage.setItem('mdbook-theme', theme.slice(1, theme.length - 1));
}
if (sidebar.startsWith('"') && sidebar.endsWith('"')) {
localStorage.setItem('mdbook-sidebar', sidebar.slice(1, sidebar.length - 1));
}
} catch (e) { }
</script>
<!-- Set the theme before any content is loaded, prevents flash -->
<script type="text/javascript">
var theme;
try { theme = localStorage.getItem('mdbook-theme'); } catch(e) { }
if (theme === null || theme === undefined) { theme = default_theme; }
var html = document.querySelector('html');
html.classList.remove('no-js')
html.classList.remove('light')
html.classList.add(theme);
html.classList.add('js');
</script>
<!-- Hide / unhide sidebar before it is displayed -->
<script type="text/javascript">
var html = document.querySelector('html');
var sidebar = 'hidden';
if (document.body.clientWidth >= 1080) {
try { sidebar = localStorage.getItem('mdbook-sidebar'); } catch(e) { }
sidebar = sidebar || 'visible';
}
html.classList.remove('sidebar-visible');
html.classList.add("sidebar-" + sidebar);
</script>
<nav id="sidebar" class="sidebar" aria-label="Table of contents">
<div class="sidebar-scrollbox">
<ol class="chapter"><li class="chapter-item expanded affix "><li class="part-title">Introduction</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="welcome_and_overview.html">Welcome and Overview</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded affix "><li class="part-title">Setup</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="setup/installation.html">Installation</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="postgres.html">Using Postgres</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="reverse_proxy.html">Configuring a Reverse Proxy</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="setup/forward_proxy.html">Configuring a Forward/Outbound Proxy</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="turn-howto.html">Configuring a Turn Server</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="delegate.html">Delegation</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded affix "><li class="part-title">Upgrading</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="upgrade.html">Upgrading between Synapse Versions</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="MSC1711_certificates_FAQ.html" class="active">Upgrading from pre-Synapse 1.0</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded affix "><li class="part-title">Usage</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="federate.html">Federation</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/index.html">Configuration</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/homeserver_sample_config.html">Homeserver Sample Config File</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/logging_sample_config.html">Logging Sample Config File</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="structured_logging.html">Structured Logging</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="templates.html">Templates</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/user_authentication/index.html">User Authentication</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/user_authentication/single_sign_on/index.html">Single-Sign On</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="openid.html">OpenID Connect</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/user_authentication/single_sign_on/saml.html">SAML</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/user_authentication/single_sign_on/cas.html">CAS</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="sso_mapping_providers.html">SSO Mapping Providers</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="password_auth_providers.html">Password Auth Providers</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="jwt.html">JSON Web Tokens</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/configuration/user_authentication/refresh_tokens.html">Refresh Tokens</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="CAPTCHA_SETUP.html">Registration Captcha</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="application_services.html">Application Services</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="server_notices.html">Server Notices</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="consent_tracking.html">Consent Tracking</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/url_previews.html">URL Previews</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="user_directory.html">User Directory</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="message_retention_policies.html">Message Retention Policies</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/index.html">Pluggable Modules</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/writing_a_module.html">Writing a module</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/spam_checker_callbacks.html">Spam checker callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/third_party_rules_callbacks.html">Third-party rules callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/presence_router_callbacks.html">Presence router callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/account_validity_callbacks.html">Account validity callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/password_auth_provider_callbacks.html">Password auth provider callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/background_update_controller_callbacks.html">Background update controller callbacks</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="modules/porting_legacy_module.html">Porting a legacy module to the new interface</a></li></ol></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="workers.html">Workers</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="synctl_workers.html">Using synctl with Workers</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="systemd-with-workers/index.html">Systemd</a></li></ol></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/index.html">Administration</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/admin_api/index.html">Admin API</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/account_validity.html">Account Validity</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/admin_api/background_updates.html">Background Updates</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/delete_group.html">Delete Group</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/event_reports.html">Event Reports</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/media_admin_api.html">Media</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/purge_history_api.html">Purge History</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/register_api.html">Register Users</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/admin_api/registration_tokens.html">Registration Tokens</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/room_membership.html">Manipulate Room Membership</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/rooms.html">Rooms</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/server_notices.html">Server Notices</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/statistics.html">Statistics</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/user_admin_api.html">Users</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="admin_api/version_api.html">Server Version</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/admin_api/federation.html">Federation</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="manhole.html">Manhole</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="metrics-howto.html">Monitoring</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/understanding_synapse_through_grafana_graphs.html">Understanding Synapse Through Grafana Graphs</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/useful_sql_for_admins.html">Useful SQL for Admins</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/database_maintenance_tools.html">Database Maintenance Tools</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/state_groups.html">State Groups</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/request_log.html">Request log format</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="usage/administration/admin_faq.html">Admin FAQ</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>Scripts</div></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><li class="part-title">Development</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/contributing_guide.html">Contributing Guide</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="code_style.html">Code Style</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/git.html">Git Usage</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>Testing</div></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="opentracing.html">OpenTracing</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/database_schema.html">Database Schemas</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/experimental_features.html">Experimental features</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>Synapse Architecture</div></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="log_contexts.html">Log Contexts</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="replication.html">Replication</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="tcp_replication.html">TCP Replication</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/internal_documentation/index.html">Internal Documentation</a></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>Single Sign-On</div></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/saml.html">SAML</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/cas.html">CAS</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="development/room-dag-concepts.html">Room DAG concepts</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>State Resolution</div></li><li><ol class="section"><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="auth_chain_difference_algorithm.html">The Auth Chain Difference Algorithm</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="media_repository.html">Media Repository</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="room_and_user_statistics.html">Room and User Statistics</a></li></ol></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><div>Scripts</div></li><li class="chapter-item expanded affix "><li class="part-title">Other</li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="deprecation_policy.html">Dependency Deprecation Policy</a></li><li class="chapter-item expanded "><a href="other/running_synapse_on_single_board_computers.html">Running Synapse on a Single-Board Computer</a></li></ol>
</div>
<div id="sidebar-resize-handle" class="sidebar-resize-handle"></div>
</nav>
<div id="page-wrapper" class="page-wrapper">
<div class="page">
<div id="menu-bar-hover-placeholder"></div>
<div id="menu-bar" class="menu-bar sticky bordered">
<div class="left-buttons">
<button id="sidebar-toggle" class="icon-button" type="button" title="Toggle Table of Contents" aria-label="Toggle Table of Contents" aria-controls="sidebar">
<i class="fa fa-bars"></i>
</button>
<button id="theme-toggle" class="icon-button" type="button" title="Change theme" aria-label="Change theme" aria-haspopup="true" aria-expanded="false" aria-controls="theme-list">
<i class="fa fa-paint-brush"></i>
</button>
<ul id="theme-list" class="theme-popup" aria-label="Themes" role="menu">
<li role="none"><button role="menuitem" class="theme" id="light">Light (default)</button></li>
<li role="none"><button role="menuitem" class="theme" id="rust">Rust</button></li>
<li role="none"><button role="menuitem" class="theme" id="coal">Coal</button></li>
<li role="none"><button role="menuitem" class="theme" id="navy">Navy</button></li>
<li role="none"><button role="menuitem" class="theme" id="ayu">Ayu</button></li>
</ul>
<button id="search-toggle" class="icon-button" type="button" title="Search. (Shortkey: s)" aria-label="Toggle Searchbar" aria-expanded="false" aria-keyshortcuts="S" aria-controls="searchbar">
<i class="fa fa-search"></i>
</button>
</div>
<h1 class="menu-title">Synapse</h1>
<div class="right-buttons">
<a href="print.html" title="Print this book" aria-label="Print this book">
<i id="print-button" class="fa fa-print"></i>
</a>
<a href="https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse" title="Git repository" aria-label="Git repository">
<i id="git-repository-button" class="fa fa-github"></i>
</a>
<a href="https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/edit/develop/docs/MSC1711_certificates_FAQ.md" title="Suggest an edit" aria-label="Suggest an edit">
<i id="git-edit-button" class="fa fa-edit"></i>
</a>
</div>
</div>
<div id="search-wrapper" class="hidden">
<form id="searchbar-outer" class="searchbar-outer">
<input type="search" id="searchbar" name="searchbar" placeholder="Search this book ..." aria-controls="searchresults-outer" aria-describedby="searchresults-header">
</form>
<div id="searchresults-outer" class="searchresults-outer hidden">
<div id="searchresults-header" class="searchresults-header"></div>
<ul id="searchresults">
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<!-- Apply ARIA attributes after the sidebar and the sidebar toggle button are added to the DOM -->
<script type="text/javascript">
document.getElementById('sidebar-toggle').setAttribute('aria-expanded', sidebar === 'visible');
document.getElementById('sidebar').setAttribute('aria-hidden', sidebar !== 'visible');
Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('#sidebar a')).forEach(function(link) {
link.setAttribute('tabIndex', sidebar === 'visible' ? 0 : -1);
});
</script>
<div id="content" class="content">
<main>
<!-- Page table of contents -->
<div class="sidetoc">
<nav class="pagetoc"></nav>
</div>
<h1 id="msc1711-certificates-faq"><a class="header" href="#msc1711-certificates-faq">MSC1711 Certificates FAQ</a></h1>
<h2 id="historical-note"><a class="header" href="#historical-note">Historical Note</a></h2>
<p>This document was originally written to guide server admins through the upgrade
path towards Synapse 1.0. Specifically,
<a href="https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-doc/blob/main/proposals/1711-x509-for-federation.md">MSC1711</a>
required that all servers present valid TLS certificates on their federation
API. Admins were encouraged to achieve compliance from version 0.99.0 (released
in February 2019) ahead of version 1.0 (released June 2019) enforcing the
certificate checks.</p>
<p>Much of what follows is now outdated since most admins will have already
upgraded, however it may be of use to those with old installs returning to the
project.</p>
<p>If you are setting up a server from scratch you almost certainly should look at
the <a href="setup/installation.html">installation guide</a> instead.</p>
<h2 id="introduction"><a class="header" href="#introduction">Introduction</a></h2>
<p>The goal of Synapse 0.99.0 is to act as a stepping stone to Synapse 1.0.0. It
supports the r0.1 release of the server to server specification, but is
compatible with both the legacy Matrix federation behaviour (pre-r0.1) as well
as post-r0.1 behaviour, in order to allow for a smooth upgrade across the
federation.</p>
<p>The most important thing to know is that Synapse 1.0.0 will require a valid TLS
certificate on federation endpoints. Self signed certificates will not be
sufficient.</p>
<p>Synapse 0.99.0 makes it easy to configure TLS certificates and will
interoperate with both >= 1.0.0 servers as well as existing servers yet to
upgrade.</p>
<p><strong>It is critical that all admins upgrade to 0.99.0 and configure a valid TLS
certificate.</strong> Admins will have 1 month to do so, after which 1.0.0 will be
released and those servers without a valid certificate will not longer be able
to federate with >= 1.0.0 servers.</p>
<p>Full details on how to carry out this configuration change is given
<a href="#configuring-certificates-for-compatibility-with-synapse-100">below</a>. A
timeline and some frequently asked questions are also given below.</p>
<p>For more details and context on the release of the r0.1 Server/Server API and
imminent Matrix 1.0 release, you can also see our
<a href="https://matrix.org/blog/2019/02/04/matrix-at-fosdem-2019/">main talk from FOSDEM 2019</a>.</p>
<h2 id="contents"><a class="header" href="#contents">Contents</a></h2>
<ul>
<li>Timeline</li>
<li>Configuring certificates for compatibility with Synapse 1.0</li>
<li>FAQ
<ul>
<li>Synapse 0.99.0 has just been released, what do I need to do right now?</li>
<li>How do I upgrade?</li>
<li>What will happen if I do not set up a valid federation certificate
immediately?</li>
<li>What will happen if I do nothing at all?</li>
<li>When do I need a SRV record or .well-known URI?</li>
<li>Can I still use an SRV record?</li>
<li>I have created a .well-known URI. Do I still need an SRV record?</li>
<li>It used to work just fine, why are you breaking everything?</li>
<li>Can I manage my own certificates rather than having Synapse renew
certificates itself?</li>
<li>Do you still recommend against using a reverse proxy on the federation port?</li>
<li>Do I still need to give my TLS certificates to Synapse if I am using a
reverse proxy?</li>
<li>Do I need the same certificate for the client and federation port?</li>
<li>How do I tell Synapse to reload my keys/certificates after I replace them?</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h2 id="timeline"><a class="header" href="#timeline">Timeline</a></h2>
<p><strong>5th Feb 2019 - Synapse 0.99.0 is released.</strong></p>
<p>All server admins are encouraged to upgrade.</p>
<p>0.99.0:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p>provides support for ACME to make setting up Let's Encrypt certs easy, as
well as .well-known support.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>does not enforce that a valid CA cert is present on the federation API, but
rather makes it easy to set one up.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>provides support for .well-known</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Admins should upgrade and configure a valid CA cert. Homeservers that require a
.well-known entry (see below), should retain their SRV record and use it
alongside their .well-known record.</p>
<p><strong>10th June 2019 - Synapse 1.0.0 is released</strong></p>
<p>1.0.0 is scheduled for release on 10th June. In
accordance with the the <a href="https://matrix.org/docs/spec/server_server/r0.1.0.html">S2S spec</a>
1.0.0 will enforce certificate validity. This means that any homeserver without a
valid certificate after this point will no longer be able to federate with
1.0.0 servers.</p>
<h2 id="configuring-certificates-for-compatibility-with-synapse-100"><a class="header" href="#configuring-certificates-for-compatibility-with-synapse-100">Configuring certificates for compatibility with Synapse 1.0.0</a></h2>
<h3 id="if-you-do-not-currently-have-an-srv-record"><a class="header" href="#if-you-do-not-currently-have-an-srv-record">If you do not currently have an SRV record</a></h3>
<p>In this case, your <code>server_name</code> points to the host where your Synapse is
running. There is no need to create a <code>.well-known</code> URI or an SRV record, but
you will need to give Synapse a valid, signed, certificate.</p>
<h3 id="if-you-do-have-an-srv-record-currently"><a class="header" href="#if-you-do-have-an-srv-record-currently">If you do have an SRV record currently</a></h3>
<p>If you are using an SRV record, your matrix domain (<code>server_name</code>) may not
point to the same host that your Synapse is running on (the 'target
domain'). (If it does, you can follow the recommendation above; otherwise, read
on.)</p>
<p>Let's assume that your <code>server_name</code> is <code>example.com</code>, and your Synapse is
hosted at a target domain of <code>customer.example.net</code>. Currently you should have
an SRV record which looks like:</p>
<pre><code>_matrix._tcp.example.com. IN SRV 10 5 8000 customer.example.net.
</code></pre>
<p>In this situation, you have three choices for how to proceed:</p>
<h4 id="option-1-give-synapse-a-certificate-for-your-matrix-domain"><a class="header" href="#option-1-give-synapse-a-certificate-for-your-matrix-domain">Option 1: give Synapse a certificate for your matrix domain</a></h4>
<p>Synapse 1.0 will expect your server to present a TLS certificate for your
<code>server_name</code> (<code>example.com</code> in the above example). You can achieve this by acquiring a
certificate for the <code>server_name</code> yourself (for example, using <code>certbot</code>), and giving it
and the key to Synapse via <code>tls_certificate_path</code> and <code>tls_private_key_path</code>.</p>
<h4 id="option-2-run-synapse-behind-a-reverse-proxy"><a class="header" href="#option-2-run-synapse-behind-a-reverse-proxy">Option 2: run Synapse behind a reverse proxy</a></h4>
<p>If you have an existing reverse proxy set up with correct TLS certificates for
your domain, you can simply route all traffic through the reverse proxy by
updating the SRV record appropriately (or removing it, if the proxy listens on
8448).</p>
<p>See <a href="reverse_proxy.html">the reverse proxy documentation</a> for information on setting up a
reverse proxy.</p>
<h4 id="option-3-add-a-well-known-file-to-delegate-your-matrix-traffic"><a class="header" href="#option-3-add-a-well-known-file-to-delegate-your-matrix-traffic">Option 3: add a .well-known file to delegate your matrix traffic</a></h4>
<p>This will allow you to keep Synapse on a separate domain, without having to
give it a certificate for the matrix domain.</p>
<p>You can do this with a <code>.well-known</code> file as follows:</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>Keep the SRV record in place - it is needed for backwards compatibility
with Synapse 0.34 and earlier.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Give Synapse a certificate corresponding to the target domain
(<code>customer.example.net</code> in the above example). You can do this by acquire a
certificate for the target domain and giving it to Synapse via <code>tls_certificate_path</code>
and <code>tls_private_key_path</code>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Restart Synapse to ensure the new certificate is loaded.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Arrange for a <code>.well-known</code> file at
<code>https://<server_name>/.well-known/matrix/server</code> with contents:</p>
<pre><code class="language-json">{"m.server": "<target server name>"}
</code></pre>
<p>where the target server name is resolved as usual (i.e. SRV lookup, falling
back to talking to port 8448).</p>
<p>In the above example, where synapse is listening on port 8000,
<code>https://example.com/.well-known/matrix/server</code> should have <code>m.server</code> set to one of:</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p><code>customer.example.net</code> ─ with a SRV record on
<code>_matrix._tcp.customer.example.com</code> pointing to port 8000, or:</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><code>customer.example.net</code> ─ updating synapse to listen on the default port
8448, or:</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><code>customer.example.net:8000</code> ─ ensuring that if there is a reverse proxy
on <code>customer.example.net:8000</code> it correctly handles HTTP requests with
Host header set to <code>customer.example.net:8000</code>.</p>
</li>
</ol>
</li>
</ol>
<h2 id="faq"><a class="header" href="#faq">FAQ</a></h2>
<h3 id="synapse-0990-has-just-been-released-what-do-i-need-to-do-right-now"><a class="header" href="#synapse-0990-has-just-been-released-what-do-i-need-to-do-right-now">Synapse 0.99.0 has just been released, what do I need to do right now?</a></h3>
<p>Upgrade as soon as you can in preparation for Synapse 1.0.0, and update your
TLS certificates as <a href="#configuring-certificates-for-compatibility-with-synapse-100">above</a>.</p>
<h3 id="what-will-happen-if-i-do-not-set-up-a-valid-federation-certificate-immediately"><a class="header" href="#what-will-happen-if-i-do-not-set-up-a-valid-federation-certificate-immediately">What will happen if I do not set up a valid federation certificate immediately?</a></h3>
<p>Nothing initially, but once 1.0.0 is in the wild it will not be possible to
federate with 1.0.0 servers.</p>
<h3 id="what-will-happen-if-i-do-nothing-at-all"><a class="header" href="#what-will-happen-if-i-do-nothing-at-all">What will happen if I do nothing at all?</a></h3>
<p>If the admin takes no action at all, and remains on a Synapse < 0.99.0 then the
homeserver will be unable to federate with those who have implemented
.well-known. Then, as above, once the month upgrade window has expired the
homeserver will not be able to federate with any Synapse >= 1.0.0</p>
<h3 id="when-do-i-need-a-srv-record-or-well-known-uri"><a class="header" href="#when-do-i-need-a-srv-record-or-well-known-uri">When do I need a SRV record or .well-known URI?</a></h3>
<p>If your homeserver listens on the default federation port (8448), and your
<code>server_name</code> points to the host that your homeserver runs on, you do not need an
SRV record or <code>.well-known/matrix/server</code> URI.</p>
<p>For instance, if you registered <code>example.com</code> and pointed its DNS A record at a
fresh Upcloud VPS or similar, you could install Synapse 0.99 on that host,
giving it a server_name of <code>example.com</code>, and it would automatically generate a
valid TLS certificate for you via Let's Encrypt and no SRV record or
<code>.well-known</code> URI would be needed.</p>
<p>This is the common case, although you can add an SRV record or
<code>.well-known/matrix/server</code> URI for completeness if you wish.</p>
<p><strong>However</strong>, if your server does not listen on port 8448, or if your <code>server_name</code>
does not point to the host that your homeserver runs on, you will need to let
other servers know how to find it.</p>
<p>In this case, you should see <a href="#if-you-do-have-an-srv-record-currently">"If you do have an SRV record
currently"</a> above.</p>
<h3 id="can-i-still-use-an-srv-record"><a class="header" href="#can-i-still-use-an-srv-record">Can I still use an SRV record?</a></h3>
<p>Firstly, if you didn't need an SRV record before (because your server is
listening on port 8448 of your server_name), you certainly don't need one now:
the defaults are still the same.</p>
<p>If you previously had an SRV record, you can keep using it provided you are
able to give Synapse a TLS certificate corresponding to your server name. For
example, suppose you had the following SRV record, which directs matrix traffic
for example.com to matrix.example.com:443:</p>
<pre><code>_matrix._tcp.example.com. IN SRV 10 5 443 matrix.example.com
</code></pre>
<p>In this case, Synapse must be given a certificate for example.com - or be
configured to acquire one from Let's Encrypt.</p>
<p>If you are unable to give Synapse a certificate for your server_name, you will
also need to use a .well-known URI instead. However, see also "I have created a
.well-known URI. Do I still need an SRV record?".</p>
<h3 id="i-have-created-a-well-known-uri-do-i-still-need-an-srv-record"><a class="header" href="#i-have-created-a-well-known-uri-do-i-still-need-an-srv-record">I have created a .well-known URI. Do I still need an SRV record?</a></h3>
<p>As of Synapse 0.99, Synapse will first check for the existence of a <code>.well-known</code>
URI and follow any delegation it suggests. It will only then check for the
existence of an SRV record.</p>
<p>That means that the SRV record will often be redundant. However, you should
remember that there may still be older versions of Synapse in the federation
which do not understand <code>.well-known</code> URIs, so if you removed your SRV record you
would no longer be able to federate with them.</p>
<p>It is therefore best to leave the SRV record in place for now. Synapse 0.34 and
earlier will follow the SRV record (and not care about the invalid
certificate). Synapse 0.99 and later will follow the .well-known URI, with the
correct certificate chain.</p>
<h3 id="it-used-to-work-just-fine-why-are-you-breaking-everything"><a class="header" href="#it-used-to-work-just-fine-why-are-you-breaking-everything">It used to work just fine, why are you breaking everything?</a></h3>
<p>We have always wanted Matrix servers to be as easy to set up as possible, and
so back when we started federation in 2014 we didn't want admins to have to go
through the cumbersome process of buying a valid TLS certificate to run a
server. This was before Let's Encrypt came along and made getting a free and
valid TLS certificate straightforward. So instead, we adopted a system based on
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergence_(SSL)">Perspectives</a>: an approach
where you check a set of "notary servers" (in practice, homeservers) to vouch
for the validity of a certificate rather than having it signed by a CA. As long
as enough different notaries agree on the certificate's validity, then it is
trusted.</p>
<p>However, in practice this has never worked properly. Most people only use the
default notary server (matrix.org), leading to inadvertent centralisation which
we want to eliminate. Meanwhile, we never implemented the full consensus
algorithm to query the servers participating in a room to determine consensus
on whether a given certificate is valid. This is fiddly to get right
(especially in face of sybil attacks), and we found ourselves questioning
whether it was worth the effort to finish the work and commit to maintaining a
secure certificate validation system as opposed to focusing on core Matrix
development.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Let's Encrypt came along in 2016, and put the final nail in the
coffin of the Perspectives project (which was already pretty dead). So, the
Spec Core Team decided that a better approach would be to mandate valid TLS
certificates for federation alongside the rest of the Web. More details can be
found in
<a href="https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-doc/blob/main/proposals/1711-x509-for-federation.md#background-the-failure-of-the-perspectives-approach">MSC1711</a>.</p>
<p>This results in a breaking change, which is disruptive, but absolutely critical
for the security model. However, the existence of Let's Encrypt as a trivial
way to replace the old self-signed certificates with valid CA-signed ones helps
smooth things over massively, especially as Synapse can now automate Let's
Encrypt certificate generation if needed.</p>
<h3 id="can-i-manage-my-own-certificates-rather-than-having-synapse-renew-certificates-itself"><a class="header" href="#can-i-manage-my-own-certificates-rather-than-having-synapse-renew-certificates-itself">Can I manage my own certificates rather than having Synapse renew certificates itself?</a></h3>
<p>Yes, you are welcome to manage your certificates yourself. Synapse will only
attempt to obtain certificates from Let's Encrypt if you configure it to do
so.The only requirement is that there is a valid TLS cert present for
federation end points.</p>
<h3 id="do-you-still-recommend-against-using-a-reverse-proxy-on-the-federation-port"><a class="header" href="#do-you-still-recommend-against-using-a-reverse-proxy-on-the-federation-port">Do you still recommend against using a reverse proxy on the federation port?</a></h3>
<p>We no longer actively recommend against using a reverse proxy. Many admins will
find it easier to direct federation traffic to a reverse proxy and manage their
own TLS certificates, and this is a supported configuration.</p>
<p>See <a href="reverse_proxy.html">the reverse proxy documentation</a> for information on setting up a
reverse proxy.</p>
<h3 id="do-i-still-need-to-give-my-tls-certificates-to-synapse-if-i-am-using-a-reverse-proxy"><a class="header" href="#do-i-still-need-to-give-my-tls-certificates-to-synapse-if-i-am-using-a-reverse-proxy">Do I still need to give my TLS certificates to Synapse if I am using a reverse proxy?</a></h3>
<p>Practically speaking, this is no longer necessary.</p>
<p>If you are using a reverse proxy for all of your TLS traffic, then you can set
<code>no_tls: True</code>. In that case, the only reason Synapse needs the certificate is
to populate a legacy 'tls_fingerprints' field in the federation API. This is
ignored by Synapse 0.99.0 and later, and the only time pre-0.99 Synapses will
check it is when attempting to fetch the server keys - and generally this is
delegated via <code>matrix.org</code>, which is on 0.99.0.</p>
<p>However, there is a bug in Synapse 0.99.0
<a href="https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/issues/4554">4554</a> which prevents
Synapse from starting if you do not give it a TLS certificate. To work around
this, you can give it any TLS certificate at all. This will be fixed soon.</p>
<h3 id="do-i-need-the-same-certificate-for-the-client-and-federation-port"><a class="header" href="#do-i-need-the-same-certificate-for-the-client-and-federation-port">Do I need the same certificate for the client and federation port?</a></h3>
<p>No. There is nothing stopping you from using different certificates,
particularly if you are using a reverse proxy. However, Synapse will use the
same certificate on any ports where TLS is configured.</p>
<h3 id="how-do-i-tell-synapse-to-reload-my-keyscertificates-after-i-replace-them"><a class="header" href="#how-do-i-tell-synapse-to-reload-my-keyscertificates-after-i-replace-them">How do I tell Synapse to reload my keys/certificates after I replace them?</a></h3>
<p>Synapse will reload the keys and certificates when it receives a SIGHUP - for
example <code>kill -HUP $(cat homeserver.pid)</code>. Alternatively, simply restart
Synapse, though this will result in downtime while it restarts.</p>
</main>
<nav class="nav-wrapper" aria-label="Page navigation">
<!-- Mobile navigation buttons -->
<a rel="prev" href="upgrade.html" class="mobile-nav-chapters previous" title="Previous chapter" aria-label="Previous chapter" aria-keyshortcuts="Left">
<i class="fa fa-angle-left"></i>
</a>
<a rel="next" href="federate.html" class="mobile-nav-chapters next" title="Next chapter" aria-label="Next chapter" aria-keyshortcuts="Right">
<i class="fa fa-angle-right"></i>
</a>
<div style="clear: both"></div>
</nav>
</div>
</div>
<nav class="nav-wide-wrapper" aria-label="Page navigation">
<a rel="prev" href="upgrade.html" class="nav-chapters previous" title="Previous chapter" aria-label="Previous chapter" aria-keyshortcuts="Left">
<i class="fa fa-angle-left"></i>
</a>
<a rel="next" href="federate.html" class="nav-chapters next" title="Next chapter" aria-label="Next chapter" aria-keyshortcuts="Right">
<i class="fa fa-angle-right"></i>
</a>
</nav>
</div>
<script type="text/javascript">
window.playground_copyable = true;
</script>
<script src="elasticlunr.min.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script src="mark.min.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script src="searcher.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script src="clipboard.min.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script src="highlight.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script src="book.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script>
<!-- Custom JS scripts -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="docs/website_files/table-of-contents.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
|
