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home-network-k3s/docs/08-tls-and-certificates.md
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jakman85andClaude Opus 4.8 e8c555cfeb Initial baseline: home platform (k3s + Longhorn) specification repository
Greenfield spec set for a GitOps-driven PaaS+IaaS home platform: vision &
requirements (R-* IDs), architecture, 14 domain specs, 11 ADRs, roadmap
(phases + workstreams), and AI-agent coordination (roles, protocol,
definition-of-done, task board).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <[email protected]>
2026-08-15 22:37:56 -05:00

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# 08 — TLS & Certificates
Serves: **R-TLS-01/02/03**, **R-DNS-01**. Related: [ADR-0006 (cert-manager + Let's Encrypt)](../decisions/adr-0006-tls-cert-manager-letsencrypt.md).
## Requirement recap
Every externally reachable service presents TLS from a **credible, trusted, non-self-signed**
authority, with certificates **auto issued, renewed, and revoked** — including for **internal-only**
services (R-TLS-01/02/03).
## Solution: cert-manager + Let's Encrypt via DNS-01
- **cert-manager** runs in the cluster and manages the full certificate lifecycle.
- **Let's Encrypt** is the trusted, non-self-signed CA (publicly trusted; free; automatable) —
satisfies R-TLS-01.
- **ACME DNS-01 challenge** against the `keithjackson.dev` DNS zone (Cloudflare or equivalent, per
OQ-4). DNS-01 is the key choice because it validates domain control **without exposing the service
publicly** — so internal-only services get real, trusted certs (R-TLS-03), and **wildcard**
certificates (`*.home.keithjackson.dev`) are possible.
## Issuance model
- A `ClusterIssuer` for Let's Encrypt production (and one for staging, used during bring-up to avoid
rate limits).
- Certificates are requested declaratively — either a **wildcard** `*.home.keithjackson.dev` cert
shared by the Gateway, or **per-service** certs, decided per ADR-0006. Recommendation: a wildcard
cert for `*.home.keithjackson.dev` terminated at the Gateway simplifies onboarding (a new service
needs no new cert), with per-service certs available where isolation warrants.
- The DNS provider API token is a SOPS-encrypted secret ([07](07-security-and-secrets.md)).
## Renewal & revocation (R-TLS-02)
- cert-manager renews well before expiry automatically; no human action.
- Revocation: removing/rotating a certificate is a declarative change; cert-manager handles
issuance of replacements. Expiry monitoring is an alert condition ([10](10-observability-and-alerting.md), R-OBS-04).
## Where TLS terminates
- **North-south**: at the **Gateway API** listener (implemented by Cilium, [09](09-dns-and-ingress.md)),
using the cert-manager-issued cert. Public services are reached via the edge router forwarding to
the Gateway; internal services resolve to the Gateway on the LAN.
- Internal service-to-service traffic relies primarily on network policy for security; mTLS between
workloads is **optional** future hardening (could be added via Cilium/service mesh) and is not a
launch requirement — record as a possible future ADR.
## Trust chain for internal clients
Because certs come from Let's Encrypt (publicly trusted), internal clients trust them with no custom
CA distribution. Split-horizon DNS ([09](09-dns-and-ingress.md)) resolves
`<service>.home.keithjackson.dev` to the internal Gateway while the same trusted cert is served.
## Acceptance gates
- `https://<service>.home.keithjackson.dev` serves a valid, non-self-signed, unexpired certificate
(verified by an external TLS checker), including for internal-only services.
- Certificates renew automatically ahead of expiry with no manual step (observed across a renewal).
- Certificate expiry and issuance failures raise alerts.
- Onboarding a new service requires no manual certificate step.
## Open questions
- **OQ-4** — confirm DNS provider (Cloudflare assumed) and an API token scoped for DNS-01.
- Wildcard vs. per-service certs as the default (pinned in ADR-0006).