Apache Kafka
Stack
3-node Apache Kafka cluster in KRaft mode (no ZooKeeper) with Kafbat UI, deployable locally with plain Docker Compose or to Miget as a compose stack.
Template by deployable-sh·Source
Report issueServices
kafka-1
Configuration
Imageapache/kafka:4.0.090929093/var/lib/kafka/data : kafkadata-1KAFKA_PROCESS_ROLES=broker,controllerKAFKA_CONTROLLER_QUORUM_VOTERS=1@kafka-1:9093,2@kafka-2:9093,3@kafka-3:9093KAFKA_LISTENER_SECURITY_PROTOCOL_MAP=CONTROLLER:PLAINTEXT,PLAINTEXT:PLAINTEXTKAFKA_CONTROLLER_LISTENER_NAMES=CONTROLLERKAFKA_INTER_BROKER_LISTENER_NAME=PLAINTEXTKAFKA_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://0.0.0.0:9092,CONTROLLER://0.0.0.0:9093KAFKA_LOG_DIRS=/var/lib/kafka/dataKAFKA_OFFSETS_TOPIC_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_MIN_ISR=2KAFKA_DEFAULT_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_MIN_INSYNC_REPLICAS=2KAFKA_HEAP_OPTS=-Xms256m -Xmx1gCLUSTER_ID=5L6g3nShT-eMCtK--X86swKAFKA_NODE_ID=1KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://kafka-1:9092unless-stoppedImage details
kafka-2
Configuration
Imageapache/kafka:4.0.090929093/var/lib/kafka/data : kafkadata-2KAFKA_PROCESS_ROLES=broker,controllerKAFKA_CONTROLLER_QUORUM_VOTERS=1@kafka-1:9093,2@kafka-2:9093,3@kafka-3:9093KAFKA_LISTENER_SECURITY_PROTOCOL_MAP=CONTROLLER:PLAINTEXT,PLAINTEXT:PLAINTEXTKAFKA_CONTROLLER_LISTENER_NAMES=CONTROLLERKAFKA_INTER_BROKER_LISTENER_NAME=PLAINTEXTKAFKA_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://0.0.0.0:9092,CONTROLLER://0.0.0.0:9093KAFKA_LOG_DIRS=/var/lib/kafka/dataKAFKA_OFFSETS_TOPIC_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_MIN_ISR=2KAFKA_DEFAULT_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_MIN_INSYNC_REPLICAS=2KAFKA_HEAP_OPTS=-Xms256m -Xmx1gCLUSTER_ID=5L6g3nShT-eMCtK--X86swKAFKA_NODE_ID=2KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://kafka-2:9092unless-stoppedImage details
kafka-3
Configuration
Imageapache/kafka:4.0.090929093/var/lib/kafka/data : kafkadata-3KAFKA_PROCESS_ROLES=broker,controllerKAFKA_CONTROLLER_QUORUM_VOTERS=1@kafka-1:9093,2@kafka-2:9093,3@kafka-3:9093KAFKA_LISTENER_SECURITY_PROTOCOL_MAP=CONTROLLER:PLAINTEXT,PLAINTEXT:PLAINTEXTKAFKA_CONTROLLER_LISTENER_NAMES=CONTROLLERKAFKA_INTER_BROKER_LISTENER_NAME=PLAINTEXTKAFKA_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://0.0.0.0:9092,CONTROLLER://0.0.0.0:9093KAFKA_LOG_DIRS=/var/lib/kafka/dataKAFKA_OFFSETS_TOPIC_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_MIN_ISR=2KAFKA_DEFAULT_REPLICATION_FACTOR=3KAFKA_MIN_INSYNC_REPLICAS=2KAFKA_HEAP_OPTS=-Xms256m -Xmx1gCLUSTER_ID=5L6g3nShT-eMCtK--X86swKAFKA_NODE_ID=3KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS=PLAINTEXT://kafka-3:9092unless-stoppedImage details
kafka-ui
Configuration
Imageghcr.io/kafbat/kafka-ui:v1.5.05000:5000KAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_NAME=kafkaKAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_BOOTSTRAPSERVERS=kafka-1:9092,kafka-2:9092,kafka-3:9092SERVER_PORT=5000unless-stoppedImage details
Standalone Install
Select an install method, to see config/commands for deploying Apache Kafka
Install on Portainer
Import all app templates into your Portainer instance, for easy 1-click deploys
- Ensure both Docker and Portainer are installed, and up-to-date
- Log into your Portainer web UI
- Under Settings → App Templates, paste the below URL
- Head to Home → App Templates, and the list of apps will show up
- Select Apache Kafka, fill in any config options, and hit Deploy
Template Import URL
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Lissy93/portainer-templates/main/templates.json
Show Me
Original stackfile
The compose file this template deploys, straight from its repo:
name: kafka
x-kafka: &kafka
image: apache/kafka:4.0.0
restart: unless-stopped
x-kafka-env: &kafka-env
KAFKA_PROCESS_ROLES: broker,controller
KAFKA_CONTROLLER_QUORUM_VOTERS: 1@kafka-1:9093,2@kafka-2:9093,3@kafka-3:9093
KAFKA_LISTENER_SECURITY_PROTOCOL_MAP: CONTROLLER:PLAINTEXT,PLAINTEXT:PLAINTEXT
KAFKA_CONTROLLER_LISTENER_NAMES: CONTROLLER
KAFKA_INTER_BROKER_LISTENER_NAME: PLAINTEXT
KAFKA_LISTENERS: PLAINTEXT://0.0.0.0:9092,CONTROLLER://0.0.0.0:9093
KAFKA_LOG_DIRS: /var/lib/kafka/data
KAFKA_OFFSETS_TOPIC_REPLICATION_FACTOR: "3"
KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_REPLICATION_FACTOR: "3"
KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_MIN_ISR: "2"
KAFKA_DEFAULT_REPLICATION_FACTOR: "3"
KAFKA_MIN_INSYNC_REPLICAS: "2"
KAFKA_HEAP_OPTS: -Xms256m -Xmx1g
CLUSTER_ID: 5L6g3nShT-eMCtK--X86sw
services:
kafka-1:
<<: *kafka
environment:
<<: *kafka-env
KAFKA_NODE_ID: "1"
KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS: PLAINTEXT://kafka-1:9092
ports:
- "9092"
- "9093"
volumes:
- kafkadata-1:/var/lib/kafka/data
kafka-2:
<<: *kafka
environment:
<<: *kafka-env
KAFKA_NODE_ID: "2"
KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS: PLAINTEXT://kafka-2:9092
ports:
- "9092"
- "9093"
volumes:
- kafkadata-2:/var/lib/kafka/data
kafka-3:
<<: *kafka
environment:
<<: *kafka-env
KAFKA_NODE_ID: "3"
KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS: PLAINTEXT://kafka-3:9092
ports:
- "9092"
- "9093"
volumes:
- kafkadata-3:/var/lib/kafka/data
kafka-ui:
healthcheck:
test: ["CMD-SHELL", "wget -qO- http://127.0.0.1:5000/actuator/health >/dev/null 2>&1"]
interval: 30s
timeout: 5s
retries: 5
start_period: 60s
image: ghcr.io/kafbat/kafka-ui:v1.5.0
restart: unless-stopped
environment:
KAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_NAME: kafka
KAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_BOOTSTRAPSERVERS: kafka-1:9092,kafka-2:9092,kafka-3:9092
SERVER_PORT: "5000"
ports:
- "5000:5000"
depends_on:
- kafka-1
- kafka-2
- kafka-3
volumes:
kafkadata-1:
kafkadata-2:
kafkadata-3:
Or deploy it directly from the source:
git clone https://github.com/deployable-sh/stacks
cd stacks
docker compose -f kafka/compose.yaml up -dMore install options in our documentation.
Container Documentation
kafka-1 Documentation
Apache Kafka
kafka-2 Documentation
Apache Kafka
kafka-3 Documentation
Apache Kafka
Serve Apache Kafka on your own domain behind Caddy, Nginx or Traefik. Fill in your domain and copy the result. It's a starting point, some apps need their own base URL or extra headers set too.
Proxying apache-kafka.example.com to http://kafka-1:9092
Add this to your Caddyfile
apache-kafka.example.com {
reverse_proxy http://kafka-1:9092
}Check the logs first
Nine times out of ten the logs tell you exactly what went wrong.
- In Portainer, go to Containers, click the container, then Logs. Or run
docker logs <container> - Exit codes help too:
137means killed, usually out of memory.126or127means the command inside the image is broken.
Port already in use
If deployment fails with "Bind for 0.0.0.0:5000 failed: port is already allocated", something else on your server is using that port.
- Find what's using it:
sudo ss -tlnp | grep :5000 - Stop the other service, or pick a different host port. In
5000:5000only the left number is yours to change, the right one belongs to the app.
Published on a random port
This template exposes 9092 without setting a host port,
so Docker picks a random free one on every deploy.
- Find it in the Ports column of Portainer's container list, or with
docker port <container>
Running but the page won't load
The container is up but nothing appears in your browser.
- Use your server's real IP:
http://your-server-ip:5000. The 0.0.0.0 link Portainer shows isn't a real address. - Give it a minute after first deploy, kafka can take a while to initialise.
- Make sure your firewall allows the port, e.g.
sudo ufw allow 5000
Image won't pull
Test the pull directly on the host: docker pull apache/kafka:4.0.0
- "manifest unknown" means the tag no longer exists.
- "toomanyrequests" is the Docker Hub rate limit. Log in with
docker loginto raise it. - "no space left on device" means a full disk. Reclaim space with
docker system prune
"exec format error"
This means the image was built for a different CPU architecture than your server.
- Check yours with
uname -m: x86_64 is amd64, aarch64 is arm64. Raspberry Pi and other ARM boards are the usual culprits.
Container keeps restarting
The unless-stopped restart policy relaunches the app after every crash, so the real error can scroll past.
- Check the logs right after a restart, the last few lines before it died are the useful ones.
- Get the exit code with
docker inspect <container> --format '{{.State.ExitCode}}' - Still stuck? Redeploy once with the restart policy set to
noso the failure stays visible.
Stack won't deploy
Compose stacks fail fast on small mistakes, and Portainer shows the reason just above the editor.
- YAML only accepts spaces for indentation, a single tab breaks the whole file.
Raise an issue
Found something which isn't working as it should? Here's how to report it.
- Bug within the app: Open an issue within kafka's repo
- Template not working: Open an issue on deployable-sh/stacks
- This website not working: Open an issue on lissy93/portainer-templates
A Compose stack
Apache Kafka is a Compose stack, a set of containers (4 of them) defined in one file and brought up together by Portainer, then started and stopped as a single app.
The services
This stack is built from 4 containers that run side by side. Here's each one, with the image it runs and anything it waits for first:
kafka-1runsapache/kafka:4.0.0kafka-2runsapache/kafka:4.0.0kafka-3runsapache/kafka:4.0.0kafka-uirunsghcr.io/kafbat/kafka-ui:v1.5.0, starts after kafka-1, kafka-2, kafka-3
Ports
A port is the door the app answers on. A mapping like 5000:5000 means it's reachable on port 5000 of your server, where the left number is yours to change and the right one belongs to the app. It opens:
9092, published on a random host port9093, published on a random host port9092, published on a random host port9093, published on a random host port9092, published on a random host port9093, published on a random host port5000:5000
Volumes
A volume is where Apache Kafka keeps its files so they survive an update or a restart. Without one, anything it saves would sit inside the container and vanish the moment it's recreated. This template mounts:
/var/lib/kafka/datakept in thekafkadata-1volume Docker manages/var/lib/kafka/datakept in thekafkadata-2volume Docker manages/var/lib/kafka/datakept in thekafkadata-3volume Docker manages
Environment variables
Environment variables are the settings you hand over when you deploy, things like a password or a timezone. Apache Kafka takes 19 of them, all with defaults you can leave alone or tweak:
KAFKA_PROCESS_ROLES, defaults tobroker,controllerKAFKA_CONTROLLER_QUORUM_VOTERS, defaults to1@kafka-1:9093,2@kafka-2:9093,3@kafka-3:9093KAFKA_LISTENER_SECURITY_PROTOCOL_MAP, defaults toCONTROLLER:PLAINTEXT,PLAINTEXT:PLAINTEXTKAFKA_CONTROLLER_LISTENER_NAMES, defaults toCONTROLLERKAFKA_INTER_BROKER_LISTENER_NAME, defaults toPLAINTEXTKAFKA_LISTENERS, defaults toPLAINTEXT://0.0.0.0:9092,CONTROLLER://0.0.0.0:9093KAFKA_LOG_DIRS, defaults to/var/lib/kafka/dataKAFKA_OFFSETS_TOPIC_REPLICATION_FACTOR, defaults to3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_REPLICATION_FACTOR, defaults to3KAFKA_TRANSACTION_STATE_LOG_MIN_ISR, defaults to2KAFKA_DEFAULT_REPLICATION_FACTOR, defaults to3KAFKA_MIN_INSYNC_REPLICAS, defaults to2KAFKA_HEAP_OPTS, defaults to-Xms256m -Xmx1gCLUSTER_ID, defaults to5L6g3nShT-eMCtK--X86swKAFKA_NODE_ID, defaults to3KAFKA_ADVERTISED_LISTENERS, defaults toPLAINTEXT://kafka-3:9092KAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_NAME, defaults tokafkaKAFKA_CLUSTERS_0_BOOTSTRAPSERVERS, defaults tokafka-1:9092,kafka-2:9092,kafka-3:9092SERVER_PORT, defaults to5000
Restart policy
The restart policy here is unless-stopped, so Docker restarts Apache Kafka after a crash or reboot, but leaves it off when you stop it on purpose. You can change this on the deploy screen. The choices are no (never restart), on-failure (only after a crash), unless-stopped (restart unless you stop it), and always (bring it back no matter what).
Networking
Portainer puts these services on one shared private network, so they can find each other by name (like kafka-1) while only the ports above are open to you.
Platform
The platform is linux, the kind of system the container is built to run on. Docker and Portainer handle this on a normal Linux server.
Portainer app templates
Zooming out, this whole page comes from a Portainer app template: a short recipe telling Portainer how to set Apache Kafka up. Add the template list to Portainer once, then deploying Apache Kafka is a click rather than a wall of config.