sentinel-kit

🚀 Getting Started with Sentinel Kit

This guide walks you through the initial setup of Sentinel Kit, from deployment to first access.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure your system meets the following requirements:

System Requirements

Required Software

Step 1: Download and Setup

Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/codeyourweb/sentinel-kit.git
cd sentinel-kit

🛠️ Environment Configuration

Most of the parameters for this stack are defined in the .env file located at the root directory. These settings are loaded before the stack starts. If the stack is already running, you must restart it for any changes to take effect.

⚙️ Services and Profiles

The following configuration block defines the active services using Docker Compose profiles and sets the Elasticsearch cluster mode.

COMPOSE_PROFILES=sftp,es-secondary-node,phpmyadmin,kibana,internal-monitoring
ELASTICSEARCH_CLUSTER_MODE=multi-node

Profile Customization

You can remove certain services if you don’t need them. Simply remove the corresponding profile from the COMPOSE_PROFILES list:

Elasticsearch Configuration

By default, Elasticsearch is configured as a two-node cluster (multi-node). For environments with limited resources, you can switch to a single-node setup by removing the es-secondary-node profile and updating ELASTICSEARCH_CLUSTER_MODE as shown below:

COMPOSE_PROFILES=sftp,phpmyadmin,kibana,internal-monitoring
ELASTICSEARCH_CLUSTER_MODE=single-node

__Note:__ Switching between single-node and multi-node can be done at any point during the stack’s lifecycle without requiring a complete reinstallation or data loss.

Elasticsearch Memory Limit

To limit the memory allocated to the Elasticsearch cluster, modify the following variable (default is 4GB):

ELASTICSEARCH_MEMORY_LIMIT=4294967296

🌐 Domain Names The hostnames for the exposed services are customizable here. It is mandatory to map these hostnames to the stack’s IP address either in your DNS configuration or in your local hosts file (for isolated local installations).

Service Environment Variable Default Hostname
Frontend SENTINELKIT_FRONTEND_HOSTNAME sentinel-kit.local
Backend API SENTINELKIT_BACKEND_HOSTNAME backend.sentinel-kit.local
phpMyAdmin SENTINELKIT_PMA_HOSTNAME phpmyadmin.sentinel-kit.local
Kibana SENTINELKIT_KIBANA_HOSTNAME kibana.sentinel-kit.local
Grafana SENTINELKIT_GRAFANA_HOSTNAME grafana.sentinel-kit.local

🔒 Secrets and Credentials

For production usage, you can change any of the default credentials below.

⚠️ __Important:__ Once the stack is initialized, changing certain secrets (like database or Elasticsearch credentials) can destabilize services. It is strongly recommended to modify these values only before the initial launch of the stack.

SENTINELKIT_DATAMONITOR_SERVER_TOKEN=9561ffd1b6de615286b9e52a9d5bc3226970449700c9461bdbe4225730b47b20
BACKEND_JWT_PASSPHRASE=f164cfc913d2faf65a1b7bc8ccd4aa8b11b5958bce7c20c8cf159a576f8a75f7
MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=sentinel-kit_r00tp4ssw0rd
MYSQL_USER=sentinel-kit_user
MYSQL_PASSWORD=sentinel-kit_passwd
MYSQL_DATABASE=sentinel-kit_db
GF_SECURITY_ADMIN_USER=sentinel-kit_grafana_admin
GF_SECURITY_ADMIN_PASSWORD=sentinel-kit_grafana_password
SFTP_USER=sentinel-kit_sftp_user
SFTP_PASSWORD=sentinel-kit_sftp_passwd
ELASTICSEARCH_CLUSTER_NAME=sentinel-kit-elasticsearch-cluster
ELASTICSEARCH_PASSWORD=sentinelkit_elastic_passwd

Configure DNS Resolution (Local Development)

Use the integrated console command as Administrator:

./launcher.sh local-dns-install

Or, if you want to do it manually, add these entries to your system’s hosts file:

Windows: Edit C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts Linux/macOS: Edit /etc/hosts

Add to your hosts file :

127.0.0.1   sentinel-kit.local
127.0.0.1   backend.sentinel-kit.local
127.0.0.1   phpmyadmin.sentinel-kit.local
127.0.0.1   kibana.sentinel-kit.local
127.0.0.1   grafana.sentinel-kit.local

Step 2: Launch the Platform

Windows PowerShell:

./launcher.ps1 start

Linux/macOS:

./launcher.sh start

The launcher will:

Manual Docker Compose (Alternative)

docker-compose up -d

Note: First startup takes 5-10 minutes as services initialize and dependencies download.

Step 3: Verify Installation

Check Service Status

# Using launcher
./launcher status

# Using Docker directly  
docker-compose ps

All services should show as “Up” or “running”:

Access the Platform

Once services are running:

  1. Open your browser and navigate to: https://sentinel-kit.local
  2. Accept the SSL certificate (self-signed for local development)
  3. You should see the Sentinel Kit login page

Step 4: Create First Admin User

Using the Backend Console

  1. Access the backend container: Recommanded way - with the integrated console app 
    ./launcher console

    or with a docker exec command:

    docker exec -it sentinel-kit-app-backend bash
  2. Run the user creation command: 
    php bin/console app:users:create

    Follow the instructions to create your first user

Step 5: First Login

Access the Dashboard

  1. Navigate to: https://sentinel-kit.local
  2. Enter your credentials:
    • Username: admin (or your chosen username)
    • Password: Your secure password
  3. Complete 2FA setup
  4. Access the main dashboard

Dashboard Overview

Upon first login, you’ll see:

Users secrets reset

Password resetting could be done

backend:/var/www/html# php bin/console app:users:renew-password demo@example.com MyNewPa$$w0rd

 [OK] User password reset successful.

And you can also reset user OTP:

backend:/var/www/html# php bin/console app:users:renew-otp demo@example.com

 [OK] User OTP reset successful.

Next Steps

Now that your platform is running:

  1. Configure Data Ingestion - Set up log sources and collection
  2. Create Detection Rules - Build your first Sigma rules
  3. Monitor Platform Health - Learn about system monitoring

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Services won’t start:

Can’t access web interface:

Elasticsearch fails to start:

Getting Help

Next: Data Ingestion Setup → «Back to index

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