EJBCA Installation Lab

A comprehensive laboratory project for installing and deploying EJBCA (Enterprise JavaBeans Certificate Authority) using various methods and deployment scenarios.

📋 Overview

This lab provides step-by-step instructions and configurations for deploying EJBCA, a full-featured PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) solution, using multiple installation methods:

• 🖥️ Manual Installation - Traditional installation on Ubuntu with MariaDB and SoftHSM
• 🐳 Container Deployment - Docker/Podman-based deployment with docker-compose
• ☁️ Cloud Deployment - Automated deployment on Google Cloud Platform using Terraform

🎯 What is EJBCA?

EJBCA is an enterprise-grade Certificate Authority (CA) software that provides:

• Certificate lifecycle management
• Multiple certificate profiles (SSL/TLS, code signing, S/MIME, etc.)
• Support for Hardware Security Modules (HSM)
• Web-based administration interface
• REST API for automation
• eIDAS compliance support

📚 Installation Methods

1. Manual Installation

Location: manual-installation/

Complete manual installation guide for EJBCA 9.2.0 on Ubuntu with:

• OpenJDK 17
• WildFly 35.0.1.Final
• MariaDB 10.11
• SoftHSM2 for hardware token simulation

Best for: Learning the installation process, custom configurations, production deployments

→ View Manual Installation Guide

2. Container Deployment (Docker/Podman)

Location: docker-podman/

Quick deployment using containers with docker-compose:

• MariaDB 10.11 database container
• EJBCA Community Edition container
• Automatic health checks
• Persistent data volumes

Best for: Development, testing, quick deployments, local labs

→ View Container Deployment Guide

3. Cloud Deployment (Google Cloud Platform)

Location: terraform-lab/

Automated infrastructure deployment on GCP using Terraform:

• VM instance with automatic setup
• Static IP reservation
• Firewall rules configuration
• Optional reverse proxy with Caddy
• Support for both EJBCA and Smallstep CA

Best for: Cloud deployments, scalable infrastructure, infrastructure as code

→ View Terraform Deployment Guide

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• For Manual Installation: Ubuntu 22.04+, root/sudo access
• For Container Deployment: Docker or Podman, docker-compose
• For Cloud Deployment: Google Cloud account, Terraform, gcloud CLI

Choose Your Method

1. Quick local testing: Use Container Deployment
2. Learning EJBCA internals: Use Manual Installation
3. Production-like cloud setup: Use Terraform Deployment

📖 Version Information

• EJBCA Version: 9.2.0 (EE with eIDAS support)
• WildFly Version: 35.0.1.Final
• Java Version: OpenJDK 17
• Database: MariaDB 10.11
• Container Image: primekey/ejbca-ce:latest

🔐 Security Notes

⚠️ Important Security Considerations:

• All default passwords in this lab are for testing purposes only
• Change all default credentials before deploying to production
• Use strong passwords for database and EJBCA admin accounts
• Configure firewall rules appropriately
• Consider using HSM for production deployments
• Regularly update EJBCA and dependencies

📁 Project Structure

ejbca-lab/
├── README.md                    # This file
├── manual-installation/         # Manual installation guide
│   └── README.md
├── docker-podman/              # Container deployment
│   ├── README.md
│   └── docker-compose.yml
└── terraform-lab/              # GCP Terraform deployment
    ├── README.md
    ├── main.tf
    ├── variables.tf
    ├── outputs.tf
    └── startup.sh

🧪 Testing & Verification

After installation, verify EJBCA is running:

# Check web interface
curl -k https://localhost:8443/ejbca/publicweb/healthcheck/ejbcahealth

# Access admin web interface
# https://localhost:8443/ejbca/adminweb

📚 Additional Resources

• EJBCA Official Documentation
• EJBCA Community Edition GitHub
• WildFly Documentation
• MariaDB Documentation

🤝 Contributing

Feel free to improve this lab by:

• Adding more deployment methods
• Documenting additional configurations
• Fixing issues or improving documentation
• Adding troubleshooting guides

📝 License

This lab is provided for educational and testing purposes. EJBCA has its own licensing terms. Please refer to the official EJBCA documentation for licensing information.

⚠️ Disclaimer

This lab is intended for educational and testing purposes. For production deployments, please:

• Review security best practices
• Use appropriate hardware and resources
• Follow EJBCA production deployment guidelines
• Consult with security professionals

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Happy PKI Building! 🔐