What is Caddy?
Caddy is a powerful, open-source web server known for its simplicity, performance, and automatic HTTPS. It is designed to make deploying secure websites fast, easy, and reliable. Unlike traditional web servers, Caddy automatically obtains and renews SSL certificates, eliminating complex TLS configuration.
Caddy is ideal for developers, system administrators, and DevOps engineers who want a secure, modern, and production ready web server with minimal configuration effort. It supports static websites, reverse proxy, APIs, containerized workloads, and microservices seamlessly.
Key Features of Caddy
- Automatic HTTPS Built-in SSL certificate provisioning and renewal using Let’s Encrypt and ZeroSSL.
- Simple Configuration (Caddyfile) – Human readable configuration format that’s easy to learn and manage.
- High Performance – Event-driven architecture designed for speed, efficiency, and scalability.
- Powerful Reverse Proxy – Ideal for backend services, microservices, Docker, and Kubernetes setups.
- HTTP/2 & HTTP/3 Support – Modern protocol support for faster and more secure web delivery.
- Dynamic Configuration API – Modify configurations at runtime without restarting the server.
- Cross-Platform Support – Runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, and BSD systems.
- Extensible Plugin System – Add custom features using Caddy modules.
- Built-in Security Features – Automatic TLS, modern ciphers, and secure defaults.
- Lightweight & Resource Efficient – Perfect for VPS, cloud servers, and low-resource systems.
Why Choose Caddy?
- Zero SSL Hassle – Automatic HTTPS makes secure website deployment effortless.
- Beginner Friendly – Minimal configuration required to get started.
- Production Ready Defaults – Secure and optimized settings out of the box.
- DevOps Friendly – API-based configuration, Docker images, and Kubernetes support.
- Highly Reliable – Automatic certificate renewal and graceful reloads ensure uptime.
- Modern Web Standards – Native support for HTTP/2, HTTP/3, and QUIC.
- Excellent Documentation – Clear, detailed guides and community support.
- Perfect for Reverse Proxy Use – Ideal for Node.js, Python, Go, PHP, and containerized apps.
- Active Open-Source Community – Frequent updates and long-term project stability.
Common Use Cases for Caddy
- Hosting static websites and blogs
- Reverse proxy for backend applications
- API gateway
- Load balancer
- HTTPS automation
- Docker & Kubernetes ingress
- Microservices routing
System Requirements for Caddy
- Operating System – Debian 11/12, Ubuntu 20.04/22.04/24.04, AlmaLinux 8/9, RockyLinux 8/9,
- CPU – 1 vCPU minimum (2+ recommended for production workloads)
- Memory – Minimum 512 MB RAM (1 GB+ recommended)
- Disk Space – Less than 50 MB for installation
- Network – Open ports 80 & 443 for HTTP and HTTPS
- Dependencies – None (single static binary)
Installation on Linux OS (Ubuntu based OS):
You can find installation instructions in the CrownCloud Wiki Guides, and it follows:
Purchase a KVM VPS – Choose a KVM VPS plan from us that suits your requirements.
KVM SSD Plans – https://crowncloud.net/ssd_kvm.php
NVMe SSD KVM VPS Plans – https://crowncloud.net/nvme_kvm.php
AMD Ryzen SSD KVM VPS – https://crowncloud.net/ssd_amd_ryzen_kvm.php
Intel i9 12900K SSD KVM VPS Plans – https://crowncloud.net/ssd_intel_i9_kvm.php