What is the Deskpro-Private-Controller?

The Deskpro-Private-Controller (DPC) is a server management web console, which can manage Deskpro on your server without having to login to the CLI. The service runs in a docker container within the same host as your Deskpro instances, and allows you to create, update and manage multiple Deskpro instances on the same host, as well as manage and configure the services Deskpro requires within the host.

Here is a simple diagram of how the DPC works within a single node configuration:

All web traffic accessing the server is handled by the nginx Edge Proxy, but requests made to the special port :29443 are directed to the DPC container. This container manages the Deskpro instances and the services running within the host. Standard web traffic is forwarded to your Deskpro instance containers, and they can access the required services within the host.

Why should I use the DPC?

There have been significant changes with how Deskpro Horizon works on-premise, which are incompatible with the ways Deskpro has worked on-premise in the past. The DPC allows you to easily manage and update the individual Deskpro containers, configure local or external services, backup your helpdesk and configure notifications when issues occur.

The DPC will also automatically update your host’s services and notify you if a restart is required to install a new kernel.

Do I need another server/vm for the DPC?

No. The DPC is a service to manage the server it is installed on, and it will install everything needed to run Deskpro on the server automatically.

Can I use external services with my Deskpro instances?

Yes. You can configure your instances to use an external MySQL or Elasticsearch service when creating/importing the instance, and you can configure an S3 bucket on an active instance. However, the DPC will not be able to make configuration changes to these external services and they must be managed manually.

Can helpdesks on the DPC be clustered?

Customers on Enterprise plans can cluster multiple DPC servers together either in a failover or load-balanced configuration to support larger helpdesks over multiple servers.

I don’t want to use a web interface. Can I manage my helpdesk through the CLI?

You can login to your helpdesk server via SSH and modify your helpdesk via the CLI if you prefer.