Teploy

Cloudflare Setup

2 min read

Cloudflare integration is optional. Your apps work without it — SSL is provided automatically via Let's Encrypt. Add Cloudflare if you want CDN, DDoS protection, or other edge features.

Why add Cloudflare?

Benefits of connecting your Cloudflare account:

  • Global CDN — Cache static assets at 300+ edge locations
  • DDoS protection — Enterprise-grade traffic filtering
  • Web Application Firewall — Block common attacks
  • Analytics — Traffic insights and threat intelligence

Connect Cloudflare

  1. Create a free Cloudflare account at cloudflare.com
  2. Add your domain to Cloudflare and update nameservers
  3. In Teploy, go to Settings → Integrations
  4. Click Connect Cloudflare
  5. Enter your Cloudflare API token
  6. Select zones to manage

What Teploy configures

When you enable Cloudflare for a domain:

  • Creates/updates DNS records automatically
  • Sets SSL mode to Full (Strict)
  • Enables proxy (orange cloud)
  • Applies recommended caching rules

SSL with Cloudflare

If using Cloudflare, SSL works differently:

Mode Description
Full (Strict) Cloudflare verifies your origin certificate (recommended)
Full Encrypts to origin, accepts self-signed
Flexible Only encrypts browser to Cloudflare

Your Let's Encrypt certificate still works as the origin certificate.

CDN & Caching

Default caching rules when Cloudflare is enabled:

Content TTL
HTML No cache
Static assets 1 year
API responses No cache

Customize in App → Settings → Caching or directly in Cloudflare dashboard.

Advanced features

These require a Cloudflare account and may have additional costs:

Argo Smart Routing

Routes traffic through Cloudflare's optimized network. ~30% latency reduction. Billed per GB through Cloudflare.

Cloudflare Tunnels

Connect servers without exposing public ports. Good for internal tools or restrictive networks.

Cloudflare Access

Zero-trust authentication for internal apps. Supports SSO providers.

R2 Storage

S3-compatible object storage with zero egress fees. $0.015/GB storage.

Without Cloudflare

If you don't connect Cloudflare:

  • SSL is handled by Let's Encrypt (automatic)
  • Traffic goes directly to your VPS
  • No CDN caching (but still fast for most use cases)
  • Basic DDoS protection from your VPS provider

For most apps, this is perfectly fine. Add Cloudflare later when you need CDN or advanced security.