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Cybersecurity Lab Setup with Docker

This guide will walk you through setting up a complete cybersecurity lab using Docker. It includes a Kali Linux container, vulnerable web apps, and other services like Metasploitable and DVWA. We'll also cover network isolation, reverse proxy, and logging using the ELK Stack.

1️⃣ Prerequisites: Install Docker & Docker Compose

Install Docker

Ensure that Docker and Docker Compose are installed on your machine. Run the following commands:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install docker.io docker-compose -y

Verify your installation by checking the versions:

docker --version
docker-compose --version

2️⃣ Set Up a Docker Network

To allow communication between the containers, we need to set up a custom network.

docker network create cyberlab

3️⃣ Create a docker-compose.yml File

We’ll define the services in a docker-compose.yml file. This file will define containers like Kali Linux, DVWA, Metasploitable, and Juice Shop.

Create a cyberlab folder and open the docker-compose.yml file:

mkdir ~/cyberlab && cd ~/cyberlab
nano docker-compose.yml

Paste the following content into the file:

yamlCopyversion: '3.8'

services:
  kali:
    image: kalilinux/kali-rolling
    container_name: kali
    command: tail -f /dev/null  # Keeps container running
    tty: true
    stdin_open: true
    networks:
      - cyberlab

  dvwa:
    image: vulnerables/web-dvwa
    container_name: dvwa
    ports:
      - "8080:80"
    restart: always
    networks:
      - cyberlab

  metasploitable:
    image: tleemcjr/metasploitable2
    container_name: metasploitable
    ports:
      - "2222:22"  # SSH
      - "3389:3389"  # RDP
    networks:
      - cyberlab

  juice-shop:
    image: bkimminich/juice-shop
    container_name: juice-shop
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    restart: always
    networks:
      - cyberlab

networks:
  cyberlab:
    driver: bridge

This setup defines four containers:

  • Kali Linux for penetration testing.

  • DVWA (Damn Vulnerable Web App) for web app security practice.

  • Metasploitable2 for exploiting known vulnerabilities.

  • OWASP Juice Shop for web application security practice.

4️⃣ Start the Lab

Run the following command to start all containers:

docker-compose up -d

This will start all containers in detached mode.

5️⃣ Access Containers

Here’s how you can access each container:

Kali Linux Shell

To access Kali Linux's interactive shell, run:

docker exec -it kali /bin/bash

DVWA (Damn Vulnerable Web App)

Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. Login with:

  • Username: admin

  • Password: password

Metasploitable SSH

SSH into Metasploitable:

ssh msfadmin@localhost -p 2222

Password: msfadmin

OWASP Juice Shop

Open http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

6️⃣ Enhance Your Cybersecurity Lab

Reverse Proxy (Traefik or NGINX)

To manage multiple services via a single entry point, you can use a reverse proxy like Traefik or NGINX.

Using Traefik

Traefik dynamically discovers services via Docker labels. Here's how you can configure it in docker-compose.yml:

yamlCopyservices:
  traefik:
    image: traefik:v2.9
    container_name: traefik
    command:
      - "--api.insecure=true"
      - "--providers.docker=true"
      - "--entrypoints.web.address=:80"
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "8080:8080"  # Traefik Dashboard
    networks:
      cyberlab:
        ipv4_address: 192.168.100.2
    volumes:
      - "/var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock"
      
  dvwa:
    image: vulnerables/web-dvwa
    container_name: dvwa
    networks:
      cyberlab:
        ipv4_address: 192.168.100.10
    labels:
      - "traefik.enable=true"
      - "traefik.http.routers.dvwa.rule=Host(`dvwa.local`)"

Then, modify your /etc/hosts file to access dvwa.local locally:

192.168.100.10 dvwa.local

Start the services:

docker-compose up -d

You can now access DVWA at http://dvwa.local and the Traefik Dashboard at http://localhost:8080.

Using NGINX

If you prefer NGINX for reverse proxy, use the following configuration for nginx.conf:

nginxCopyserver {
    listen 80;
    server_name dvwa.local;
    
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://192.168.100.10;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    }
}

Run NGINX with:

docker run -d --name nginx -p 80:80 -v $(pwd)/nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:ro nginx

7️⃣ Set Up Logging & Monitoring with the ELK Stack

To monitor logs from your containers, you can use the ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana).

Add ELK to docker-compose.yml

yamlCopyservices:
  elasticsearch:
    image: docker.elastic.co/elasticsearch/elasticsearch:8.5.0
    environment:
      - discovery.type=single-node
    ports:
      - "9200:9200"
    networks:
      cyberlab:
        ipv4_address: 192.168.100.20

  logstash:
    image: docker.elastic.co/logstash/logstash:8.5.0
    volumes:
      - ./logstash.conf:/usr/share/logstash/pipeline/logstash.conf
    depends_on:
      - elasticsearch
    networks:
      cyberlab:
        ipv4_address: 192.168.100.21

  kibana:
    image: docker.elastic.co/kibana/kibana:8.5.0
    depends_on:
      - elasticsearch
    ports:
      - "5601:5601"
    networks:
      cyberlab:
        ipv4_address: 192.168.100.22

Configure Logstash (logstash.conf)

Create the logstash.conf file to specify how logs are processed:

input {
  file {
    path => "/var/log/nginx/access.log"
    start_position => "beginning"
  }
}

output {
  elasticsearch {
    hosts => ["http://192.168.100.20:9200"]
  }
}

Run the ELK Stack:

docker-compose up -d

Access Kibana

You can access Kibana at http://localhost:5601 and start analyzing logs from your containers.

8️⃣ Set Up a Dedicated Subnet

To enhance your network setup, assign static IP addresses within a custom subnet.

Create a Custom Network

docker network create --subnet=192.168.100.0/24 cyberlab

Assign Static IPs in docker-compose.yml

Each container can be assigned a static IP address like this:

yamlCopynetworks:
  cyberlab:
    ipv4_address: 192.168.100.10

9️⃣ Running Vulnerable Containers

Metasploitable 2

Run Metasploitable 2 for vulnerability exploitation:

docker run -d --name metasploitable -p 2222:22 -p 80:80 tleemcjr/metasploitable2

  • SSH: msfadmin:msfadmin

  • Web: http://localhost:80

DVWA (Damn Vulnerable Web App)

Run DVWA:

docker run -d --name dvwa -p 8080:80 vulnerables/web-dvwa

  • Login: admin:password

  • Access: http://localhost:8080

Conclusion

You now have a fully functional cybersecurity lab with Docker. You can access vulnerable applications like DVWA, Juice Shop, and Metasploitable, all while monitoring logs with ELK and managing services with Traefik or NGINX. Use this environment for penetration testing, vulnerability discovery, and more!

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