Authentik on Google Cloud Run

authentik (goauthentik.io) is an open-source (MIT, open-core) identity provider: single sign-on via OIDC and SAML, LDAP and SCIM, multi-factor authentication, and proxy authentication — a self-hosted alternative to Okta, Auth0, and Keycloak. This module deploys authentik on Cloud Run v2 on top of the App_CloudRun foundation, which provisions and manages the shared Google Cloud infrastructure.

This guide focuses on the cloud services authentik uses and how to explore and operate them from the Google Cloud Console and the command line. For the mechanics common to every Cloud Run application — service identity, ingress and load balancing, scaling and concurrency, CI/CD, Cloud Armor, IAP, Binary Authorization, VPC Service Controls, backups, and the deployment lifecycle — refer to the App_CloudRun foundation guide rather than repeating them here.

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1. Overview

authentik runs as a Python/Django container on Cloud Run v2, with its background worker (ak worker) co-located in the same container. The deployment wires together a focused set of Google Cloud services:

Capability	Google Cloud service	Notes
Compute	Cloud Run v2	Server + co-located worker, 2 vCPU / 2 GiB by default, always-on CPU, min 1 instance
Database	Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15	Required — authentik needs PostgreSQL ≥ 14; MySQL is blocked
Cache & queue	None — no Redis	authentik ≥ 2025.10 moved cache, sessions, task queue, and the WebSocket channel layer into PostgreSQL
Media storage	Cloud Storage (GCS Fuse)	Bucket mounted at /media for uploaded icons and flow backgrounds
Secrets	Secret Manager	Stable AUTHENTIK_SECRET_KEY, akadmin bootstrap password, database password
Image	Artifact Registry + Cloud Build	Thin custom build FROM ghcr.io/goauthentik/server (cloud entrypoint + worker launcher)
Ingress	Cloud Run URL / Cloud Load Balancing	Default run.app URL; optional external HTTPS LB + custom domain

Sensible defaults worth knowing up front:

• PostgreSQL 15 is mandatory and is the only datastore. No Redis, no search backend — sessions, cache, and the task queue all live in Cloud SQL.
• The worker is co-located. The container entrypoint starts ak worker in the background next to the server (the same pattern as Chatwoot's Sidekiq worker). This is why cpu_always_allocated = true and min_instance_count = 1 are the defaults: scheduled tasks, outpost sync, and the Postgres-backed queue must keep processing between requests, outposts hold a WebSocket to the server, and login latency matters for an IdP. The variable documents the lab/demo flip-back (false + min_instance_count = 0).
• max_instance_count = 5. authentik is stateless across instances — all state is in PostgreSQL — so multiple instances (each with its own worker) are safe.
• AUTHENTIK_SECRET_KEY is generated automatically and stored in Secret Manager. It must remain stable for the deployment's life — rotating it invalidates all sessions and makes encrypted fields unreadable.
• The akadmin admin account is bootstrapped on first boot with bootstrap_email (default admin@techequity.cloud) and a Secret Manager-backed password. Bootstrap variables apply on the first boot only.
• application_version = "latest" is pinned. authentik publishes no latest tag on GHCR; the build pins latest to a known-good release (2026.5.4) via the app-specific AUTHENTIK_VERSION build ARG.
• Migrations run automatically at startup (advisory-lock guarded), so version upgrades need no separate migration job — the startup probe's generous threshold covers the first-boot migration suite.
• Health endpoints are unauthenticated: startup GET /-/health/ready/, liveness GET /-/health/live/.
• LDAP/RADIUS outposts are out of scope on Cloud Run (non-HTTP long-running listeners). Browser SSO (OIDC/SAML) and the embedded outpost work normally.

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2. Google Cloud Services & How to Explore Them

All commands assume PROJECT and REGION are set. Service and resource names are reported in the deployment Outputs.

A. Cloud Run — the authentik service

authentik runs as a Cloud Run v2 service with instance-based billing (always-on CPU) so the co-located worker keeps processing between requests. Each deployment creates an immutable revision.

• Console: Cloud Run → select the service for revisions, traffic, logs, and metrics.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services list --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run services describe <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run revisions list --service <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"

See App_CloudRun for scaling, concurrency, execution environment, and traffic splitting.

B. Cloud SQL for PostgreSQL 15

authentik stores everything here — users, groups, flows, providers, sessions, cache, and the background task queue. The service connects privately through the Cloud SQL Auth Proxy over a Unix socket; the container entrypoint maps the injected DB_* variables onto authentik's AUTHENTIK_POSTGRESQL__* convention and sets the SSL mode by connection type. On first deploy a single db-init job creates the tenant-scoped database and role.

• Console: SQL → select the instance for connections, backups, flags, metrics.
• CLI:

  gcloud sql instances list --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud sql instances describe <instance-name> --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud sql connect <instance-name> --user=<db-user> --database=<db-name> --project "$PROJECT"

The instance name, database, user, and password secret are in the Outputs (database and user names are tenant-prefixed). See App_CloudRun for the connection model, backups, and password rotation.

C. Cloud Storage — media

A dedicated bucket is mounted at /media via GCS Fuse for uploaded media (application icons, flow backgrounds). Uploads survive instance replacement and scaling.

• Console: Cloud Storage → Buckets.
• CLI:

  gcloud storage buckets list --project "$PROJECT"
  gcloud storage ls gs://<media-bucket>/        # bucket name is in the Outputs

D. Secret Manager

Two authentik secrets are generated automatically:

• AUTHENTIK_SECRET_KEY — signs sessions/cookies and derives internal encryption. Never rotate it.

• AUTHENTIK_BOOTSTRAP_PASSWORD — the initial akadmin password, applied on first boot only.

• Console: Security → Secret Manager.

• CLI:

  gcloud secrets list --project "$PROJECT" --filter="name~authentik"
  gcloud secrets versions access latest --secret=<secret-name> --project "$PROJECT"

See Authentik_Common for the full secret model.

E. Networking & ingress

The service is reachable at its run.app URL by default. An external HTTPS load balancer with a custom domain, Cloud CDN, and Cloud Armor can be layered on. For an IdP a stable, TLS-fronted hostname matters — the OIDC/SAML redirect URIs you register in client applications must match the URL users reach authentik on.

• Console: Cloud Run (service URL); Network services → Load balancing.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services describe <service-name> --region "$REGION" --format='value(status.url)'
  gcloud compute addresses list --project "$PROJECT"

F. Cloud Logging & Monitoring

Server and worker logs both flow to Cloud Logging (they share the container's stdout/stderr). Cloud Run and Cloud SQL metrics flow to Cloud Monitoring.

• Console: Logging → Logs Explorer; Monitoring → Dashboards / Alerting.
• CLI:

  gcloud run services logs read <service-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION" --limit 50

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3. authentik Application Behaviour

• First-deploy database setup. A single initialization job runs db-init.sh using postgres:15-alpine: it waits for PostgreSQL, creates the tenant-scoped role and database, grants privileges, and defensively grants cloudsqlsuperuser (so any future CREATE EXTENSION in upstream migrations succeeds). The job is idempotent and safe to re-run.
• Self-migrating startup. authentik's server runs its own Django migrations on every startup, guarded by a PostgreSQL advisory lock. There is no separate migrate job. The first boot runs the full suite — expect several minutes before /-/health/ready/ returns 200; the startup probe allows ~11 minutes.
• First login. Sign in as akadmin using the bootstrap_email value and the password in the ...-bootstrap-password secret. If the bootstrap variables were absent on the first boot, complete setup at <service-url>/if/flow/initial-setup/ instead.
• Applications and providers are configured in-app after deploy. OIDC/SAML providers, applications, outposts, and flows are authentik configuration, not Terraform inputs — create them in the Admin interface (<service-url>/if/admin/) once the service is up.
• Worker co-location. ak worker runs in the same container; its log lines are interleaved with the server's in Cloud Logging. It requires the always-on CPU default — flipping to request-based billing throttles the worker between requests.
• Health endpoints.

  curl -s "$SERVICE_URL/-/health/ready/" -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}\n'   # 200 = migrated + DB reachable
  curl -s "$SERVICE_URL/-/health/live/"  -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}\n'   # 200 = process alive

• Inspect job execution:

  gcloud run jobs list --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"
  gcloud run jobs executions list --job <job-name> --project "$PROJECT" --region "$REGION"

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4. Configuration Variables

Variables are grouped exactly as they appear on the deployment platform. Only settings specific to or notable for authentik are listed; every other input is inherited from App_CloudRun with its standard behaviour.

Group 1 — Project & Identity

Variable	Default	Description
project_id	(required)	Target Google Cloud project.
region	us-central1	Region for the service and regional resources.
bootstrap_email	admin@techequity.cloud	Email of the built-in akadmin account, set on first boot.
bootstrap_password	"" (auto-generated)	Initial akadmin password. First boot only; stored in Secret Manager.

Group 2 — Deployment Environment

Variable	Default	Description
tenant_deployment_id	demo	Short suffix that makes resource names unique per environment.
support_users	[]	Emails granted project access and monitoring alerts.
resource_labels	{}	Labels applied to all resources.

Group 3 — Application Identity

Variable	Default	Description
application_name	authentik	Base name for resources. Do not change after first deploy.
application_version	latest	authentik version tag; latest is pinned to 2026.5.4 at build time (no upstream latest tag). Pin explicitly in production.

Group 4 — Runtime & Scaling

Variable	Default	Description
deploy_application	true	Set false to provision infrastructure only.
container_image_source	custom	Thin wrapper image built via Cloud Build (adds the cloud entrypoint + worker launcher).
cpu_limit	2000m	CPU per instance — shared by server and worker.
memory_limit	2Gi	Memory per instance — 2 GiB is the reliable floor for server + worker.
cpu_always_allocated	true	Keep true. The co-located worker and outpost WebSockets do work between requests. Flip to false + min_instance_count = 0 only for lab/demo cost-first cold-start.
min_instance_count	1	Keeps the worker running and outpost WebSockets connected.
max_instance_count	5	Safe to raise — authentik is stateless across instances.
container_port	9000	authentik's HTTP port.
enable_cloudsql_volume	true	Auth Proxy Unix socket — the entrypoint sets SSLMODE=disable for the Auth Proxy (socket directory or loopback TCP; the proxy doesn't speak SSL itself), require only for direct TCP to any other host.
timeout_seconds	300	Maximum request duration.

Group 5 — Access & Ingress Control

Variable	Default	Description
ingress_settings	all	authentik is a user-facing IdP; browsers and OAuth redirects must reach it.
vpc_egress_setting	PRIVATE_RANGES_ONLY	Route only RFC 1918 traffic via VPC.
enable_iap	false	IAP in front of an IdP double-gates every login and blocks OIDC callbacks from non-Google identities — leave off unless you know you need it.

Group 6 — Environment Variables & Secrets

Variable	Default	Description
environment_variables	{}	Extra AUTHENTIK_* settings (e.g. email/SMTP: AUTHENTIK_EMAIL__HOST, …). Do not set AUTHENTIK_SECRET_KEY or AUTHENTIK_POSTGRESQL__* here.
secret_environment_variables	{}	Map of env var → Secret Manager secret name.

Group 7 — Backup & Restore

Variable	Default	Description
backup_schedule	0 2 * * *	Automated backup cron (UTC).
backup_retention_days	7	Retention; raise for production/compliance.
enable_backup_import / backup_source / backup_file / backup_format	restore options	Restore from a backup on deploy.

Group 8 — CI/CD & Binary Authorization

Standard App_CloudRun Cloud Build / Cloud Deploy integration — see App_CloudRun. Key inputs: enable_cicd_trigger, github_repository_url, github_token, enable_cloud_deploy, enable_binary_authorization.

Group 10 — Load Balancer, CDN & Custom Domain

Variable	Default	Description
enable_cloud_armor	false	Global HTTPS LB + Cloud Armor WAF — recommended for a public IdP.
application_domains	[]	Custom hostname(s). Register OIDC redirect URIs against the domain users actually reach.
enable_cdn	false	CDN adds little for an IdP (dynamic, authenticated traffic).

Group 11 — Storage & Filesystem

Variable	Default	Description
create_cloud_storage	true	The /media bucket is declared by Authentik_Common.
enable_nfs	true	Optional; authentik keeps media on GCS, not NFS.
gcs_volumes	[]	Extra GCS Fuse mounts; /media is added automatically.

Group 12 — Database Backend

Variable	Default	Description
database_type	POSTGRES_15	authentik requires PostgreSQL — MySQL values are rejected by validation.
db_name	authentik	Database base name (tenant-prefixed at deploy). Immutable after first deploy.
db_user	authentik	Application DB user base name (tenant-prefixed).
database_password_length	32	Generated password length (16–64).

Group 13 — Jobs & Scheduled Tasks

Variable	Default	Description
initialization_jobs	[]	Leave empty to use the built-in single db-init job.
cron_jobs	[]	Not needed — the co-located worker runs authentik's scheduled tasks.

Group 14 — Observability & Health

Variable	Default	Description
startup_probe	HTTP /-/health/ready/, 60s delay, 40×15s	Unauthenticated. Generous threshold for first-boot migrations (~11 min budget).
liveness_probe	HTTP /-/health/live/, 60s delay, 3×30s	Unauthenticated process-alive check.
uptime_check_config	disabled	Optional Cloud Monitoring uptime check (point it at /-/health/live/).

Group 21 — Redis

Variable	Default	Description
enable_redis	false	Inert. authentik ≥ 2025.10 removed Redis entirely; main.tf pins enable_redis = false.

Group 22 — VPC Service Controls & Audit Logging

Variable	Default	Description
enable_vpc_sc	false	Enforce a VPC-SC perimeter (requires organization_id).
enable_audit_logging	false	Detailed Cloud Audit Logs.

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5. Outputs

Returned on a successful deployment — the quickest way to locate and explore the running resources.

Output	Description
service_name	Cloud Run service name.
service_url	Default run.app URL of the service.
service_location	Region the service runs in.
stage_services	Stage-specific service names (Cloud Deploy).
load_balancer_ip / load_balancer_url	External HTTPS load balancer IP / URL (when enabled).
database_instance_name	Cloud SQL instance name.
database_name / database_user	Application database name / user (tenant-prefixed).
database_password_secret	Secret Manager secret holding the DB password.
database_host / database_port	DB endpoint / port.
storage_buckets	Created Cloud Storage buckets (includes the /media bucket).
network_name / network_exists / regions	VPC network, presence, regions.
container_image / container_registry	Deployed image and Artifact Registry repo.
monitoring_enabled / monitoring_notification_channels / uptime_check_names	Monitoring status, channels, uptime checks.
initialization_jobs	Names of the setup jobs (db-init).
deployment_id / tenant_id / resource_prefix	Naming identifiers.
project_id / project_number	Project identifiers.
cicd_enabled / cicd_configuration / github_repository_*	CI/CD status and details.
artifact_registry_repository / cloudbuild_trigger_name / cloudbuild_trigger_id	Registry and build trigger.
vpc_sc_enabled / vpc_sc_perimeter_name / vpc_sc_dry_run_mode	VPC-SC status.
audit_logging_enabled / artifact_registry_cmek_enabled	Audit logging and CMEK status.

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6. Configuration Pitfalls & Sensible Defaults

Risk: Critical (data loss / outage / security) — High (service degraded) — Medium (cost or partial degradation) — Low (minor).

Inherited plan-time validation. This module passes its configuration through the App_CloudRun foundation engine, which validates values and combinations at plan time — invalid configuration fails the plan with a clear, named error before any resource is created, so most mistakes below are caught up front rather than at apply or runtime.

Setting	Sensible value	Risk	Consequence if wrong
AUTHENTIK_SECRET_KEY (auto-generated)	Never rotate	Critical	Rotating it invalidates all active sessions and makes encrypted fields (stored credentials, tokens) unreadable.
database_type	POSTGRES_15	Critical	MySQL is blocked by validation — authentik requires PostgreSQL ≥ 14.
db_name / db_user	Set once	Critical	Immutable after first deploy; renaming recreates the DB/user and destroys all identity data.
Worker listen ports (entrypoint-managed)	Leave the entrypoint's AUTHENTIK_LISTEN__* loopback defaults	Critical	The co-located ak worker also starts an HTTP listener and inherits the server's default 0.0.0.0:9000; if it wins the bind race it answers every route — health endpoints included — with empty 200s: a blank UI with phantom-healthy probes. The entrypoint pins the worker to loopback ports (127.0.0.1:9001/9444/9301) so the server owns :9000 — a 200 with an empty body means the wrong process answered.
min_instance_count	1 (with always-on CPU)	High	0 lets the instance scale away: outpost WebSockets disconnect, and background tasks (scheduled jobs, outpost sync) are delayed until the next request wakes an instance.
cpu_always_allocated	true	High	Request-based billing throttles the co-located worker between requests — the task queue stalls even at min=1.
startup_probe.path	/-/health/ready/ (unauthenticated)	Medium	Pointing the probe at an authenticated page returns 401/403 to the prober — the revision never becomes ready even though authentik booted fine.
bootstrap_password / bootstrap_email	Set before first deploy	Medium	Applied on the first boot only. Changing them later has no effect — manage akadmin in-app, or use /if/flow/initial-setup/ if bootstrap vars were absent on first boot.
application_version	Pin a release	Medium	latest is silently pinned to 2026.5.4; an explicit pin makes upgrades deliberate. Nonexistent tags fail the Cloud Build with MANIFEST_UNKNOWN.
memory_limit	2Gi	Medium	Server + worker share the limit; lower values risk OOM during migrations or flow imports.
environment_variables → AUTHENTIK_POSTGRESQL__*	Leave unset	Medium	The entrypoint maps the injected DB_* values; hardcoding short DB names authenticates as a non-existent role (names are tenant-prefixed).
LDAP/RADIUS outposts	Not on Cloud Run	Low	Non-HTTP listeners can't be served by Cloud Run — use the GKE variant or an external host for those outposts.
enable_iap	false	Medium	IAP double-gates every login and breaks OAuth/SAML callbacks from external parties.

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For the foundation behaviour referenced throughout — service identity, scaling and concurrency, ingress and load balancing, CI/CD, Cloud Armor, IAP, Binary Authorization, VPC-SC, backups, and image mirroring — see App_CloudRun. authentik-specific application configuration shared with the GKE variant is described in Authentik_Common.