Webtrees is a free open source web application that allows you to publish your genealogy online, collaborate with family members and take control of your data. It works from standard GEDCOM files, and is therefore compatible with every major desktop application; and it aims to be efficient and effective by using the right combination of third-party tools, design techniques and open standards. In this step by step guide I will show you how to install Webtrees on your Synology NAS using Docker and Portainer.

💡Note: This guide works perfectly with the latest Webtrees v2.1.20 release.

• STEP 1

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• STEP 2

Install Portainer using my step by step guide. If you already have Portainer installed on your Synology NAS, skip this STEP. Attention: Make sure you have installed the latest Portainer version.

• STEP 3

Make sure you have a synology.me Wildcard Certificate. Follow my guide to get a Wildcard Certificate. If you already have a synology.me Wildcard certificate, skip this STEP.

• STEP 4

Go to Control Panel / Login Portal / Advanced Tab / click Reverse Proxy. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 5

Now click the “Create” button. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 6

After you click the Create button, the window below will open. Follow the instructions in the image below.

On the General area, set the Reverse Proxy Name description: type in Webtrees. After that, add the following instructions:

Source:
Protocol: HTTPS
Hostname: webtrees.yourname.synology.me
Port: 443

Check Enable HSTS

Destination:
Protocol: HTTP
Hostname: localhost
Port: 5495

• STEP 7

On the Reverse Proxy Rules click the Custom Header tab. Click Create and then, from the drop-down menu, click WebSocket. After you click on WebSocket, two Header Names and two Values will be automatically added. Click Save. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 8

Go to Control Panel / Login Portal / Advanced Tab / click Reverse Proxy. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 9

Go to Control Panel / Security / Advanced tab/ Check Enable HTTP Compression then click Apply. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 10

Go to File Station and open the docker folder. Inside the docker folder, create one new folder and name it webtrees. Follow the instructions in the image below.
Note: Be careful to enter only lowercase, not uppercase letters.

• STEP 11

Now create two new folders inside the webtrees folder that you created at STEP 10 and name them data and db. Follow the instructions in the image below.
Note: Be careful to enter only lowercase, not uppercase letters.

• STEP 12

Right click on the webtrees folder that you have previously created at STEP 10 then click Properties. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 13

Go to the Permission tab then click Advanced options. From the drop-down menu choose “Make inherited permissions explicit“. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 14

Select Everyone then click the Edit tab. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 15

Check all Read and Write Permissions. Click Done. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 16

After you click Done on STEP 15, check “Apply to this folder, sub-folders and files“. Click Save. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 17

Log into Portainer using your username and password. On the left sidebar in Portainer, click on Stacks then + Add stack. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 18

In the Name field type in webtrees. Follow the instructions in the image below.

Note: Copy Paste the code below in the Portainer Stacks Web editor.

version: "3.9"
services:
  db:
    image: postgres:16
    container_name: Webtrees-DB
    hostname: db
    mem_limit: 1g
    cpu_shares: 768
    security_opt:
      - no-new-privileges:true
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "pg_isready", "-q", "-d", "webtrees", "-U", "webtreesuser"]
      timeout: 45s
      interval: 10s
      retries: 10
    volumes:
      - /volume1/docker/webtrees/db:/var/lib/postgresql/data:rw
    environment:
      POSTGRES_DB: webtrees
      POSTGRES_USER: webtreesuser
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: webtreespass
    restart: on-failure:5

  webtrees:
    image: ghcr.io/nathanvaughn/webtrees:latest
    container_name: Webtrees
    hostname: webtrees
    security_opt:
      - no-new-privileges:true
    ports:
      - 5495:80
    volumes:
      - /volume1/docker/webtrees/data:/var/www/webtrees/data:rw
    environment:
       TZ: Europe/Bucharest
       BASE_URL: https://webtrees.yourname.synology.me # Set to the correct url to allow usage of Pretty URLS
       PRETTY_URLS: TRUE
       WT_USER: marius
       WT_PASS: mariushosting
       WT_NAME: Lixandru Marius Bogdan
       WT_EMAIL: yourown@email
       PHP_MEMORY_LIMIT: 8192M
       PHP_MAX_EXECUTION_TIME: 3600
       PHP_POST_MAX_SIZE: 512M
       PHP_UPLOAD_MAX_FILE_SIZE: 512M
       DB_HOST: db
       DB_PORT: 5432
       POSTGRES_USER: webtreesuser
       POSTGRES_PASSWORD: webtreespass
       DB_TYPE: pgsql
       DB_PREFIX: wt_
       POSTGRES_DB: webtrees
       HTTPS_REDIRECT: False
       HTTPS: False
    restart: on-failure:5

Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for TZ. (Select your current Time Zone from this list.)
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for BASE_URL and type in your own synology.me DDNS that you have previously created at STEP 6 with https:// at the beginning.
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for WT_USER. Type in your own username. marius is an example for a username. You will need this username later at STEP 22.
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for WT_PASS. Type in your own password. mariushosting is an example for a password. You will need this password later at STEP 22.
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for WT_NAME. Type in your Full Name.
Note: Before you paste the code above in the Web editor area below, change the value for WT_EMAIL. Type in your own Email Address.

• STEP 19

Scroll down on the page until you see a button named Deploy the stack. Click on it. Follow the instructions in the image below. The installation process can take up to a few minutes. It will depend on your Internet speed connection.

⌛Now just wait because the Webtrees images are about 1.1GB.

• STEP 20

If everything goes right, you will see the following message at the top right of your screen: “Success Stack successfully deployed“.

• STEP 21

Go back to STEP 1 or you will deal with karma 🙂.

• STEP 22

Now open your browser and type in your HTTPS/SSL certificate like this https://webtrees.yourname.synology.me that you have previously created at STEP 6. In my case it’s https://webtrees.mariushosting.synology.me If everything goes right, you will see the Webtrees Sign In page. Type in your own Username (WT_USER) and Password (WT_PASS) that you have previously created at STEP 18, then click Sign In. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 23

Type in your Family tree title and URL slug, then click Create. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 24

Your Webtrees dashboard at a glance! Click the My page tab. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 25

Click Control Panel. Follow the instructions in the image below.

• STEP 26

Your Webtrees Control Panel at a glance!

• STEP 27

Check out how to Enable Email Notifications on Webtrees.

Enjoy Webtrees!

🆘TROUBLESHOOTING

If you encounter issues by using this container, make sure to check out the Common Docker issues article.

Note: Find out how to update the Webtrees container with the latest image.
Note: How to Back Up Docker Containers on your Synology NAS.
Note: Can I run Docker on my Synology NAS? See the supported models.
Note: How to Free Disk Space on Your NAS if You Run Docker.
Note: How to Schedule Start & Stop For Docker Containers.
Note: How to Activate Email Notifications.
Note: How to Add Access Control Profile on Your NAS.
Note: How to Change Docker Containers Restart Policy.
Note: How to Use Docker Containers With VPN.
Note: Convert Docker Run Into Docker Compose.
Note: How to Clean Docker.
Note: How to Clean Docker Automatically.
Note: Best Practices When Using Docker and DDNS.
Note: Some Docker Containers Need WebSocket.
Note: Find out the Best NAS Models For Docker.
Note: Activate Gmail SMTP For Docker Containers.