Set up App and API Protection for Python in Docker
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You can enable App and API Protection for Python services with the following setup options:
- If your Python service already has APM tracing set up and running, then skip to service configuration
- If your Python service doesn't have APM tracing set up, you can easily enable App and API Protection with Datadog's Automatic Installation
- Otherwise, keep reading the following manual setup instructions
Overview
App and API Protection leverages the Datadog Python library to monitor and secure your Python service. The library integrates seamlessly with your existing application without requiring code changes.
For detailed compatibility information, including supported Python versions, frameworks, and deployment environments, see Python Compatibility Requirements.
This guide explains how to set up App and API Protection (AAP) for Python applications. The setup involves:
- Installing the Datadog Agent
- Enabling App and API Protection monitoring
- Running your Python application with the Datadog Agent
- Verifying the setup
Prerequisites
- Docker installed on your host
- Python application containerized with Docker
- Your Datadog API key
- Datadog Python tracing library (see version requirements)
1. Installing the Datadog Agent
Install the Datadog Agent by following the setup instructions for Docker.
2. Enabling App and API Protection monitoring
Automatically enabling App and API Protection through Remote Configuration
You can enable remote configuration on your services dashboard.
Simply check the box for the service you want to enable App and API Protection for under "Activate on your APM services".
Manually enabling App and API Protection monitoring
Add the following environment variables to your Dockerfile:
# Install the Datadog Python tracing library
RUN pip install ddtrace
# Set environment variables
ENV DD_APPSEC_ENABLED=true
ENV DD_SERVICE=<YOUR_SERVICE_NAME>
ENV DD_ENV=<YOUR_ENVIRONMENT>
# Use ddtrace-run to start your application
CMD ["ddtrace-run", "python", "app.py"]
To disable APM tracing while keeping App and API Protection enabled, you must set the APM tracing variable to false.
Add the following environment variables to your Dockerfile:
# Install the Datadog Python tracing library
RUN pip install ddtrace
# Set environment variables
ENV DD_APPSEC_ENABLED=true
ENV DD_APM_TRACING_ENABLED=false
ENV DD_SERVICE=<YOUR_SERVICE_NAME>
ENV DD_ENV=<YOUR_ENVIRONMENT>
# Use ddtrace-run to start your application
CMD ["ddtrace-run", "python", "app.py"]
3. Run your application
Build your image and then run your container.
When running your container, ensure you do the following:
- Connect the container to the same Docker network as the Datadog Agent.
- Set the required environment variables.
docker run -d \
--name your-python-app \
your-python-app-image
4. Verify setup
To verify that App and API Protection is working correctly:
- Send some traffic to your application.
- Check for security signals and vulnerabilities in the Application Signals Explorer in Datadog.
Troubleshooting
If you encounter issues while setting up App and API Protection for your Python application, see the Python App and API Protection troubleshooting guide.
Further Reading
Additional helpful documentation, links, and articles:
