Docassemble on AWS: Secure, Scalable Hosting Setup for US Legal Teams

If you’re a US legal team using Docassemble, you already know the “magic” isn’t just the interview logic—it’s the confidence that everything runs reliably when real clients (and real deadlines) show up. A production-grade docassemble aws deployment is what turns a prototype into something your firm can trust: secure access, predictable performance, backups, and an upgrade path that won’t break your workflows.

Docassemble’s own docs recommend deploying with Docker (and note you can also use Docker Compose or Helm) for the simplest, most maintainable path.

And DocassembleDevelopment also emphasizes that legal-tech hosting needs encrypted storage, IAM access control, network isolation, backups, and operational policies—not just “get it running.”

Architecture options (choose what matches your stage)

Option A: Single EC2 + Docker (best starting point)

This is the most common “production MVP” approach:

• 1 EC2 instance
  
• Docker container for Docassemble
  
• Reverse proxy + TLS (typically via ALB or Nginx)
  
• Encrypted EBS + regular backups
  

Docassemble explicitly encourages Docker as the easiest way to deploy.

Option B: Docker Compose production (cleaner ops on one machine)

Docker Compose helps you manage configuration, volumes, and updates more predictably in production (and makes repeat deployments easier). Docker’s docs include guidance on running Compose in production.

Option C: Kubernetes + Helm (for multi-server scaling)

If you need high availability, multi-tenant patterns, or more advanced scaling, Docassemble supports Kubernetes/Helm paths; there’s also a Helm chart repository specifically for Docassemble. 

Security baseline for US legal teams (don’t skip this)

For legal workflows, security is the product. At a minimum:

• Network isolation (VPC, minimal inbound ports)
  
• Encryption at rest (EBS default encryption, S3 encryption if used)
  
• Least-privilege IAM
  
• Audit logs + access discipline
  
• Backups + restore testing
  

AWS Security Hub’s Foundational Security Best Practices include items like enabling EBS encryption and avoiding overly permissive security groups.
For containerized setups, AWS also publishes container security best practices (e.g., least privilege, scanning images, avoiding privileged containers).

Step-by-step: EC2-based docassemble aws deployment (secure + scalable-ready)

1) Provision the AWS foundation

Recommended starting layout

• VPC with public subnet (load balancer) + private subnet (EC2)
  
• Security group rules:
  
  • Allow 443 (HTTPS) from internet to ALB
    
  • Allow 80 only if redirecting to 443 at ALB
    
  • Allow SSH (22) only from your office/VPN IP (or use SSM)
    
  • EC2 should accept traffic only from ALB security group (not open to world)
    

2) Pick storage strategy

Docassemble uses local storage and a database under the hood. For a starter production setup:

• Use encrypted EBS for instance storage
  
• Add scheduled snapshots and retention rules
  

AWS’s foundational security guidance strongly emphasizes encryption and safe defaults around EC2/EBS.

3) Install Docker on EC2 and run Docassemble

Docassemble’s official Docker documentation is the best reference for the container approach.

A typical pattern is:

• Install Docker + Docker Compose
  
• Pull the official image
  
• Run it behind a reverse proxy

Production-friendly Docker Compose example

# docker-compose.yml
services:
  docassemble:
    image: jhpyle/docassemble:latest
    container_name: docassemble
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "127.0.0.1:8080:80"   # bind locally; reverse proxy handles public HTTPS
    volumes:
      - da_config:/usr/share/docassemble/config
      - da_data:/usr/share/docassemble/files
    environment:
      - TZ=America/New_York
      # Add other env vars you need, but avoid hardcoding secrets here.

volumes:
  da_config:
  da_data:

Reverse proxy (Nginx) for HTTPS termination

server {
  listen 443 ssl;
  server_name your-domain.com;

  ssl_certificate     /etc/ssl/certs/fullchain.pem;
  ssl_certificate_key /etc/ssl/private/privkey.pem;

  location / {
    proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8080;
    proxy_set_header Host $host;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
  }
}

Configuration hardening inside Docassemble

Docassemble’s configuration is managed via its YAML config, editable from the admin UI. Some changes may require a full restart.
For US legal teams, ensure:

• Admin access is restricted
  
• Email/notifications are correctly configured
  
• Log verbosity doesn’t leak sensitive data
  
• Strong password / SSO strategy (if applicable)
  

Scaling beyond one server (when traffic grows)

Docassemble has a dedicated scalability section that discusses Kubernetes/Helm and an AWS approach for multi-server arrangements.
The key scaling moves typically are:

1. Move stateful components out
   
   • External database (managed DB)
     
   • Shared storage (object storage) for uploads if needed
     
2. Add a load balancer
   
3. Run multiple app instances
   
4. Add caching/queue capacity if your workload needs it

If you’re aiming for Helm:

• The Docassemble Helm chart repository provides a starting point.
  (And Helm charts are the standard packaging approach for Kubernetes deployments.

Operational checklist (what keeps legal teams calm)

A “secure and scalable” docassemble aws deployment is mostly ops discipline:

• Backups: daily + tested restore
  
• Monitoring: CPU/memory, disk, container health
  
• Patch cadence: OS updates + container image updates
  
• Access control: least privilege + offboarding steps
  
• Incident readiness: who gets paged, what logs to check, rollback plan
  

AWS container security recommendations (least privilege, scanning, removing unnecessary privileges) apply directly if you ever move to ECS/EKS.

FAQs 

1) What’s the fastest production setup for a US legal team?

A single EC2 instance running Docassemble via Docker, behind HTTPS, with encrypted storage and automated backups is usually the fastest safe baseline.

2) Should we use Docker Compose?

If you’re running on one server, Docker Compose often makes deployments and updates more repeatable and less error-prone.

3) When do we need Kubernetes + Helm?

When you need multi-instance scaling, high availability, or more sophisticated release management. Docassemble supports Kubernetes/Helm paths.

4) What are the “must-have” AWS security controls?

Encrypt storage (EBS/S3 if used), restrict inbound access, apply least privilege IAM, and follow foundational security best practices like avoiding permissive security group rules.

5) How do we keep deployments compliant for legal data?

Use encryption, strict access control, audit logs, backups, and defined retention/policy procedures—DocassembleDevelopment also highlights these as core legal hosting requirements.

6) What’s the #1 mistake teams make?

Treating infrastructure as a checkbox. For real clients, hosting, backups, updates, and monitoring must be part of the product.