patterns/docs/getting-started.md

Getting Started

This guide will help you get up and running with Patterns WAF configurations for your web server.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+ (if building from source)
• pip (Python package installer)
• git (for cloning the repository)

Installation Options

Option 1: Download Pre-Generated Configurations

The easiest way to get started is to download pre-built configurations:

1. Go to the Releases page
2. Download the ZIP file for your web server:
   • nginx_waf.zip - Nginx configurations
   • apache_waf.zip - Apache ModSecurity rules
   • traefik_waf.zip - Traefik middleware
   • haproxy_waf.zip - HAProxy ACL files
3. Extract and integrate into your server configuration

Option 2: Build from Source

If you prefer to generate the configurations yourself:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/fabriziosalmi/patterns.git
cd patterns

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Fetch latest OWASP rules
python owasp2json.py

# Generate configurations for your platform
python json2nginx.py    # For Nginx
python json2apache.py   # For Apache
python json2traefik.py  # For Traefik
python json2haproxy.py  # For HAProxy

# Generate bad bot blockers
python badbots.py

Configuration Files

After running the scripts, you'll find the generated files in the waf_patterns/ directory:

waf_patterns/
├── nginx/          # Nginx WAF configs
├── apache/         # Apache ModSecurity rules
├── traefik/        # Traefik middleware configs
└── haproxy/        # HAProxy ACL files

Next Steps

Choose your web server to learn how to integrate the WAF configurations:

• Nginx Integration
• Apache Integration
• Traefik Integration
• HAProxy Integration

Automatic Updates

The repository includes a GitHub Actions workflow that:

• Fetches the latest OWASP CRS rules daily
• Regenerates all WAF configurations
• Creates a new release with updated files

To get the latest rules, simply download from the Releases page or pull the latest changes if you cloned the repository.