Build Log - Edge Firewall, Proxy, and Privacy Setup

Summary

  • Projects: paulwilliams.io, Edge Firewall
  • Theme: Infra hardening, caching, and privacy
  • Highlights:
    • Synced TikTok handle branding across paulwilliams.io.
    • Upgraded and secured Edge firewall with Wireguard and new configs.
    • Deployed DigitalOcean Edge Proxy VPS with security best practices.
    • Added advanced caching via Nginx for static content performance.
    • Integrated Umami analytics and published Privacy & Cookies Policy.

Timeline & Work Log

🕘 9:00 AM — Brand Alignment

  • Updated TikTok username reference to match new handle.
  • Synced footer and metadata links on paulwilliams.io for consistency.

🕥 10:45 AM — Edge Firewall Upgrade

  • Backed up existing firewall configuration.
  • Installed required OS and package updates.
  • Set up Wireguard (network security enhancements and monitoring).
  • Verified ruleset post-upgrade.

🕛 12:00 PM — DigitalOcean Edge Proxy

  • Created a new VPS on DigitalOcean for proxy and caching layer.
  • Updated packages and rebooted: 
    sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo reboot

Notes

# Basic VPS hardening
adduser yourname
usermod -aG sudo yourname
rsync --archive --chown=yourname:yourname ~/.ssh /home/yourname
ufw allow OpenSSH
ufw allow 'Nginx Full'
ufw enable


# Proxy cache check
sudo systemctl reload nginx
curl -I https://paulwilliams.io | grep HIT

Next Up

  • Add uptime monitor for edge proxy (healthchecks.io or self-hosted)

  • Check Cloudflare ruleset for DDoS and rate limiting

  • Optimize Umami dashboard filters for TikTok traffic attribution

  • Publish mini write-up: “Why I built my own edge proxy instead of using Cloudflare Pages”