BASE_URL ignores path component

[nh2]

Bug report

I'm trying to set BASE_URL=https://example.com/plausible, so that the root of Plausible starts at /plausible.

However, it does not work: Plausible redirects to https://example.com/login, outside of the BASE_URL.

I believe this is because Plausible completely ignores the .path component of the parsed URI:

analytics/config/runtime.exs

Line 181 in 145a359

url: [host: base_url.host, scheme: base_url.scheme, port: base_url.port],

Expected behavior

Plausible should respect the path component of the BASE_URL, so that it can run under a path that is not the domain root.

In #177 it was mentioned that Plausible strips query parameters after ?, but nowhere is it mentioned that it strips the /path, so I assume that this is accidental.

[ukutaht]

Yes this does seem like a problem that stops Plausible from being used in a subdirectory as it stands. I think the fix is as easy as adding [path: base_url.path] to the config line but I'd have to test it.

[nuno-agostinho]

Hey @ukutaht, any news on this? I would love to set a custom root for plausible. Thanks! :)

[ukutaht]

No news but I've added it to my list for the next release. Expected in October or November

[daguitosama]

I i think it will be terrific to mention this in the getting started docs, it can save tons of time to know that when you get a 404 on BASE_URL and 500 on anything else, it's probable that you have used a path component in that URL, not anything else, you don't need to go mental with docker/proxy-server/os-platform-integration-issues theories of what is happening. And trust me, this issue can take time to be found 😅️

[ukutaht]

Hi, thanks for reporting. This should be fixed in https://github.com/plausible/analytics/releases/tag/v1.4.0-rc.0. Can someone test and confirm?

[nuno-agostinho]

Thanks @ukutaht, I know that feeling when a feature is much harder to implement than planned... Thank you for trying! 😄

[daguitosama]

Don't worry @ukutaht i appreciate you make the time to look it up, work it around is supper easy, just make a sub domain for it and you are all set, but I highly recommend give this heads up in the selfhosted/getting-started doc:
" [important]
Hey yooos do NOT USE a path based url for the BSAE_URL ok "
I can save a lot of time until people find this issue 🤣

[ukutaht]

Thanks @D4G0! I've added some notes here: plausible/docs@6f5780c

Feel free to open a PR if you have a better way to explain this limitation

[LuckyLuisHD]

Hi @ukutaht,

is this feature still planned to be released. We want to use plausible for a uni project and on our server we are not allowed to create subdomains. If Not is there maybe a workaround you can recommend?

Thanks in advance

[ruslandoga]

@LuckyLuisHD 👋

Here's one workaround I saw recently: #3561 (comment)

[dandaniel5]

@ukutaht what exectly should i add to what config ? .env or compose.yml ?

[dandaniel5]

@ukutaht pls tell me how am I supposed to use it if it can be hosted in the main domain directory?
Do I need to add it to my main server with a separate URL?
nginx

[ruslandoga]

Do I need to add it to my main server with a separate URL?

Yes. Please see https://github.com/plausible/community-edition/wiki/reverse-proxy for more information :)

[dandaniel5]

@ukutaht
it says use BASE_URL...
my NGINX is fine. but plausible use wrong redirects igoring BASE_URL, so ?

[ruslandoga]

So you must have configured it wrong :)

[dandaniel5]

@ukutaht
I need to use it on my main domain at a specific address, something like /plausible. I’ve set everything up correctly, including adding the WebSocket, /js/script.js, and /api/event.
But when Plausible does an internal redirect from page to page, it uses the wrong base URL inside.
pls ASAP someone qualified