Tyk API Gateway

Key Features

• JSON-based API definition system allowing version-controlled API configurations stored in the apps directory
• Built-in authentication methods including JWT, OAuth 2.0, basic auth, and custom middleware plugins
• Advanced rate limiting with Redis-backed counters supporting per-key, per-API, and global rate limits
• Real-time analytics collection with Redis buffering for API usage metrics and performance monitoring
• Request/response transformation using JavaScript middleware and Go plugins for custom business logic
• Quota management with automatic reset cycles and overage handling backed by Redis persistence
• Circuit breaker functionality to protect upstream services from cascading failures
• URL rewriting and path-based routing for legacy API modernization and service mesh integration

Common Use Cases

• 1Microservices API orchestration for organizations decomposing monolithic applications into distributed services
• 2SaaS platform API monetization with usage-based billing requiring accurate quota tracking and enforcement
• 3Mobile application backend protection with device-specific rate limiting and authentication token management
• 4Third-party API integration hub consolidating multiple external services behind a single managed endpoint
• 5Development environment API mocking and staging with different rate limits and authentication rules per environment
• 6Legacy system modernization providing REST APIs over SOAP services with transformation middleware
• 7Multi-tenant application API isolation ensuring resource limits and security boundaries between customers

Prerequisites

• Minimum 512MB RAM for Redis data storage and 1GB for Tyk Gateway under moderate load
• Port 8080 available for Tyk Gateway API traffic and Redis port 6379 accessible within Docker network
• Understanding of JSON structure for creating API definition files in the apps directory
• Basic knowledge of HTTP authentication schemes and rate limiting concepts for policy configuration
• Familiarity with reverse proxy concepts and upstream service connectivity requirements
• Docker host with at least 2GB available memory for optimal performance under concurrent API requests

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  tyk-redis: 
3    image: redis:alpine
4    container_name: tyk-redis
5    restart: unless-stopped
6    networks: 
7      - tyk-network
8
9  tyk-gateway: 
10    image: tykio/tyk-gateway:latest
11    container_name: tyk-gateway
12    restart: unless-stopped
13    environment: 
14      TYK_GW_SECRET: ${TYK_SECRET}
15    volumes: 
16      - ./tyk/tyk.conf:/opt/tyk-gateway/tyk.conf:ro
17      - ./tyk/apps:/opt/tyk-gateway/apps
18    ports: 
19      - "8080:8080"
20    depends_on: 
21      - tyk-redis
22    networks: 
23      - tyk-network
24
25networks: 
26  tyk-network: 
27    driver: bridge

.env Template

1TYK_SECRET=changeme-secret-key

Usage Notes

Individual Services(2 services)

Copy individual services to mix and match with your existing compose files.

tyk-redis:
  image: redis:alpine
  container_name: tyk-redis
  restart: unless-stopped
  networks:
    - tyk-network

tyk-gateway:
  image: tykio/tyk-gateway:latest
  container_name: tyk-gateway
  restart: unless-stopped
  environment:
    TYK_GW_SECRET: ${TYK_SECRET}
  volumes:
    - ./tyk/tyk.conf:/opt/tyk-gateway/tyk.conf:ro
    - ./tyk/apps:/opt/tyk-gateway/apps
  ports:
    - "8080:8080"
  depends_on:
    - tyk-redis
  networks:
    - tyk-network

Quick Start

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  tyk-redis:
5    image: redis:alpine
6    container_name: tyk-redis
7    restart: unless-stopped
8    networks:
9      - tyk-network
10
11  tyk-gateway:
12    image: tykio/tyk-gateway:latest
13    container_name: tyk-gateway
14    restart: unless-stopped
15    environment:
16      TYK_GW_SECRET: ${TYK_SECRET}
17    volumes:
18      - ./tyk/tyk.conf:/opt/tyk-gateway/tyk.conf:ro
19      - ./tyk/apps:/opt/tyk-gateway/apps
20    ports:
21      - "8080:8080"
22    depends_on:
23      - tyk-redis
24    networks:
25      - tyk-network
26
27networks:
28  tyk-network:
29    driver: bridge
30EOF
31
32# 2. Create the .env file
33cat > .env << 'EOF'
34TYK_SECRET=changeme-secret-key
35EOF
36
37# 3. Start the services
38docker compose up -d
39
40# 4. View logs
41docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

Run this command to download and set up the recipe in one step:

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/tyk-gateway/run | bash

Troubleshooting