Answer image requests with 503 in maintenance mode (closes #71)

maintenance_mode was only reported by the health check; every request
was still served. One middleware in routes.go, applied to /v1/image/
and /v1/e/ only, now answers them with 503, a Retry-After of
MaintenanceRetryAfterSeconds and the JSON error body while it is on.
It calls Server.MaintenanceMode(), which had no caller.

The health check stays 200 and reports maintenance_mode: the image's
Docker HEALTHCHECK requests it, a 503 there would make the container
unhealthy, and upaas marks a deploy failed when its container is
unhealthy. The login and URL generator pages and /metrics keep working.
Documented in README.md and config.example.yml.

Model: opus-5-5

README.md

@@ -239,7 +239,7 @@ variables set by the file's `env:` section are checked the same way.
 | `PIXA_METRICS_PASSWORD`              | `metrics.password`              | Password for `/metrics`; set together with the username                      |
 | `PIXA_SENTRY_DSN`                    | `sentry_dsn`                    | Sentry DSN for error reporting; empty disables it                            |
 | `PIXA_DEBUG`                         | `debug`                         | Debug logging and plain-HTTP local development; default `false`              |
-| `PIXA_MAINTENANCE_MODE`              | `maintenance_mode`              | Maintenance flag reported by the health check; default `false`               |
+| `PIXA_MAINTENANCE_MODE`              | `maintenance_mode`              | Answer image requests with 503; the health check stays 200; default `false`  |
 
 Key settings in more detail:
 
@@ -276,6 +276,13 @@ Key settings in more detail:
 - `cache_max_bytes` — disk cache size limit in bytes; `0` disables the
   disk cache entirely; omitted defaults to 75% of the free space on
   the filesystem containing `<state_dir>/cache/` (minimum 500 MiB)
+- `maintenance_mode` — while `true`, the image routes (`/v1/image/` and
+  `/v1/e/`) answer every request with 503, a `Retry-After` header and a JSON
+  error body. The health check (`/.well-known/healthcheck.json`) still answers
+  200 and reports `"maintenance_mode": true`. It stays 200 because the image's
+  Docker `HEALTHCHECK` requests it: a 503 there would make the container
+  unhealthy, and upaas marks a deploy failed when its container is unhealthy.
+  The login and URL generator pages and `/metrics` keep working
 
 See `config.example.yml` for all options with defaults.
 

TODO.md

@@ -30,6 +30,14 @@ exhaustion
 
 # Completed Steps
 
+- 2026-09-29 maintenance mode refuses image requests (closes #71): while
+  `maintenance_mode` is on, `/v1/image/` and `/v1/e/` answer 503 with a
+  `Retry-After` header and the JSON error body, from one middleware in
+  `internal/server/routes.go`; the health check stays 200 and reports
+  `maintenance_mode`, as the image's Docker `HEALTHCHECK` requests it and upaas
+  marks a deploy failed when its container is unhealthy; the login and URL
+  generator pages and `/metrics` keep working; documented in `README.md` and
+  `config.example.yml`.
 - 2026-09-29 `trusted_proxies` advice and signature padding in `README.md`
   (closes #150): the login-limit paragraph, the `trusted_proxies` entry and
   `config.example.yml` say to set `trusted_proxies` to the address pixa sees for

config.example.yml

@@ -12,6 +12,12 @@
 # Server settings
 port: 8080
 debug: false
+
+# While true, the image routes (/v1/image/ and /v1/e/) answer every request
+# with 503 and a Retry-After header. The health check keeps answering 200 and
+# reports maintenance_mode as true. It stays 200 because the image's Docker
+# HEALTHCHECK requests it: a 503 there would make the container unhealthy, and
+# upaas marks a deploy failed when its container is unhealthy.
 maintenance_mode: false
 
 # Data directory for SQLite database and cache files

internal/server/login_rate_limit_internal_test.go

@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ import (
 	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/database"
 	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/globals"
 	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/handlers"
+	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/healthcheck"
 	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/logger"
 	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/middleware"
 )
@@ -70,8 +71,15 @@ func newTestServer(t *testing.T) *Server {
 		t.Fatalf("database.New() error = %v", err)
 	}
 
+	hc, err := healthcheck.New(lc, healthcheck.Params{
+		Globals: &globals.Globals{}, Config: cfg, Logger: log, Database: db,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("healthcheck.New() error = %v", err)
+	}
+
 	h, err := handlers.New(lc, handlers.Params{
-		Logger: log, Database: db, Config: cfg,
+		Logger: log, Healthcheck: hc, Database: db, Config: cfg,
 	})
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("handlers.New() error = %v", err)

internal/server/maintenance_internal_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"strconv"
+	"testing"
+
+	"sneak.berlin/go/pixa/internal/healthcheck"
+)
+
+// unsignedImagePath is an image URL that carries no signature.
+const unsignedImagePath = "/v1/image/cdn.example.com/cat.jpg/100x100.jpeg"
+
+// TestMaintenanceModeRefusesImageRequests verifies that while maintenance
+// mode is on, both image routes answer 503 Service Unavailable with a
+// Retry-After header and the JSON error body the image handlers send.
+func TestMaintenanceModeRefusesImageRequests(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	s := newTestServer(t)
+	s.config.MaintenanceMode = true
+
+	requests := []struct {
+		method string
+		path   string
+	}{
+		{http.MethodGet, unsignedImagePath},
+		{http.MethodHead, unsignedImagePath},
+		{http.MethodGet, "/v1/e/token/cat.jpg"},
+	}
+
+	for _, tc := range requests {
+		t.Run(tc.method+" "+tc.path, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+			s.ServeHTTP(rec, httptest.NewRequestWithContext(
+				t.Context(), tc.method, tc.path, nil))
+			t.Logf("status %d, body %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+
+			if rec.Code != http.StatusServiceUnavailable {
+				t.Fatalf("status = %d, want %d",
+					rec.Code, http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+			}
+
+			retryAfter := rec.Header().Get("Retry-After")
+
+			seconds, err := strconv.Atoi(retryAfter)
+			if err != nil || seconds <= 0 {
+				t.Errorf("Retry-After = %q, want a positive number of seconds",
+					retryAfter)
+			}
+
+			// A HEAD response carries no body.
+			if tc.method == http.MethodHead {
+				return
+			}
+
+			var body struct {
+				Error     string `json:"error"`
+				Status    int    `json:"status"`
+				Timestamp string `json:"timestamp"`
+			}
+
+			err = json.NewDecoder(rec.Body).Decode(&body)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("body is not JSON: %v", err)
+			}
+
+			if body.Error == "" || body.Status != http.StatusServiceUnavailable ||
+				body.Timestamp == "" {
+				t.Errorf("body = %+v, want an error, status %d and a timestamp",
+					body, http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// TestImageRequestsServedWithoutMaintenanceMode verifies that while
+// maintenance mode is off, image requests reach the image handlers instead
+// of the 503. The handlers refuse an unsigned image URL with 401 and a token
+// they cannot decrypt with 400, so either status shows a request got through.
+func TestImageRequestsServedWithoutMaintenanceMode(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	s := newTestServer(t)
+	s.config.MaintenanceMode = false
+
+	requests := []struct {
+		method string
+		path   string
+		want   int
+	}{
+		{http.MethodGet, unsignedImagePath, http.StatusUnauthorized},
+		{http.MethodHead, unsignedImagePath, http.StatusUnauthorized},
+		{http.MethodGet, "/v1/e/token/cat.jpg", http.StatusBadRequest},
+	}
+
+	for _, tc := range requests {
+		t.Run(tc.method+" "+tc.path, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+			s.ServeHTTP(rec, httptest.NewRequestWithContext(
+				t.Context(), tc.method, tc.path, nil))
+			t.Logf("status %d, body %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+
+			if rec.Code != tc.want {
+				t.Errorf("status = %d, want %d from the image handler",
+					rec.Code, tc.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// TestMaintenanceModeKeepsOtherRoutes verifies that while maintenance mode
+// is on, the health check still answers 200 and reports it, and the login
+// page and /metrics still answer 200. The image's Docker HEALTHCHECK
+// requests the health check: a 503 there would make the container
+// unhealthy, and upaas marks a deploy failed when its container is
+// unhealthy.
+func TestMaintenanceModeKeepsOtherRoutes(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	s := newTestServer(t)
+	s.config.MaintenanceMode = true
+
+	// /metrics is routed only when its username is set.
+	s.config.MetricsUsername = "metrics"
+	s.config.MetricsPassword = "metrics-password"
+	s.SetupRoutes()
+
+	rec := httptest.NewRecorder()
+	s.ServeHTTP(rec, httptest.NewRequestWithContext(t.Context(),
+		http.MethodGet, "/.well-known/healthcheck.json", nil))
+	t.Logf("health check status %d, body %s", rec.Code, rec.Body.String())
+
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("health check status = %d, want %d", rec.Code, http.StatusOK)
+	}
+
+	var health healthcheck.Response
+
+	err := json.NewDecoder(rec.Body).Decode(&health)
+	if err != nil || !health.Maintenance {
+		t.Errorf("health check maintenance_mode = %v (error %v), want true",
+			health.Maintenance, err)
+	}
+
+	rec = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	s.ServeHTTP(rec, clientRequest(t, http.MethodGet, nil, firstClient, ""))
+
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Errorf("login page status = %d, want %d", rec.Code, http.StatusOK)
+	}
+
+	req := httptest.NewRequestWithContext(t.Context(),
+		http.MethodGet, "/metrics", nil)
+	req.SetBasicAuth(s.config.MetricsUsername, s.config.MetricsPassword)
+
+	rec = httptest.NewRecorder()
+	s.ServeHTTP(rec, req)
+
+	if rec.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Errorf("/metrics status = %d, want %d", rec.Code, http.StatusOK)
+	}
+}

internal/server/routes.go

@@ -1,7 +1,9 @@
 package server
 
 import (
+	"encoding/json"
 	"net/http"
+	"strconv"
 	"time"
 
 	sentryhttp "github.com/getsentry/sentry-go/http"
@@ -17,6 +19,10 @@ import (
 // make per minute; the next is refused with 429 Too Many Requests.
 const LoginAttemptsPerMinute = 5
 
+// MaintenanceRetryAfterSeconds is the Retry-After, in seconds, sent with
+// the 503 that the image routes answer while maintenance mode is on.
+const MaintenanceRetryAfterSeconds = 300
+
 // SetupRoutes configures all HTTP routes.
 func (s *Server) SetupRoutes() {
 	s.router = chi.NewRouter()
@@ -68,15 +74,23 @@ func (s *Server) SetupRoutes() {
 
 	s.router.Get("/logout", s.h.HandleLogout())
 
+	// Image routes, refused while maintenance mode is on. Only these: the
+	// image's Docker HEALTHCHECK requests the health check, a 503 there
+	// would make the container unhealthy, and upaas marks a deploy failed
+	// when its container is unhealthy.
+	s.router.Group(func(r chi.Router) {
+		r.Use(s.refuseDuringMaintenance)
+
 		// Main image proxy route
 		// /v1/image/<host>/<path>/<width>x<height>.<format>
-	s.router.Get("/v1/image/*", s.h.HandleImage())
+		r.Get("/v1/image/*", s.h.HandleImage())
-	s.router.Head("/v1/image/*", s.h.HandleImage())
+		r.Head("/v1/image/*", s.h.HandleImage())
 
 		// Encrypted image URL route
 		// The trailing filename (e.g., /img.jpg) is ignored but helps
 		// browsers with content type
-	s.router.Get("/v1/e/{token}/*", s.h.HandleImageEnc())
+		r.Get("/v1/e/{token}/*", s.h.HandleImageEnc())
+	})
 
 	// Metrics endpoint with auth
 	if s.config.MetricsUsername != "" {
@@ -86,3 +100,30 @@ func (s *Server) SetupRoutes() {
 		})
 	}
 }
+
+// refuseDuringMaintenance answers a request with 503 Service Unavailable,
+// a Retry-After header and a JSON error body while maintenance mode is on,
+// and passes it on otherwise. The body has the fields of the JSON errors
+// the image handlers send.
+func (s *Server) refuseDuringMaintenance(next http.Handler) http.Handler {
+	return http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		if !s.MaintenanceMode() {
+			next.ServeHTTP(w, r)
+
+			return
+		}
+
+		w.Header().Set("Retry-After", strconv.Itoa(MaintenanceRetryAfterSeconds))
+		w.Header().Set("Content-Type", "application/json")
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusServiceUnavailable)
+
+		err := json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(map[string]any{
+			"error":     "down for maintenance, try again later",
+			"status":    http.StatusServiceUnavailable,
+			"timestamp": time.Now().UTC().Format(time.RFC3339),
+		})
+		if err != nil {
+			s.log.Error("json encode error", "error", err)
+		}
+	})
+}