Learn how to install mod_remoteip and log your visitor’s original IP address at your Apache origin server.

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Overview

Cloudflare no longer updates and supports mod_cloudflare. However, if you are using an Apache web server with an operating system such as Ubuntu Server 18.04 and Debian 9 Stretch, you can use mod_remoteip to log your visitor’s original IP address.

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Installing mod_remoteip

As this module was created by an outside party, we can't provide technical support for issues related to the plugin.

To install mod_remoteip on your Apache web server:

1. Enable mod_remoteip by issuing the following command:

sudo a2enmod remoteip

2. Update the site configuration to include RemoteIPHeader CF-Connecting-IP, e.g. /etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf

ServerAdmin [email protected]
DocumentRoot /var/www/html
ServerName remoteip.andy.support
RemoteIPHeader CF-Connecting-IP
ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined

3. Update combined LogFormat entry in apache.conf, replacing %h with %a in /etc/apache2/apache2.conf. For example, if your current LogFormat appeared as follows:

LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %O \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\"" combined

you would update LogFormat to the following:

LogFormat "%a %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %O \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\"" combined

4. Define trusted proxy addresses by creating /etc/apache2/conf-available/remoteip.conf by entering the following code and Cloudflare IPs:

RemoteIPHeader CF-Connecting-IP
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 173.245.48.0/20
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 103.21.244.0/22
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 103.22.200.0/22
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 103.31.4.0/22
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 141.101.64.0/18
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 108.162.192.0/18
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 190.93.240.0/20
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 188.114.96.0/20
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 197.234.240.0/22
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 198.41.128.0/17
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 162.158.0.0/15
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 104.16.0.0/12
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 172.64.0.0/13
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 131.0.72.0/22
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2400:cb00::/32
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2606:4700::/32
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2803:f800::/32
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2405:b500::/32
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2405:8100::/32
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2a06:98c0::/29
RemoteIPTrustedProxy 2c0f:f248::/32

5. Test Apache configuration:

sudo apache2ctl configtest
Syntax OK

6. Restart Apache:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

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FAQs

• Apache won't pass CF-Connecting-IP down the stack. For example, phpinfo will not return this header at all whilst our edge will send it to Apache: type: embedded-entry-inline id: 6lULLteG7NLt9IOsoyBkYo

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Related Resources

• mod_remoteip Apache documentation
• Restoring original visitor IPs - Option 1: Installing mod_cloudflare
• Restoring original visitor IPs - Logging visitor IP addresses with mod_cloudflare
• Cloudflare IPs