flowsurface-server

A trade data collector for crypto markets, with an embedded database and a REST API.

• Connects to exchange WebSocket streams via flowsurface-exchange
• Persists trades to DuckDB
• Serves data via REST API, as JSON or Arrow IPC stream formats

It's a self-contained, portable server, designed to run on a small VPS for individual use; not for production or shared use.

Quick start

Prebuilt binaries

1. Get the latest release (linux-x86_64 or linux-aarch64).

2. Copy the config template:

   # in the extracted directory
   cp config.example.toml config.toml

3. Run:

   ./flowsurface-server

   Or with a custom config path:

   ./flowsurface-server --config /path/to/config.toml

Build from source

cargo build --release

cp config.example.toml config.toml

# run
cargo run --release

By default the server looks for config.toml in the project root when the executable path contains /target/; otherwise it looks next to the executable (deployed binary). Use --config /path/to/config.toml to override.

If config.toml doesn't exist, the server writes the default template to that path and exits (code 2). Edit the created file to suit your needs, then re-run.

Configuration

See config.example.toml for all available options with inline documentation.

[network]

Option	Default	Description
bind_address	127.0.0.1:8080	Listen address; non-loopback enables TLS + auth.
max_requests	500	Per-IP rate limit (req/10s); 0 = off.

[storage]

Option	Default	Description
data_dir	"data"	Directory for DB, auth token, and TLS certs.
max_storage_mb	4096	Hard cap on DB+WAL (MB); 0 = unlimited.
data_retention_hours	168	Purge trades older than this; 0 = keep all.
memory_limit_mb	0	DuckDB RAM cap; 0 = DuckDB default (80%).

Low-memory hosts: By default DuckDB is allowed to use 80% of your machine's RAM. On a small host, this can leave too little for the rest of the system, and queries can fail with an Out of Memory Error. For such cases, you better explicitly set memory_limit_mb to a lower value, such as 256 or 384 for 1 GB host, so that DuckDB can spill to disk instead of failing when it's at the cap.

[pairs]

Option	Default	Description
base_assets	[]	Bases combined with whitelist quotes to determine tracked pairs.
discovery_mode	true	Fetch metadata for all exchanges (populates /exchanges).

Whitelist templates

The whitelist defines which pairs to track per venue and market kind. See the [whitelist.*] sections in config.example.toml for the template. The server combines base_assets × quote_assets per market kind and resolves the correct exchange-specific ticker strings (handling separators, _PERP, -SWAP suffixes, etc.).

Wildcard: An empty string "" as a quote asset includes every ticker on that exchange whose base matches (e.g. linear = [""] would track all linear perpetuals with a matching base asset regardless of quote currency).

Pairs are only tracked when both base_assets and a matching whitelist entry are configured. If either is empty, no pairs are tracked. Use the /exchanges endpoint to browse available symbols before deciding which pairs to track.

Authentication

When binding to a non-loopback address, the server:

1. Generates a random 256-bit auth token on first boot and persists it as .auth_token inside the configured data_dir (see [storage]).
2. The token's first 4 characters are printed at startup.
3. Retrieve the full token at any time:

   # data_dir = "data"
   cat data/.auth_token

The token is reused across restarts. To set a specific token set the AUTH_TOKEN environment variable (via .env or the environment).

Remote deployment (VPS)

The server automatically enables HTTPS with a self-signed certificate when binding to a non-loopback address (e.g. 0.0.0.0:8080).

1. Set bind_address = "0.0.0.0:8080" in config.toml
2. Start the server, it generates (inside the configured data_dir, see [storage]):
   • cert.pem + key.pem (self-signed TLS cert/key pair)
   • .auth_token (random 256-bit token, unless already set)
3. Clients connect via https://vps-ip:8080 using the auth token. The cert is self-signed, use curl -k or equivalent to accept it, or verify against cert.pem directly.

Port reachability: Some cloud providers block inbound ports by default. Configure a firewall / security-group rule to allow traffic on your chosen port.

Connecting via a domain name

Set tls_domain to have the self-signed cert identify as your domain:

tls_domain = "data.mydomain.com"

When binding to 0.0.0.0, verified TLS requires a domain name (no IP SAN is added). When binding to a concrete IP, an IP SAN is added automatically.

The cert's SHA-256 fingerprint is logged at startup for pinning.

Local development

For local-only use, keep bind_address = "127.0.0.1:8080":

• Plain HTTP (no TLS overhead)
• No auth token required
• curl http://127.0.0.1:8080/pairs works directly

Design limitations

This server is not a tick-by-tick market data recorder and shouldn't be treated as one:

• No delivery guarantees: WebSocket disconnections may cause gaps. Exchange-side replays may introduce duplicates. The server uses flowsurface-exchange for market feeds, which is built for charting rather than archival.

• In-memory buffering: trades are held in memory for up to flush_interval_ms (default 2s) before batch-writing to DuckDB. Under extreme load, if the buffer exceeds max_buffered_trades, the oldest entries are shed to prevent OOM crashes.

• Configuration changes require a restart: editing tracked pairs or anything in config.toml needs a server restart. In-memory buffered trades are flushed to disk during shutdown, but there will be a data gap until the server restarts and feeds reconnect.

It prioritizes convenience over guaranteed delivery, as it's simply made as a companion for flowsurface.

API endpoints

/status is public (no auth). All other endpoints require Authorization: Bearer <token> when auth is configured.

Method	Path	Auth	Description
GET	/status	✗ public	Server uptime, DB connectivity check
GET	/exchanges	required	Available ticker symbols per exchange
GET	/pairs	required	Configured pairs with time bounds & tracked count
GET	/trades	required	Trade data (filtered by venue, symbol, time range)
GET	/trades.arrow	required	Trade data as Arrow IPC stream

GET /status

Returns the server health status. No authentication required.

Response fields

Field	Type	Description
status	string	Always "ok" while running
uptime_secs	int	Seconds since server start
db_ok	bool	true if DuckDB is reachable

Example

curl http://127.0.0.1:8080/status

{
    "status": "ok",
    "uptime_secs": 7,
    "db_ok": true
}

GET /exchanges

Returns every ticker symbol discovered on each exchange, grouped by canonical exchange name. Useful for browsing available tickers before configuring the whitelist.

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
  http://127.0.0.1:8080/exchanges

{
    "exchanges": {
        "Binance Linear": ["BTCUSDT", "ETHUSDT", ...],
        "Binance Spot": ["BTCUSDT", "ETHUSDT", ...],
        "Bybit Linear": ["BTCUSDT", ...],
        ...
    }
}

GET /pairs

Returns all configured pairs with their stored time ranges. Pairs that have been configured but have not yet received any trades appear with earliest and latest as null.

Response fields

Field	Type	Description
pairs	array	Array of tracked pair objects
tracked_count	int	Total number of configured pairs

Each pair object:

Field	Type	Description
ticker	string	Ticker ID (Exchange:pair)
earliest	int	Unix ms of oldest stored trade, or null
latest	int	Unix ms of newest stored trade, or null

Example

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
  http://127.0.0.1:8080/pairs

{
    "pairs": [
        {
            "ticker": "BinanceSpot:btcusdt",
            "earliest": 1783873393043,
            "latest": 1784372262447
        },
        {
            "ticker": "HyperliquidLinear:btcusdc",
            "earliest": 1784372175005,
            "latest": 1784372262010
        }
    ],
    "tracked_count": 18
}

GET /trades

Returns trade records matching the given filter.

Query parameters

Param	Type	Description
venue	string	Required. Exchange name (e.g. binance)
market	string	Required. spot, linear, or inverse
symbol	string	Required. Ticker symbol (e.g. btcusdt)
from	int	Unix ms lower bound (inclusive)
to	int	Unix ms upper bound (inclusive)
limit	int	Max records (default 1000, max 10 000)

Sort order: When from is specified, rows are returned oldest-first. When from is omitted, rows are returned newest-first.

Response fields

Field	Type	Description
trades	array	Array of matching trade objects

Each trade object:

Field	Type	Description
ts	int	Unix millisecond timestamp
price	float	Price
qty	float	Normalized quantity (base units for spot/linear, quote notional for inverse perps)
is_sell	bool	true if a sell, false if a buy

Example

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer <token>" \
  'http://127.0.0.1:8080/trades?venue=bybit&market=linear&symbol=btcusdt&limit=2'

{
    "trades": [
        {
            "ts": 1784108317317,
            "price": 64774.8,
            "qty": 0.111,
            "is_sell": false
        },
        {
            "ts": 1784108317964,
            "price": 64774.7,
            "qty": 0.003,
            "is_sell": true
        }
    ]
}

GET /trades.arrow

Same filtering as /trades but returns an Arrow IPC streaming format payload (Content-Type: application/vnd.apache.arrow.stream with Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="trades.arrow") with 4 columns:

ts (int64), price (float64), qty (float64), is_sell (bool)

This is ideal for high-volume data transfer to clients that support Arrow natively.

Param	Type	Description
venue	string	Required. Exchange name (e.g. binance)
market	string	Required. spot, linear, or inverse
symbol	string	Required. Ticker symbol (e.g. btcusdt)
from	int	Unix ms lower bound (inclusive)
to	int	Unix ms upper bound (inclusive)
limit	int	Max records (default 50 000, max 400 000)

Sort order: Same as /trades.