What it does. Deploys Cloudflare Access with Cloudflare Tunnel for zero trust access to self-hosted apps, configuring identity-aware policies, device posture checks, and WARP client enrollment as a VPN replacement. Use when replacing VPN with Cloudflare One, exposing internal apps without open inbound ports, or securing contractor/third-party access to specific applications. Part of mukul975/Anthropic-Cybersecurity-Skills (817 security skills) (mukul975/Anthropic-Cybersecurity-Skills).

Upstream	mukul975/Anthropic-Cybersecurity-Skills
Skill file	skills/deploying-cloudflare-access-for-zero-trust/SKILL.md
License	Apache-2.0 (skill folder LICENSE)
Author	mukul975
Fetched	2026-09-10

Install

• npx skills add mukul975/Anthropic-Cybersecurity-Skills --skill deploying-cloudflare-access-for-zero-trust, or copy the skill folder into ~/.claude/skills/deploying-cloudflare-access-for-zero-trust/.
• Raw file: curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mukul975/Anthropic-Cybersecurity-Skills/HEAD/skills/deploying-cloudflare-access-for-zero-trust/SKILL.md

SKILL.md (verbatim)

name: deploying-cloudflare-access-for-zero-trust
description: Deploys Cloudflare Access with Cloudflare Tunnel for zero trust access to self-hosted apps, configuring identity-aware policies, device posture checks, and WARP client enrollment as a VPN replacement. Use when replacing VPN with Cloudflare One, exposing internal apps without open inbound ports, or securing contractor/third-party access to specific applications.
domain: cybersecurity
subdomain: zero-trust-architecture
tags:
- cloudflare
- cloudflare-access
- zero-trust
- cloudflare-tunnel
- warp
- ztna
- cloudflare-one
version: '1.0'
author: mahipal
license: Apache-2.0
atlas_techniques:
- AML.T0051
- AML.T0054
- AML.T0056
nist_ai_rmf:
- MEASURE-2.7
- MEASURE-2.5
- GOVERN-6.1
- MAP-5.1
nist_csf:
- PR.AA-01
- PR.AA-05
- PR.IR-01
- GV.PO-01
mitre_attack:
- T1133
- T1078
- T1190
- T1021

Deploying Cloudflare Access for Zero Trust

When to Use

• When replacing VPN infrastructure with identity-aware application access using Cloudflare One
• When exposing self-hosted internal applications through Cloudflare Tunnel without opening inbound ports
• When implementing ZTNA for a distributed workforce accessing web applications, SSH, and RDP services
• When needing a cost-effective zero trust solution with integrated DLP, CASB, and SWG capabilities
• When securing contractor and third-party access to specific applications without full network access

Do not use for applications requiring persistent UDP connections not supported by Cloudflare Tunnel, for environments requiring air-gapped or fully on-premises access control, or when regulatory requirements prohibit routing traffic through third-party cloud infrastructure.

Prerequisites

• Cloudflare account with Zero Trust subscription (Free for up to 50 users, paid plans for larger teams)
• Domain name managed by Cloudflare DNS (or ability to add CNAME records)
• Linux, Windows, or macOS server to run cloudflared tunnel daemon
• Identity provider: Okta, Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace, GitHub, or any SAML/OIDC provider
• Cloudflare WARP client for device-level enrollment (optional but recommended)

Workflow

Step 1: Create a Cloudflare Tunnel to Internal Applications

Install cloudflared and create a persistent tunnel to expose internal services.

# Install cloudflared on Ubuntu/Debian
curl -L https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/releases/latest/download/cloudflared-linux-amd64.deb \
  -o cloudflared.deb
sudo dpkg -i cloudflared.deb

# Authenticate cloudflared with your Cloudflare account
cloudflared tunnel login

# Create a named tunnel
cloudflared tunnel create internal-apps
# Output: Created tunnel internal-apps with id xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx

# Configure tunnel routes to internal applications
cat > ~/.cloudflared/config.yml << 'EOF'
tunnel: xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx
credentials-file: /home/admin/.cloudflared/xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx.json

ingress:
  - hostname: wiki.company.com
    service: http://localhost:8080
  - hostname: git.company.com
    service: http://10.1.1.50:3000
  - hostname: grafana.company.com
    service: http://10.1.1.60:3000
  - hostname: ssh.company.com
    service: ssh://localhost:22
  - hostname: rdp.company.com
    service: rdp://10.1.1.100:3389
  # Catch-all rule (required)
  - service: http_status:404
EOF

# Route DNS to the tunnel
cloudflared tunnel route dns internal-apps wiki.company.com
cloudflared tunnel route dns internal-apps git.company.com
cloudflared tunnel route dns internal-apps grafana.company.com

# Run tunnel as a systemd service
sudo cloudflared service install
sudo systemctl enable cloudflared
sudo systemctl start cloudflared

# Verify tunnel status
cloudflared tunnel info internal-apps

Step 2: Configure Identity Provider Integration

Set up authentication with your organization's identity provider.

# Using Cloudflare API to configure Okta as IdP
curl -X PUT "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/access/identity_providers" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Corporate Okta",
    "type": "okta",
    "config": {
      "client_id": "OKTA_CLIENT_ID",
      "client_secret": "OKTA_CLIENT_SECRET",
      "okta_account": "company.okta.com",
      "api_token": "OKTA_API_TOKEN",
      "claims": ["email", "groups", "name"],
      "email_claim_name": "email"
    }
  }'

# Configure Microsoft Entra ID as additional IdP
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/access/identity_providers" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Microsoft Entra ID",
    "type": "azureAD",
    "config": {
      "client_id": "AZURE_APP_CLIENT_ID",
      "client_secret": "AZURE_APP_CLIENT_SECRET",
      "directory_id": "AZURE_TENANT_ID",
      "support_groups": true,
      "claims": ["email", "groups", "name"]
    }
  }'

Step 3: Create Access Applications and Policies

Define Access applications with identity-aware policies for each internal service.

# Create Access application for internal wiki
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/access/apps" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Internal Wiki",
    "domain": "wiki.company.com",
    "type": "self_hosted",
    "session_duration": "8h",
    "auto_redirect_to_identity": true,
    "http_only_cookie_attribute": true,
    "same_site_cookie_attribute": "lax",
    "logo_url": "https://company.com/wiki-logo.png",
    "allowed_idps": ["OKTA_IDP_ID", "AZURE_IDP_ID"]
  }'

# Create Allow policy for the wiki application
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/access/apps/{app_id}/policies" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Allow Engineering Team",
    "decision": "allow",
    "precedence": 1,
    "include": [
      {"group": {"id": "ENGINEERING_GROUP_ID"}},
      {"okta": {"name": "Engineering", "identity_provider_id": "OKTA_IDP_ID"}}
    ],
    "require": [
      {"device_posture": {"integration_uid": "CROWDSTRIKE_INTEGRATION_ID"}}
    ]
  }'

# Create Access application for SSH access
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/access/apps" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "SSH Access",
    "domain": "ssh.company.com",
    "type": "ssh",
    "session_duration": "4h",
    "auto_redirect_to_identity": true
  }'

Step 4: Deploy WARP Client for Device Enrollment

Enroll corporate devices using Cloudflare WARP for private network access and device posture.

# Create device enrollment rule
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/devices/policy" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Corporate Device Enrollment",
    "match": "identity.email matches \".*@company\\.com$\"",
    "precedence": 100,
    "enabled": true,
    "gateway_unique_id": "GATEWAY_ID",
    "support_url": "https://helpdesk.company.com/warp-help"
  }'

# Install WARP on macOS via MDM (Jamf/Intune)
# Download: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/connections/connect-devices/warp/download-warp/
# Deploy with MDM configuration profile:
cat > warp_mdm_config.plist << 'EOF'
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>organization</key>
    <string>company</string>
    <key>auto_connect</key>
    <integer>1</integer>
    <key>switch_locked</key>
    <true/>
    <key>onboarding</key>
    <false/>
</dict>
</plist>
EOF

# Install Cloudflare root certificate for TLS inspection
# Download from: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/connections/connect-devices/warp/user-side-certificates/
sudo cp cloudflare-root-ca.pem /usr/local/share/ca-certificates/cloudflare-root-ca.crt
sudo update-ca-certificates

# Configure split tunnel to route private network through WARP
curl -X PUT "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/devices/policy/{policy_id}/fallback_domains" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '[
    {"suffix": "internal.corp", "description": "Internal corporate domain"},
    {"suffix": "10.0.0.0/8", "description": "Private network range"}
  ]'

Step 5: Configure Device Posture Checks

Integrate endpoint security signals into Access policies.

# Add CrowdStrike device posture integration
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/devices/posture/integration" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "CrowdStrike Falcon",
    "type": "crowdstrike_s2s",
    "config": {
      "api_url": "https://api.crowdstrike.com",
      "client_id": "CS_API_CLIENT_ID",
      "client_secret": "CS_API_CLIENT_SECRET",
      "customer_id": "CS_CUSTOMER_ID"
    },
    "interval": "10m"
  }'

# Create device posture rule for disk encryption
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/devices/posture" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Disk Encryption Required",
    "type": "disk_encryption",
    "match": [{"platform": "windows"}, {"platform": "mac"}],
    "input": {"requireAll": true}
  }'

# Create device posture rule for OS version
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/devices/posture" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "Minimum OS Version",
    "type": "os_version",
    "match": [{"platform": "windows"}],
    "input": {"version": "10.0.19045", "operator": ">="}
  }'

Step 6: Set Up Audit Logging and Analytics

Configure logging for access decisions and tunnel health monitoring.

# Enable Logpush for Access audit logs to S3
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/logpush/jobs" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "name": "access-audit-logs",
    "output_options": {
      "field_names": ["RayID","Action","Allowed","AppDomain","AppUUID","Connection","Country","CreatedAt","Email","IPAddress","PurposeJustificationPrompt","PurposeJustificationResponse","TemporaryAccessDuration","UserUID"],
      "timestamp_format": "rfc3339"
    },
    "destination_conf": "s3://security-logs-bucket/cloudflare-access/?region=us-east-1&access-key-id=AKID&secret-access-key=SECRET",
    "dataset": "access_requests",
    "enabled": true
  }'

# Query access logs via GraphQL Analytics API
curl -X POST "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/graphql" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${CF_API_TOKEN}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "query": "{ viewer { accounts(filter: {accountTag: \"ACCOUNT_ID\"}) { accessLoginRequestsAdaptiveGroups(filter: {datetime_gt: \"2026-02-22T00:00:00Z\"}, limit: 100, orderBy: [count_DESC]) { dimensions { action appName userEmail country } count } } } }"
  }'

Key Concepts

Term	Definition
Cloudflare Tunnel	Encrypted outbound-only connection from your infrastructure to Cloudflare's network, exposing internal services without opening inbound firewall ports
Cloudflare Access	Identity-aware reverse proxy evaluating every request against access policies before granting access to protected applications
WARP Client	Cloudflare's endpoint agent that routes device traffic through Cloudflare's network for policy enforcement and private network access
Access Application	Configuration object defining a protected resource (self-hosted, SaaS, or infrastructure) with associated access policies
Device Posture	Endpoint health signals (OS version, disk encryption, EDR status) evaluated as conditions in Access policies
Cloudflare One	Unified SASE platform combining ZTNA (Access), SWG (Gateway), CASB, DLP, and RBI

Tools & Systems

• Cloudflare Access: Identity-aware application proxy providing per-request authorization
• Cloudflare Tunnel (cloudflared): Daemon creating encrypted tunnels from internal networks to Cloudflare edge
• WARP Client: Cross-platform endpoint agent for device enrollment, DNS filtering, and private network routing
• Cloudflare Gateway: Secure Web Gateway providing DNS/HTTP filtering and DLP inspection
• Cloudflare Logpush: Real-time log streaming to external SIEM and storage destinations
• Access for Infrastructure: SSH and RDP access with short-lived certificates and session recording

Common Scenarios

Scenario: Startup with 200 Employees Deploying Zero Trust from Scratch

Context: A SaaS startup with 200 employees and no existing VPN wants to provide secure access to internal tools (Grafana, internal APIs, staging environments) running on AWS. Budget is limited, and the team has no dedicated security staff.

Approach:

1. Start with Cloudflare Zero Trust free tier (up to 50 users) for proof of concept
2. Deploy one cloudflared tunnel on an EC2 instance in the production VPC
3. Expose Grafana, internal wiki, and staging apps through tunnel with DNS routing
4. Configure Google Workspace as IdP for SSO authentication
5. Create Access policies requiring @company.com email domain for all applications
6. Add device posture checks for disk encryption and OS version
7. Upgrade to paid plan and deploy WARP client to all employee laptops via MDM
8. Enable Gateway DNS filtering and HTTP inspection for malware protection
9. Configure Logpush to send access logs to Datadog for monitoring

Pitfalls: Cloudflare root certificate must be installed on all devices for TLS inspection to work; some applications may break with TLS interception. Tunnel failover requires running multiple cloudflared instances or using Cloudflare's replicas feature. Access policies should always include a default deny rule. WebSocket applications may require specific tunnel configuration.

Output Format

Cloudflare Zero Trust Deployment Report
==================================================
Organization: StartupCorp
Team Name: startupcorp
Deployment Date: 2026-02-23

TUNNEL INFRASTRUCTURE:
  Active Tunnels: 2 (primary + failover)
  Tunnel Status: Healthy
  Connected Edge: Washington DC, Ashburn
  Ingress Routes: 8

ACCESS APPLICATIONS:
  Self-Hosted Apps: 6
  SaaS Apps: 3
  SSH/Infrastructure: 2
  Total Policies: 15

DEVICE ENROLLMENT:
  Enrolled Devices: 187 / 200
  WARP Connected: 182 / 187 (97.3%)
  Posture Compliant: 175 / 187 (93.6%)

ACCESS METRICS (last 30 days):
  Total Requests: 89,432
  Allowed: 88,756 (99.2%)
  Blocked: 676 (0.8%)
  Unique Users: 195
  Countries: 12
  Avg Session Duration: 6.2 hours

Other files in this skill

• LICENSE
• assets/template.md
• references/api-reference.md
• references/standards.md
• references/workflows.md
• scripts/agent.py
• scripts/process.py

assets/template.md (verbatim)

Cloudflare Access Zero Trust - Deployment Checklist

Project Information

Field	Value
Organization	TechStartup Inc
Cloudflare Account	CF-XXXXXXX
Team Name	techstartup
Plan	Zero Trust Teams (50 seats)
Start Date	2026-01-25

Identity Provider Configuration

• Primary IdP: Google Workspace (OIDC)
• MFA enforced at IdP level
• Secondary IdP for contractors: GitHub OAuth
• Email domain restriction: @techstartup.com

Tunnel Deployment

Tunnel Name	Server	Network	Routes	Status
prod-tunnel	prod-bastion (10.1.0.5)	Production VPC	wiki, grafana, api	Healthy
staging-tunnel	staging-bastion (10.2.0.5)	Staging VPC	staging-*	Healthy

Access Applications

Application	Type	Domain	Session	Policies	Status
Internal Wiki	self_hosted	wiki.techstartup.com	8h	2 (Allow Eng, Deny All)	Active
Grafana	self_hosted	grafana.techstartup.com	8h	2 (Allow SRE, Deny All)	Active
Internal API	self_hosted	api.techstartup.com	4h	3 (Allow Backend, Service Token, Deny All)	Active
Staging Apps	self_hosted	staging.techstartup.com	4h	2 (Allow Eng, Deny All)	Active
SSH Jump	ssh	ssh.techstartup.com	2h	1 (Allow SRE)	Active

Device Posture Rules

• Disk encryption: Required (Windows BitLocker, macOS FileVault)
• OS version: Windows >= 10.0.19045, macOS >= 14.0
• Firewall: Enabled
• CrowdStrike integration: Pending deployment

WARP Enrollment

Platform	Enrolled	Total	Coverage
macOS	32	35	91.4%
Windows	12	13	92.3%
Linux	2	2	100%
Total	46	50	92.0%

Sign-Off

Role	Name	Date	Approved
CTO	_________________	__________	[ ]
Security Lead	_________________	__________	[ ]

references/api-reference.md (verbatim)

Cloudflare Access Zero Trust — API Reference

Libraries

Library	Install	Purpose
requests	pip install requests	Cloudflare API v4 client

Cloudflare Access API Endpoints

Method	Endpoint	Description
GET	/accounts/{id}/access/apps	List Access applications
GET	/accounts/{id}/access/apps/{id}/policies	List app policies
GET	/accounts/{id}/access/groups	List Access groups
GET	/accounts/{id}/access/identity_providers	List IdP configs
GET	/accounts/{id}/access/service_tokens	List service tokens
POST	/accounts/{id}/access/apps	Create application
PUT	/accounts/{id}/access/apps/{id}	Update application

Authentication

headers = {
    "Authorization": "Bearer <api_token>",
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
}

Access Policy Rule Types

Rule	Description
include	Must match (OR within group)
exclude	Must not match
require	Must match (AND)

External References

• Cloudflare Access API
• Cloudflare Zero Trust Docs
• cloudflare Python SDK

references/standards.md (verbatim)

Cloudflare Access Zero Trust - Standards & References

NIST SP 800-207: Zero Trust Architecture

• Section 2: ZTA Tenets - Cloudflare Access implements per-request identity verification
• Section 3.2: Enhanced Identity Governance - Access policies enforce continuous authorization
• Section 4.2: Cloud-Based SDP - Cloudflare Tunnel maps to software-defined perimeter architecture
• URL: https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/detail/sp/800-207/final

CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model v2.0

• Identity: SSO with MFA via integrated IdP support
• Device: WARP client posture checks for OS, encryption, EDR
• Network: Cloudflare Tunnel eliminates inbound firewall rules
• Application: Per-application Access policies with session controls
• URL: https://www.cisa.gov/zero-trust-maturity-model

Cloudflare Documentation

• Cloudflare One Overview: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/
• Cloudflare Access: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/policies/access/
• Cloudflare Tunnel: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/connections/connect-networks/
• WARP Deployment: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/connections/connect-devices/warp/
• Device Posture: https://developers.cloudflare.com/cloudflare-one/identity/devices/
• Logpush: https://developers.cloudflare.com/logs/about/
• Zero Trust Reference Architecture: https://developers.cloudflare.com/reference-architecture/implementation-guides/zero-trust/

SOC 2 Type II

• Cloudflare maintains SOC 2 Type II certification
• Access audit logs provide evidence for CC6.1 (Logical Access), CC6.3 (Role-Based Access)
• URL: https://www.cloudflare.com/trust-hub/compliance-resources/

GDPR

• Cloudflare processes data per EU GDPR requirements
• Data localization options for EU-based traffic
• URL: https://www.cloudflare.com/trust-hub/gdpr/

references/workflows.md (verbatim)

Cloudflare Access Zero Trust Deployment Workflow

Phase 1: Account Setup (Day 1)

1. Create Cloudflare account and navigate to Zero Trust dashboard
2. Select team name (organization identifier for WARP enrollment)
3. Choose subscription plan based on user count
4. Configure authentication: add primary IdP (Okta, Entra ID, Google Workspace)
5. Add secondary IdP for contractors or partners if needed
6. Enable MFA requirements at the IdP level

Phase 2: Tunnel Deployment (Day 2-3)

2.1 Install cloudflared

1. Install cloudflared on a server within the private network
2. Authenticate with cloudflared tunnel login
3. Create named tunnel: cloudflared tunnel create <name>
4. Configure ingress rules in config.yml mapping hostnames to internal services
5. Route DNS: cloudflared tunnel route dns <tunnel> <hostname>

2.2 High Availability

1. Deploy multiple cloudflared instances for redundancy
2. Use cloudflared tunnel run --protocol quic for better performance
3. Configure systemd service for automatic restart
4. Monitor tunnel health via Cloudflare dashboard

2.3 Private Network Routing

1. Add private network routes: cloudflared tunnel route ip add 10.0.0.0/8 <tunnel-id>
2. Configure split tunnel in WARP device settings
3. Set up DNS fallback domains for private DNS resolution

Phase 3: Access Application Configuration (Day 4-5)

1. Create Access applications for each internal service
2. Define access policies per application:
   • Include rules: email domains, IdP groups, service tokens
   • Require rules: device posture, country restrictions
   • Exclude rules: specific users or IPs
3. Configure session duration per application sensitivity
4. Enable purpose justification for sensitive applications
5. Test access with pilot users

Phase 4: WARP Client Deployment (Week 2)

1. Create device enrollment policies with email domain restrictions
2. Deploy WARP client via MDM (Intune, Jamf, SCCM)
3. Install Cloudflare root certificate for TLS inspection
4. Configure split tunnel settings for private network access
5. Enable device posture checks: OS version, disk encryption, firewall

Phase 5: Gateway and DLP Configuration (Week 3)

1. Enable DNS filtering with block categories (malware, phishing)
2. Configure HTTP inspection policies
3. Set up DLP profiles for sensitive data detection
4. Enable browser isolation for high-risk web categories
5. Configure CASB for SaaS application monitoring

Phase 6: Monitoring and Optimization (Ongoing)

1. Enable Logpush to SIEM (S3, Splunk, Datadog)
2. Monitor Access audit logs for denied requests
3. Review tunnel health metrics
4. Optimize split tunnel configuration
5. Conduct quarterly access policy reviews

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