UNA Installation Guide for Ubuntu Debian on Apache2 Server

Introduction

This guide provides a comprehensive walkthrough for installing UNA Community Software on an Ubuntu Debian system, specifically tailored for an Apache2 server environment. It incorporates general installation requirements and additional steps for setting up on Ubuntu Debian.

Pre-installation Requirements

Ensure your hosting environment meets the following system and software requirements:

• PHP Version: 7.4 up to 8.2 (with support starting from UNA v13 for PHP 8.1 and from UNA v14 for PHP 8.2).
• MySQL: Version 5.5.3 or higher, MySQL 8, or compatible databases like MariaDB.
• Server: VPS or dedicated cloud instance with at least 4GB RAM, 2 CPU cores, and 80GB storage. Shared hosting is not recommended.
• Server Type: Apache-compatible or Nginx web servers.
• Required PHP Modules: curl, gd, mbstring, json, fileinfo, zip, openssl, exif.

Step 1: System Preparation

Update and Upgrade Packages

Run these commands to update and upgrade all packages:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade

Install PHP and Necessary Extensions

sudo apt-get install php php-curl php-gd php-mbstring php-json php-fileinfo php-zip php-openssl php-exif php-mysql

Installing and Configuring MariaDB

sudo apt-get install mariadb-server

After installing, use the commands below to stop, start, and enable the MariaDB service to always start up when the server boots:

sudo systemctl stop mariadb.service
sudo systemctl start mariadb.service
sudo systemctl enable mariadb.service

After that, run the commands below to secure the MariaDB server by creating a root password and disallowing remote root access:

sudo mysql_secure_installation

When prompted, answer the questions below by following the guide:

• Enter current password for root (enter for none): Just press the Enter
• Set root password? [Y/n]: Y
• New password: Enter password
• Re-enter new password: Repeat password
• Remove anonymous users? [Y/n]: Y
• Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n]: Y
• Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n]: Y
• Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n]: Y

Restart MariaDB server:

sudo systemctl restart mariadb.service

Create the Database

To log on to the MariaDB database server, run the commands below:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Run these commands to create the database, create a user, and give that user access to the database:

CREATE DATABASE database_name;
CREATE USER 'username'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
GRANT ALL ON csdb.* TO 'username'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password' WITH GRANT OPTION;
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Creating a Virtual Host

Create a directory for your UNA site:

sudo mkdir /var/www/your_site_url
sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /var/www/your_site_url
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/your_site_url

Create a virtual host configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/your_site_url.conf

Copy and paste the following lines into the conf file:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin webmaster@localhost
    ServerName your_site_url
    DocumentRoot /var/www/your_site_url
    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined

    <Directory /var/www/your_site_url>
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks MultiViews
        AllowOverride All
        Order allow,deny
        allow from all
        Require all granted
    </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

Enable the new virtual host and disable the default one:

sudo a2ensite your_site_url.conf
sudo a2dissite 000-default.conf
sudo apache2ctl configtest
sudo systemctl restart apache2

Installing Let's Encrypt SSL

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:certbot/certbot
sudo apt install python-certbot-apache
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/your_site_url.conf
sudo apache2ctl config
sudo systemctl reload apache2
sudo certbot --apache -d your_site_url

This will install an SSL certificate to your system.

Installing UNA

Upload the UNA .zip archive to your server and extract it to

/var/www/your_site_url.

Finalizing Installation

Set Permissions Ensure your directory and files have the correct permissions:

sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/your_site_url

• Update .htaccess for PHP Version Adjust .htaccess for your PHP configuration as needed.
• Complete UNA Installation Wizard
• Navigate to your site URL and follow the UNA installation steps.

Post-installation Steps

Configure a cron job as instructed by the installation wizard to ensure UNA's scheduled tasks are performed correctly.

Make the Necessary Permission Changes to Your Directory

Follow this guide for what permission to set

Use sudo chmod to grant permission to the directory.

Update .htaccess to Use Default PHP

sudo nano /var/www/your_site_url/.htaccess

• Change mod_php5.c to mod_php.c
• Check your site by going to your_site_url.
• Complete the server audit and troubleshoot.

Cron Job

Run the code and paste the cron job from the browser to the crontab:

crontab -e

Congratulations

You've successfully installed UNA on your Ubuntu Debian server with Apache2. Proceed to UNA Studio to customize your site further.