Install Dotclear CMS on Ubuntu 20.04

Introduction

Dotclear is an open-source web publishing platform for LAMP. This guide explains how to install Dotclear on a Vultr Ubuntu 20.04 cloud server.

Prerequisites

Before starting this guide:

• Install an Ubuntu 20.04 server.
• Add a non-root user with sudo privileges.
• Install a LAMP Stack.

You can also use Vultr's Ubuntu 20.04 LAMP Marketplace application.

1. Install Dependencies

1. SSH to your server and update the package information index.

    $ sudo apt update

2. Install the required PHP extensions for Dotclear.

    $ sudo apt install libapache2-mod-php

3. Restart Apache to load the extensions.

    $ sudo systemctl restart apache2

2. Create the Database and User Account

1. Log in to your database server as root.

   $ sudo mysql -u root -p

2. Create a dot_clear database and a dot_clear_user account. Replace EXAMPLE_PASSWORD with a strong password.

   If you use MySQL:

    mysql> CREATE DATABASE dot_clear;
           CREATE USER 'dot_clear_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY 'EXAMPLE_PASSWORD';
           GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON dot_clear.* TO 'dot_clear_user'@'localhost';           
           FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

   If you use MariaDB:

    MariaDB> CREATE DATABASE dot_clear;
             GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES on dot_clear.* TO 'dot_clear_user'@'localhost' identified by 'EXAMPLE_PASSWORD';

3. Exit the database server.

    mysql> QUIT;

3. Create the Directory Structure

1. Create a dot_clear directory under the web root.

    $ sudo mkdir -p /var/www/dot_clear

2. Take ownership of the directory.

    $ sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /var/www/dot_clear

3. Change to the directory.

    $ cd /var/www/dot_clear

4. Download the installation script.

    $ wget https://download.dotclear.org/loader/dotclear-loader.php

5. Change the ownership of the /var/www/dot_clear directory to the Apache user www-data.

    $ sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/dot_clear

4. Create a Virtual Host File

1. Disable the default virtual host configuration.

    $ sudo a2dissite 000-default.conf

2. Create a new virtual host configuration file.

    $ sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/dot_clear.conf

3. Paste the information below into the file. Replace example.com with your server's public IP address or domain name.

    <VirtualHost *:80>
   
        ServerName example.com
   
        DocumentRoot "/var/www/dot_clear"
   
        <Directory "/var/www/dot_clear">
            Require all granted
            Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
            AllowOverride All
            Order allow,deny
            Allow from all
        </Directory>
   
    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
   
    </VirtualHost>

4. Save and exit the file.

5. Enable the new Dotclear virtual host.

    $ sudo a2ensite dot_clear.conf

6. Restart Apache to load the new host configuration.

    $ sudo systemctl restart apache2

5. Test the Installation

1. Visit the URL below in your web browser. Replace example.com with your server's public IP address or domain name.

    http://example.com/dotclear-loader.php

2. You should see the following welcome page.

   

3. Click Retrieve and unzip Dotclear to proceed.

4. Enter the database settings in the provided fields and click Continue

   

5. Create a user account and click Save.

   

6. Navigate to this URL to see your new site.

    http://example.com/dotclear/index.php

   

7. To access the Dotclear admin interface, visit the URL below and log in.

    http://example.com/dotclear/admin/

   

Your installation is complete.

More Information

• Official Dotclear site