Install Dotclear CMS on Ubuntu 20.04

Updated on September 16, 2021

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

SSH to your server and update the package information index.
```
 $ sudo apt update
```
Install the required PHP extensions for Dotclear.
```
 $ sudo apt install libapache2-mod-php
```
Restart Apache to load the extensions.
```
 $ sudo systemctl restart apache2
```

2. Create the Database and User Account

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';

Exit the database server.
```
 mysql> QUIT;
```

3. Create the Directory Structure

Create a dot_clear directory under the web root.
```
 $ sudo mkdir -p /var/www/dot_clear
```

Take ownership of the directory.

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

Change to the directory.
```
 $ cd /var/www/dot_clear
```

Download the installation script.

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

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

Disable the default virtual host configuration.
```
 $ sudo a2dissite 000-default.conf
```

Create a new virtual host configuration file.

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

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>

Save and exit the file.
Enable the new Dotclear virtual host.
```
 $ sudo a2ensite dot_clear.conf
```
Restart Apache to load the new host configuration.
```
 $ sudo systemctl restart apache2
```

5. Test the Installation

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
```
You should see the following welcome page.
Click Retrieve and unzip Dotclear to proceed.
Enter the database settings in the provided fields and click Continue
Create a user account and click Save.
Navigate to this URL to see your new site.
```
 http://example.com/dotclear/index.php
```
To access the Dotclear admin interface, visit the URL below and log in.
```
 http://example.com/dotclear/admin/
```