Dotclear CMS is an open source, user-friendly content management platform (CMS) that allows anyone to publish on the web, regardless of their technical skills.
If you are looking for a CMS platform that is easy to install, simple to maintain and flexible, then Dotclear is a good place to start. With Dotclear, you get a platform with feature-rich editor, user-friendly administration, flexible and customizable themes and template system, built-in support for features such as antispam, XML/RPC and more.
This CMS platform is fast and lightweight, gives webmasters modular and extensible features to collaborate and automate engaging experiences with users across multiple devices, including mobile.
For more about Dotclear, please check their Homepage
This brief tutorial is going to show students and new users how to install Dotclear on Ubuntu 16.04 / 18.10 and 18.04 LTS.
To get started with installing Dotclear, follow the steps below:
Install Apache2 HTTP Server
Dotclear requires a web server and Apache2 HTTP server is the most popular open source web server available today. To install Apache2 server, run the commands below:
sudo apt update sudo apt install apache2
After installing Apache2, the commands below can be used to stop, start and enable Apache2 service to always start up with the server boots.
sudo systemctl stop apache2.service sudo systemctl start apache2.service sudo systemctl enable apache2.service
Now that Apache2 is installed. to test whether the web server is working, open your browser and browse to the URL below.
If you see the page above, then Apache2 is successfully installed.
Install MariaDB Database Server
Dotclear also requires a database server to store its content. If you’re looking for a truly open source database server, then MariaDB is a great place to start. To install MariaDB run the commands below:
sudo apt-get install mariadb-server mariadb-client
After installing MariaDB, the commands below can be used to stop, start and enable MariaDB service to always start up when the server boots.
Run these on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
sudo systemctl stop mysql.service sudo systemctl start mysql.service sudo systemctl enable mysql.service
Run these on Ubuntu 18.10 and 18.04 LTS
sudo systemctl stop mariadb.service sudo systemctl start mariadb.service sudo systemctl enable mariadb.service
Next, run the commands below to secure the database server with a root password if you were not prompted to do so during the installation.
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
Now that MariaDB is installed, to test whether the database server was successfully installed, run the commands below.
sudo mysql -u root -p
type the root password when prompted.
If you see a similar screen as shown above, then the server was successfully installed.
Install PHP 7.2 and Related Modules
Dotclear is a PHP based CMS and PHP is required. However, PHP 7.2 may not be available in Ubuntu default repositories. To run PHP 7.2 on Ubuntu 16.04 and previous, you may need to run the commands below:
sudo apt-get install software-properties-common sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
Then update and upgrade to PHP 7.2
sudo apt update
Next, run the commands below to install PHP 7.2 and related modules.
sudo apt install php7.2 libapache2-mod-php7.2 php7.2-common php7.2-mysql php7.2-gmp php7.2-curl php7.2-intl php7.2-mbstring php7.2-xmlrpc php7.2-gd php7.2-xml php7.2-cli php7.2-zip
After installing PHP 7.2, run the commands below to open PHP default configuration file for Apache2.
sudo nano /etc/php/7.2/apache2/php.ini
The lines below is a good settings for most PHP based CMS. Update the configuration file with these and save.
file_uploads = On allow_url_fopen = On short_open_tag = On memory_limit = 256M upload_max_filesize = 100M max_execution_time = 360 date.timezone = America/Chicago
Everytime you make changes to PHP configuration file, you should also restart Apache2 web server. To do so, run the commands below:
sudo systemctl restart apache2.service
Now that PHP is installed, to test whether it’s functioning, create a test file called phpinfo.php in Apache2 default root directory. ( /var/www/html/)
sudo nano /var/www/html/phpinfo.php
Then type the content below and save the file.
<?php phpinfo( ); ?>
Next, open your browser and browse to the server’s hostname or IP address followed by phpinfo.php
/phpinfo.php
You should see PHP default test page.
Create Dotclear CMS Database
Now that you’ve installed all the packages that are required for Dotclear to function, continue below to start configuring the servers. First run the commands below to create a blank Dotclear database.
To logon to MariaDB database server, run the commands below.
sudo mysql -u root -p
Then create a database called dotclear
CREATE DATABASE dotclear;
Create a database user called dotclearuser with a new password
CREATE USER 'dotclearuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'new_password_here';
Then grant the user full access to the database.
GRANT ALL ON dotclear.* TO 'dotclearuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'user_password_here' WITH GRANT OPTION;
Finally, save your changes and exit.
FLUSH PRIVILEGES; EXIT;
Download Dotclear Latest Release
To get Dotclear latest release you may want to go and download from its download page. Or use the commands below to use wget and get it downloaded.
Once downloaded extract the downloaded content into the newly created Dotclear directory.
cd /tmp wget tar xvf latest.tar.gz sudo mv dotclear /var/www/html/dotclear
Next, run the commands below to set the correct permissions for Dotclear root directory and give Apache2 control.
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/dotclear/ sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/dotclear/
Configure Apache2
Finally, configure Apache2 site configuration file for Dotclear. This file will control how users access Dotclear content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called dotclear.conf
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/dotclear.conf
Then copy and paste the content below into the file and save it. Replace the highlighted line with your own domain name and directory root location.
<VirtualHost *:80>
ServerAdmin [email protected]
DocumentRoot /var/www/html/dotclear
ServerName example.com
ServerAlias www.example.com
<Directory /var/www/html/dotclear/>
Options FollowSymlinks
AllowOverride All
Require all granted
</Directory>
ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>
Save the file and exit.
Enable the Dotclear and Rewrite Module
After configuring the VirtualHost above, enable it by running the commands below
sudo a2ensite dotclear.conf sudo a2enmod rewrite sudo systemctl restart apache2.service
Then open your browser and browse to the server domain name. You should see Dotclear setup wizard to complete. Please follow the wizard carefully.
Then follow the on-screen instruction to complete the setup. On the first screen, type in the database name, database user and password. and click Continue.
On the next screen, create an admin account to manage the site. after that, click Save to complete the setup.
When the installation is complete, logon to the backend with the admin account and start customizing your website. Save your changes and enjoy!
Congratulation! You have successfully installed Dotclear CMS on Ubuntu 16.04 | 18.04.
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