How to Install WBCE CMS on Ubuntu Linux with Apache

WBCE CMS is free, open source, user friendly content management system (CMS) that will help you build PHP website easily across multiple devices, including mobile.

WBCE lets you manage content with its intuitive user interface, granularly administer users and groups, built with powerful search engine optimization features and a responsive design that support all modern devices.

If you’re a small or medium size company looking for a CMS platform that is easy to install, simple to maintain and flexible, then WBCE is a good place to start.

This CMS platform is fast and lightweight, gives webmasters modular and extensible features, extensible via plugins to collaborate and automate engaging experiences with users across multiple devices, including mobile.

For more about WBCE, please check their Homepage

This brief tutorial is going to show students and new users how to install WBCE on Ubuntu 16.04 / 18.10 and 18.04 LTS.

To get started with installing WBCE, follow the steps below:

Install Apache2 HTTP Server

WBCE 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.


Apache2 Test Page

If you see the page above, then Apache2 is successfully installed.

Install MariaDB Database Server

WBCE 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.

mariadb welcome

If you see a similar screen as shown above, then the server was successfully installed.

Install PHP 7.2 and Related Modules

WBCE 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.

PHP Test Page

Create WBCE CMS Database

Now that you’ve installed all the packages that are required for WBCE to function, continue below to start configuring the servers. First run the commands below to create a blank WBCE database.

To logon to MariaDB database server, run the commands below.

sudo mysql -u root -p

Then create a database called wbce

CREATE DATABASE wbce CHARACTER SET utf8 COLLATE utf8_general_ci;

Create a database user called wbceuser with a new password

CREATE USER 'wbceuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'new_password_here';

Then grant the user full access to the database.

GRANT ALL ON wbce.* TO 'wbceuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'user_password_here' WITH GRANT OPTION;

Finally, save your changes and exit.

FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Download WBCE Latest Release

To get WBCE 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 WBCE directory.

cd /tmp
wget 
unzip 1.3.3.zip
sudo mv WBCE_CMS-1.3.3/wbce /var/www/html/wbce

Next, run the commands below to set the correct permissions for WBCE root directory and give Apache2 control.

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/wbce/
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/wbce/

Configure Apache2

Finally, configure Apache2 site configuration file for WBCE. This file will control how users access WBCE content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called wbce.conf

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/wbce.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/wbce
     ServerName example.com
     ServerAlias www.example.com

     <Directory /var/www/html/wbce/>
          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 WBCE and Rewrite Module

After configuring the VirtualHost above, enable it by running the commands below

sudo a2ensite wbce.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo systemctl restart apache2.service

Then open your browser and browse to the server domain name. You should see WBCE setup wizard to complete. Please follow the wizard carefully.


Then follow the on-screen instruction to complete the setup. Type in the database name, username and password. then create an admin account to use to manage the backend.

WBCE CMS Ubuntu Install

When all is typed in, click Install WBCE. That should install the CMS and bring you to the admin login page. Type in the admin account you created above to login.

WBCE CMS Ubuntu Install

Congratulation! You have successfully installed WBCE CMS on Ubuntu 16.04 | 18.04.

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