If you’re looking for a true open-source enterprise content management system, Contao might be a good place to start. It’s built using PHP server scripting language and keeps content, modules, and templates separated. Contao is an open-source, enterprise content management system that relies on the LAMP or LEMP stack. It is designed for ease of use to allow business owners and power users to create powerful and dynamic content websites. For a high-performance content management platform, you may want to give Contao a test ride to manage your websites or blogs. This brief tutorial is going to show students and new users how to install Contao on Ubuntu 16.04 and 18.04 LTS with Nginx, MariaDB, and PHP 7.1 support. This post covers installing the latest version of Contao, which at the time of writing was version 4.5.4 To get started with installing Contao, follow the steps below:

Install Nginx

Contao requires a webserver and the second most popular web server in use today is Nginx. So, go and install Nginx on Ubuntu by running the commands below: Next, run the commands below to stop, start and enable the Nginx service to always start up with the server boots.

Install MariaDB Database Server

MariaDB database server is a great place to start when looking at open-source database servers to use with Contao. To install MariaDB run the commands below. After installing MariaDB, the commands below can be used to stop, start and enable the MariaDB service to always start up when the server boots. Run these on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS Run these on Ubuntu 17.10 and 18.04 LTS After that, run the commands below to secure the MariaDB server by creating a root password and disallowing remote root access. 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

PHP 7.2-FPM may not be available on Ubuntu default repositories… to install it, you will have to get it from third-party repositories. Run the commands below to add the below third party repository to upgrade to PHP 7.2-FPM Then update and upgrade to PHP 7.2-FPM Run the commands below to install PHP 7.2-FPM and related modules. After installing PHP, run the commands below to open the Nginx PHP default file. Then make the change to the following lines below in the file and save.

Create Contao Database

Now that you’ve installed all the packages that are required, continue below to start configuring the servers. First, run the commands below to create the Contao database. Run the commands below to log on to the database server. When prompted for a password, type the root password you created above. Then create a database called contaodb Create a database user called contaouser with a new password Then grant the user full access to the database. Finally, save your changes and exit. After creating the Contao database, run the commands below to open the MariaDB configuration file. Then copy and paste the lines below into the file just below [mysqld] Save and exit. Restart MariaDB Server

Download Contao Latest Release

Next, visit the Contao site and download the latest version. After downloading, run the commands below to extract the download file into the Nginx root directory. Then run the commands below to set the correct permissions for Contao to function.

Configure Nginx

Finally, configure the Apahce2 site configuration file for Contao. This file will control how users access Contao content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called contao Then copy and paste the content below into the file and save it. Replace the highlighted line with your domain name and directory root location. Save the file and exit.

Enable the Contao

After configuring the VirtualHost above, enable it by running the commands below To load all the settings above, restart Nginx by running the commands below. Then open your browser and browse to the server domain name followed by install. You should see the Contao setup wizard complete. Please follow the wizard carefully. You should now be presented with a Contao install screen. If instead, you see a white screen it probably means that your the server is probably not configured correctly. Type a new installation password for the installation. Next, type the database connection info and continue. Next, create a Contao admin user for the portal. That should create the admin account to logo to the backend. when done, log on and begin configuring Contao. The installation assistant can then be used to guide you through the process of installing a new version of Contao. To login to the backend go to the URL below: Congratulations! You’ve successfully installed Contao CMS on the Ubuntu server. Remove the installation folder by running the commands below And you’re done.