How to Install Concrete CMS with Nginx on Ubuntu 24.04
Written by
Richard
Jun 5, 2024
Updated Aug 13, 2026
7 min read
Installing Concrete CMS with Nginx on Ubuntu 24.04 gives you a fast, reliable website setup using a free content management system and a high-speed web server. Concrete CMS is a tool for building and managing websites, while Ubuntu 24.04 runs the underlying server software.
Running this setup requires PHP and a MySQL database to store your site files and content. Nginx handles web traffic efficiently, so your visitors experience quick page load times even when many people visit your site at once.
⚡ Quick Answer
Install Nginx and MariaDB servers, then create a Concrete CMS database. Configure PHP-FPM and Nginx to serve your Concrete CMS files.
Install Nginx HTTP server on Ubuntu
Nginx is a fast web server that works well for Concrete CMS on Ubuntu 24.04. You can install it easily using your terminal. Just run these commands to get Nginx set up and ready to serve your website. To do that, open the Ubuntu terminal and run the commands below to install the Nginx web server.Bash / Shell
sudo apt update sudo apt install nginx
Bash / Shell
sudo systemctl stop nginx sudo systemctl start nginx sudo systemctl enable nginx
Install the MariaDB database server on Ubuntu
Concrete CMS needs a place to store its data, and MariaDB is a great choice for this on Ubuntu. Installing the MariaDB database server is simple. Open your terminal and use these commands to get it installed. To install and use the MariaDB database server, use the instructions below. Open the Ubuntu terminal and run the commands below to install the MariaDB database server.Bash / Shell
sudo apt update sudo apt install mariadb-server
Bash / Shell
sudo systemctl stop mariadb sudo systemctl start mariadb sudo systemctl enable mariadb
Bash / Shell
sudo mariadb
Code
Welcome to the MariaDB monitor. Commands end with ; or g. Your MariaDB connection id is 32 Server version: 10.11.2-MariaDB-1 Ubuntu 23.04 Copyright (c) 2000, 2018, Oracle, MariaDB Corporation Ab and others. Type 'help;' or 'h' for help. Type 'c' to clear the current input statement. MariaDB [(none)]>
- How to install MariaDB on Ubuntu Linux
- MariaDB without password prompt
Create a Concrete database
After setting up MariaDB, you need to create a specific database for your Concrete CMS installation. We’ll create a database named ‘concretedb’ and a user called ‘concretedbuser’ for it. This step ensures Concrete has a dedicated place to store all its data. As part of the setup, we will create a concretedb database and a corresponding user account called concretedbuser. Finally, we’ll grant the concretedbuser full access to the concretedb database. All the database steps above can be done using the commands below: But first, log on to the MariaDB database server:Bash / Shell
sudo mariadb
Code
CREATE DATABASE concretedb CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_general_ci; CREATE USER concretedbuser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'type_your_password_here'; GRANT ALL ON concretedb.* TO concretedbuser@localhost WITH GRANT OPTION; FLUSH PRIVILEGES; exit
Install PHP-FPM on Ubuntu Linux
Concrete CMS uses PHP to work, so you need PHP-FPM to run it on Ubuntu. This guide will show you how to install the necessary PHP components, including PHP-FPM. Just run the command below in your terminal to install everything you need. Run the commands below to install PHP-FPM.Bash / Shell
sudo apt install php-fpm php-intl php-mysql php-curl php-cli php-zip php-xml php-gd php-common php-mbstring php-xmlrpc php-json php-sqlite3 php-soap php-zip
Download Concrete files
Now it’s time to get the Concrete CMS files onto your Ubuntu server. You can download the latest version directly from the Concrete website. We’ll show you how to download the files to a temporary directory and then move them to the correct folder for Nginx. To always install the latest version, check the Concrete’s download page. If a new version is available, replace the version number in the link below. First, navigate to the /tmp/ directory and download Concrete files. After unzipping the file, move the content into the Concrete folder in the Nginx root directory. The final step is to change the permissions. This will allow the Nginx web server to safely interact with the files, ensuring a secure environment for your Concrete installation.Command Prompt
cd /tmp wget --trust-server-names https://www.concretecms.org/application/files/6517/1693/2287/concrete-cms-9.3.2.zip unzip concrete-*.zip sudo cp -rf concrete-cms-9.3.2 /var/www/concrete sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/concrete
Bash / Shell
sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/concrete.conf
PHP
server {
listen 80;
listen [::]:80;
root /var/www/concrete;
index index.php;
server_name concrete.example.com;
access_log /var/log/nginx/access.log;
error_log /var/log/nginx/error.log;
location / {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
}
location ~ .php$ {
include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf;
fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php8.3-fpm.sock;
fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
include fastcgi_params;
}
}Bash / Shell
sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/concrete.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/ sudo systemctl restart nginx.service
Setup Let’s Encrypt SSL/TLS for Concrete
Keeping your Concrete CMS site secure is important, so let’s set up an SSL/TLS certificate using Let’s Encrypt with Nginx on Ubuntu. This process encrypts the connection between your visitors and your website, making it safe. We’ll guide you through the steps to get HTTPS working. Please read the post below for additional resources on installing and creating Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates for Nginx. How to set up Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate for Nginx on Ubuntu Linux Once you have restarted the Nginx web server, open your browser and browse to the server hostname or IP address defined in the Nginx server block.Code
http://concrete.example.com
Conclusion
You’ve now successfully set up Concrete CMS on Ubuntu using Nginx and MariaDB. This guide covered installing Nginx for better performance, setting up MariaDB for reliable data storage, and configuring PHP-FPM. Following these steps ensures your Concrete CMS site is ready to go.- Installing Nginx as the web server improves performance, security, and efficiency when hosting Concrete CMS.
- Integration with the MariaDB database server ensures reliable data storage for the Concrete application.
- PHP-FPM installation allows for seamless execution of the PHP-based Concrete CMS.
- Securing the Concrete site with Let’s Encrypt SSL/TLS certificates enhances its security and user trust.
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard, a writer for Geek Rewind, is a tech enthusiast who loves breaking down complex IT topics into simple, easy-to-understand ideas. With years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, he’s developed a knack for offering practical tips and solutions. Richard aims to make technology more accessible and actionable. He's deeply committed to the Geek Rewind community, always ready to answer questions and engage in discussions.
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