How to Install Etherpad on Ubuntu Linux

Install prerequisites

First, update your system and install necessary helper tools.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install gnupg2 git curl unzip libssl-dev pkg-config gcc g++ make build-essential

Install the MariaDB database server

Etherpad needs a database to save your work. MariaDB is a great choice.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install mariadb-server
sudo systemctl stop mariadb
sudo systemctl start mariadb
sudo systemctl enable mariadb

Setup Etherpad database

Note: Modern MariaDB requires you to use your system root account.

sudo mysql -u root
CREATE DATABASE etherdb;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES on etherdb.* to etheruser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'type_password_here';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
exit

Install Node.js

In 2026, it is best to use NVM (Node Version Manager) or the official NodeSource binary distributions to ensure you are running a supported LTS version.

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_lts.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

Install Etherpad

Installing Etherpad on Ubuntu requires creating a dedicated system user and downloading the application files into the correct directory using your terminal. You set up a secure user account, create the program folder in /opt/etherpad, and pull the latest application code to prepare the software for configuration.

sudo useradd --system -d /opt/etherpad --shell=/bin/bash etherpad
sudo install -d -m 755 -o etherpad -g etherpad /opt/etherpad
cd /opt/etherpad
sudo -u etherpad git clone --branch master https://github.com/ether/etherpad-lite.git
cd etherpad-lite
sudo -u etherpad npm install

Next, edit the settings.json file to add your database details and set trustProxy to true.

Create the Service File

Creating a systemd service file for Etherpad lets the application run in the background and start automatically whenever your Ubuntu server reboots. You build this configuration file in /etc/systemd/system/etherpad.service so the operating system manages the application process reliably without manual intervention.

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/etherpad.service

Paste this template:

[Unit]
Description=Etherpad-lite
After=syslog.target network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=etherpad
Group=etherpad
WorkingDirectory=/opt/etherpad/etherpad-lite
Environment=NODE_ENV=production
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node src/node/server.js
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl start etherpad
sudo systemctl enable etherpad

Configure Nginx and SSL

Configuring Nginx and SSL for Etherpad routes web traffic securely through a reverse proxy and encrypts connections with a Let's Encrypt certificate. You install the required web server packages and edit /etc/nginx/sites-available/etherpad.conf to make your server accessible over HTTPS.

sudo apt install nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Create your Nginx config file:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/etherpad.conf

Add your proxy settings:

upstream etherpad {
   server localhost:9001;
}

server {
   listen 80;
   server_name etherpad.example.com;

   location / {
       proxy_pass http://etherpad;
       proxy_set_header Host $host;
       proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
   }
}

Enable the site and get your certificate:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/etherpad.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo systemctl restart nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d etherpad.example.com

Access Etherpad portal

Open your web browser and go to your domain name. You will see the welcome page.

Begin using Etherpad

You can now create new pads or open existing ones to start collaborating.

Reference: https://etherpad.org/

[Unit] [Service] [Install]