This post shows students and new users steps to install Moodle course management platform on Ubuntu with Apache web server and free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate to ensure visitors communicate over HTTPS only.
Moodle is an open-source course management system that is widely used by professionals, businesses, and colleges who want to run and manage their courses or training materials online securely.
To run Moodle, you need a web server, a database server, and PHP. Apache is one of the most popular open-source web servers available today, and Ubuntu is a popular Linux distribution widely used for web hosting and server management.
Installing Moodle on Ubuntu Linux with Apache ensures a stable and secure environment for running and managing courses or training materials online.
Follow the steps below to install Moodle on Ubuntu Linux with Apache and Let’s Encrypt.
How to set your domain
If you’re using Let’s Encrypt, you should then ensure your domain is configured correctly. This setup assumes that your domain name is called example.com and is pointing to your server with IP address 192.168.1.2
Don’t forget also to make sure www CNAME is pointing to the domain name. It should look like something below:
example.com A ==========> 192.168.1.2 www CNAME ==========> example.com
How to install Apache on Ubuntu Linux
As mentioned above, we will use the Apache web server to run Moodle. Moodle requires a web server to function, and Apache is one of the most popular open-source web servers available today.
To install Apache on Ubuntu, run the commands below:
sudo apt update sudo apt install apache2
After installing Apache, the commands below can stop, start, and enable Apache services to start up every time your server starts up.
sudo systemctl stop apache2.service sudo systemctl start apache2.service sudo systemctl enable apache2.service
To test whether Apache is installed and functioning, open your web browser and browse to the server’s IP address or hostname.
http://localhost
Apache works as expected if you see the above page in your browser.
How to install MariaDB on Ubuntu Linux
A database server is required for Moodle to function. Moodle stores its content in a database, and MariaDB is probably the best database server available to run Moodle.
MariaDB is fast and secure and is the default server for almost all Linux servers. To install MariaDB, run the commands below:
sudo apt install mariadb-server sudo apt install mariadb-client
After installing MariaDB, the commands below can be used to stop, start, and enable MariaDB services always to start up when the server boots.
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, use the guide below to answer:
If you've just installed MariaDB, and haven't set the root password yet, you should just press enter here. Enter current password for root (enter for none): PRESS ENTER Switch to unix_socket authentication [Y/n] n Change the root password? [Y/n] n 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 All done!
To verify and validate that MariaDB is installed and working, log in to the database console using the commands below:
sudo mysql -u root -p
You should automatically be logged in to the database server since we initiated the login request as root. Only the root can log in from the server console without a password.
If you see a similar screen as shown above, then the server was successfully installed.
Next, run the commands below to open the MariaDB default config file…
sudo nano /etc/mysql/mariadb.conf.d/50-server.cnf
Then add the highlighted lines below and save.
[mysqld]
#
* Basic Settings
#
user = mysql
pid-file = /run/mysqld/mysqld.pid
socket = /run/mysqld/mysqld.sock
#port = 3306
basedir = /usr
datadir = /var/lib/mysql
tmpdir = /tmp
lc-messages-dir = /usr/share/mysql
#skip-external-locking
innodb_file_format = Barracuda
innodb_file_per_table = 1
innodb_large_prefix = ON
Restart MariaDB after that.
sudo systemctl restart mariadb.service
How to install PHP on Ubuntu Linux
As mentioned above, we’re installing PHP on Ubuntu since Moodle requires it. PHP packages are added to Ubuntu repositories. The versions of the repositories might not be the latest. If you need to install the latest versions, you’ll need to add a third-party PPA repository.
Run the commands below to a third-party repository with the latest versions of PHP.
sudo apt-get install software-properties-common sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
At the time of this writing, the latest PHP version is 7.4.
sudo apt update
Next, run the commands below to install PHP 7.4 and related modules.
sudo apt install php7.4 libapache2-mod-php7.4 php7.4-common php7.4-mysql php7.4-gmp php7.4-curl php7.4-intl php7.4-mbstring php7.4-xmlrpc php7.4-gd php7.4-xml php7.4-cli php7.4-zip
Next, you’ll want to change some great PHP configuration settings with Moodle. Run the commands below to open the PHP default configuration file.
sudo nano /etc/php/7.4/apache2/php.ini
Then, change the line settings to something like the lines below. Save your changes and exit.
file_uploads = On allow_url_fopen = On short_open_tag = On memory_limit = 256M cgi.fix_pathinfo = 0 upload_max_filesize = 100M max_execution_time = 360 date.timezone = America/Chicago
How to create Moodle database on Ubuntu
At this point, we’re ready to create a Moodle database. As mentioned above, Moodle uses databases to store its content.
To create a database for Moodle, run the commands below:
sudo mysql -u root -p
Then, create a database called moodle
CREATE DATABASE moodle;
Next, create a database user called moodleuser and set a password
CREATE USER 'moodleuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'new_password_here';
Then, grant the user full access to the database.
GRANT ALL ON moodle.* TO 'moodleuser'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;
Finally, save your changes and exit.
FLUSH PRIVILEGES; EXIT;
How to download and install Moodle on Ubuntu Linux
You may want to use the GitHub repository to get Moodle’s latest release. Install Curl and other dependencies to get started.
sudo apt install git curl
After installing git and Curl above, change into the Apache2 root directory and download Moodle packages from Github. Always replace the branch number with the latest branch. The current major version is 36.
cd /var/www/html sudo git clone -b MOODLE_36_STABLE git://git.moodle.org/moodle.git example.com sudo mv moodle /var/www/
Then, run the commands below to set the correct permissions for Moodle to function.
sudo mkdir -p /var/www/moodledata sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/ sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/
How to configure Apache for Moodle
Next, configure the Apache site configuration file for Moodle. This file will control how users access Moodle content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called example.com.conf
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/example.com.conf
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.
<VirtualHost *:80> ServerName example.com ServerAlias www.example.com ServerAdmin admin@example.com DocumentRoot /var/www/example.com <Directory /var/www/example.com/> 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.
Now that the example.com configuration file is created, run the commands below to enable it.
sudo a2ensite example.com.conf
At this stage, Moodle is ready and can be launched by going to the server’s IP or hostname.
http://localhost
However, we want to protect our server with Let’s Encrypt free SSL certificates. So, continue below to learn how to generate a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate for websites.
How to setup Let’s Encrypt for Moodle
We have written a great post on generating and managing Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates for Apache web servers. You can use that post to apply it here for your Moodle website.
To read the post on how to generate Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates for a website, click on the link below:
How to Setup Let’s Encrypt on Ubuntu Linux with Apache – Website for Students
If you successfully generated a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate, you should reopen the server block for our Moodle website by running the commands below.
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/example.com.conf
The new Moodle server block configurations should look similar to the line below. Take notes of the highlighted lines.
- The first server block listens on port 80. It contains a 301 redirect to redirect HTTP to HTTPS.
- The second server block listens on port 443. It contains a 301 redirect to redirect www to the non-www domain.
<VirtualHost *:80> ServerName example.com ServerAlias www.example.com Redirect permanent / https://example.com/ </VirtualHost> <VirtualHost *:443> ServerName example.com ServerAlias www.example.com DocumentRoot /var/www/example.com Protocols h2 http:/1.1 <If "%{HTTP_HOST} == 'www.example.com'"> Redirect permanent / https://example.com/ </If> ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/example.com-error.log CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/example.com-access.log combined SSLEngine On SSLCertificateFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/example.com/fullchain.pem SSLCertificateKeyFile /etc/letsencrypt/live/example.com/privkey.pem SSLOpenSSLConfCmd DHParameters "/etc/ssl/certs/dhparam.pem" SSLCipherSuite ECDHE-ECDSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:ECDHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:ECDHE-ECDSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384:ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384:ECDHE-ECDSA-CHACHA20-POLY1305:ECDHE-RSA-CHACHA20-POLY1305:DHE-RSA-AES128-GCM-SHA256:DHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 SSLProtocol All -SSLv2 -SSLv3 -TLSv1 -TLSv1.1 SSLCompression off SSLUseStapling on Header always set Strict-Transport-Security "max-age=63072000" <Directory /var/www/example.com/> Options FollowSymlinks AllowOverride All Require all granted </Directory> </VirtualHost>
Save the file above, then restart Apache and PHP using the commands below.
sudo systemctl reload apache2
Finally, if everything went as planned, you should be able to start the Moodle setup wizard by browsing to the server hostname or IP address over HTTPS.
https://example.com/
Then, follow the on-screen instructions and select the installation language here.
Next, select the MariaDB connection driver and continue.
Enter the database connection info you created above on the next screen and continue.
Then, create an admin account and the Moodle site info and finish the installation.
You should configure your main administrator account on this page, which will completely control the site. Ensure you give it a secure username and password and a valid email address. You can create more admin accounts later on.
Log in and begin configuring your Moodle website.
In the future, when you want to upgrade to a newly released version, simply run the commands below to upgrade.
How to upgrade Moodle on Ubuntu Linux
First, stop the web server…
sudo systemctl stop apache2
For students and new users who already have Moodle installed and wish to upgrade, assuming that you followed the steps above to install, run the commands below to backup your old Moodle folder…
sudo mv /var/www/example.com /var/www/example.com_bak
Then change into the web server root directory and download the latest version of Moodle from GitHub…. always change the version number to the current (latest)
cd /var/www/html sudo git clone -b MOODLE_37_STABLE git://git.moodle.org/moodle.git example.com
Next, copy the Moodle config file, theme, and data folder… If you updated your themes… theme content should be there…. If you also installed additional modules… you should find them in the /mod directory… copy them to the new Moodle folder….
sudo cp /var/www/example.com_bak/config.php /var/www/example.com sudo cp -pr /var/www/example.com_bak/theme/mytheme /var/www/example.com/theme/mytheme sudo cp -pr /var/www/example.com_bak/mod/mymod /var/www/example.com/mod/mymod
After that, update the web server permissions.
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/example.com/ sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/example.com/
Restart your web server.
sudo systemctl start apache2
The last step is to trigger the upgrade processes within Moodle…. If you put your site into Maintenance mode earlier, take it out now!
Once you browse to the server IP or hostname, Moodle should prompt you to begin upgrading your database… After upgrading the database, login to Moodle and go to:
Administration > Site administration > Notifications.
Moodle will automatically detect the new version and perform all the necessary SQL database or file system upgrades. If there is anything it can’t do itself (very rare), then you will see messages telling you what you need to do.
Assuming all goes well (no error messages), you can start using your new version of Moodle and enjoy the new features!
That should do it!
Conclusion:
This post showed you how to install Moodle on Ubuntu Linux with Apache and Let’s Encrypt. If you find any error above or have something to add, please use the comment form below.
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