How to install vTiger CRM with Apache on Ubuntu 24.04

Install Apache HTTP server on Ubuntu

To install the Apache web server on Ubuntu, open your terminal and run the commands ‘sudo apt update’ followed by ‘sudo apt install apache2’. Apache is needed to run vTiger CRM and this step gets it ready on your system.

To do that, open the Ubuntu terminal and run the commands below to install the Apache web server.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install apache2

Once Apache is installed, the commands below can start, stop, and enable the Apache web server to start automatically when your server boots up.

sudo systemctl stop apache2
sudo systemctl start apache2
sudo systemctl enable apache2

You can test that the Apache web server is running by opening your web browser and browsing to the server’s localhost or IP address.

http://localhost

When you see the Apache2 Default Page, it means the Apache HTTP server is successfully installed.

Additional help on installing Apache on Ubuntu is in the link below.

How to install Apache on Ubuntu

Install the MariaDB database server on Ubuntu

You’ll need a database server for vTiger CRM, and MariaDB is a great choice. To install MariaDB on Ubuntu, open your terminal and type ‘sudo apt update’ then ‘sudo apt install mariadb-server’. This sets up the database system vTiger will use.

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.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install mariadb-server

Once the MariaDB database server is installed, use the commands below to stop, start, and enable the MariaDB server to start automatically when the server boots.

sudo systemctl stop mariadb
sudo systemctl start mariadb
sudo systemctl enable mariadb

Run the following commands to validate and test if the MariaDB database server is installed successfully.

sudo mariadb

Once you run the commands above, it will log you onto the MariaDB console and display a message similar to the one below.

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)]> 

The message tells you that the server is installed successfully.

Additional help on installing MariaDB.

• How to install MariaDB on Ubuntu Linux
• MariaDB without password prompt

Create a vTiger database

After installing MariaDB, you need to create a specific database for vTiger. This involves creating a database named ‘vtigerdb’ and a user ‘vtigerdbuser’, then giving that user full permissions for the ‘vtigerdb’ database. This prepares a dedicated space for vTiger’s data.

As part of the setup, we will create a vtigerdb database and a user account called vtigerdbuser.

Finally, we’ll grant the vtigerdbuser full access to the vtigerdb database.

All the database steps above can be done using the commands below:

But first, log on to the MariaDB database server:

sudo mariadb

Then run the commands below to complete the steps:

CREATE DATABASE vtigerdb CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_general_ci;
CREATE USER vtigerdbuser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'type_your_password_here';
GRANT ALL ON vtigerdb.* TO vtigerdbuser@localhost WITH GRANT OPTION;
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
exit

Ensure to replace ‘type_your_password_here ‘with your password.

Install PHP on Ubuntu Linux

vTiger CRM is built using PHP, so you need to install it on your Ubuntu system. Run the command ‘sudo apt install php libapache2-mod-php 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-ldap php-zip’ in your terminal to get PHP and all the necessary modules.

Run the commands below to install PHP.

sudo apt install php libapache2-mod-php 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-ldap php-zip

Additional help on installing PHP

How to install PHP on Ubuntu Linux

Download vTiger files

To get vTiger CRM onto your Ubuntu server, you first need to download its files. Go to the /tmp/ directory in your terminal, download the latest version from the vTiger website (replacing the version number in the link if needed), and then unzip it. Finally, move the unzipped vTiger contents into the correct folder for Apache.

To always install the latest version, check the vTiger’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 vTiger files. After unzipping the file, move the content into the vTiger folder in the Apache root directory.

The final step is to change the permissions. This will allow the Apache web server to interact safely with the files, ensuring a secure environment for your vTiger installation.

cd /tmp
wget https://phoenixnap.dl.sourceforge.net/project/vtigercrm/vtiger%20CRM%208.2.0/Core%20Product/vtigercrm8.2.0.tar.gz
tar -xvf vtigercrm8.2.0.tar.gz
sudo mv vtigercrm /var/www/vtigercrm
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/vtigercrm

Once you have completed all the above steps, continue configuring the Apache web server below to serve the vTiger content.

Run the commands below to create an Apache virtual host file for vTiger.

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/vtigercrm.conf

Then, copy and paste the content block below into the Apache server block.

<VirtualHost *:80>
  ServerName vtigercrm.example.com
  ServerAlias www.vtigercrm.example.com
  ServerAdmin admin@example.com
  DocumentRoot /var/www/vtigercrm
    
  <Directory /var/www/vtigercrm/>
       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.

Then, run the commands below to enable the virtual host and restart the Apache server.

sudo a2ensite vtigercrm.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo systemctl restart apache2

Setup Let’s Encrypt SSL/TLS for vTiger

Securing your vTiger installation with HTTPS is important, and Let’s Encrypt provides free SSL certificates. You can set up a Let’s Encrypt certificate for Apache on Ubuntu by following a separate guide. Once your certificate is ready, you’ll need to restart the Apache web server for the changes to take effect.

Please read the post below for additional resources on installing and creating Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates for Apache.

How to set up Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate for Apache on Ubuntu Linux

Once you have restarted the Apache web server, open your browser and browse to the server hostname or IP address defined in the Apache server block.

http://vtiger.example.com

A vTiger installation wizard page should appear. Click Install to begin.

Next, enter the database name, database account, and password. Then, create an administrator account and continue.

Confirm the setup info and continue.

On the next screen, create a user account and complete the installation. Then, choose what vTiger CRM features you want to install and continue.

Your vTiger site should be set up and ready to use.

That should do it!

Conclusion:

• 💿 Installing vTiger CRM on Ubuntu with Apache support provides a robust platform for centralizing customer data, thus ensuring complete control and security over valuable customer information.
• The combination of Apache’s web server capabilities and Ubuntu’s stability and security makes it an ideal environment for hosting vTiger CRM. This enables effective customer relationship management and streamlined sales, marketing, and customer support processes.
• The process involves 💿 installing an Apache HTTP server and a MariaDB database server, creating a vTiger database, installing PHP, ⬇️ downloading vTiger files, configuring an Apache web server, and setting up Let’s Encrypt SSL/TLS for vTiger to secure the installation.
• Through the guided steps in this article, users can successfully set up vTiger CRM on Ubuntu with Apache support, ensuring a reliable solution for their business needs.