How to Install Live Helper Chat with Apache on Ubuntu Linux

Install Apache HTTP

To install Apache HTTP on your Ubuntu server, run the update command and then install the 💿 apache2 package using the terminal. Apache is a web server that makes your Live Helper Chat application accessible online, so this step gets the basic web server software set up and ready to go.

To install Apache2 HTTP on the Ubuntu server, run the commands below.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install apache2

After installing 💿 Apache2, the commands below can stop, start, and enable the Apache2 service to always start up with the server boots.

sudo systemctl stop apache2.service
sudo systemctl start apache2.service
sudo systemctl enable apache2.service

To determine if the Apache2 HTTP server is installed, open your web browser and type in the server’s IP or hostname.

When you see a page similar to the one below, Apache2 is installed and working.

http://localhost

Install MariaDB Database Server

To install MariaDB on your Ubuntu server, run the apt install command for mariadb-server and mariadb-client. Live Helper Chat needs a database to store all your chat conversations and settings, so setting up MariaDB creates the secure storage system your chat application requires to function correctly.

To install MariaDB, run the commands below.

sudo apt install mariadb-server mariadb-client

After installing MariaDB, the commands below can stop, start, and enable the service to start when the server boots.

Run these on Ubuntu

sudo systemctl stop mariadb.service
sudo systemctl start mariadb.service
sudo systemctl enable mariadb.service

sudo mysql_secure_installation

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

To test if MariaDB is installed, type the commands below to log on to the MariaDB server.

sudo mysql -u root -p

Then, type the password you created above to sign on. If successful, you should see a MariaDB welcome message.

Install PHP 7.2 and Related Modules

To install PHP 7.2 and related modules on Ubuntu, add the software-properties-common repository and then install the required PHP packages. Live Helper Chat needs PHP 7.2 to work right, and since Ubuntu might not have it by default, adding this software source gets you the tools your chat application needs to run.

Run the commands below to add the below third party repository to upgrade to PHP 7.2

sudo apt-get install software-properties-common
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php

Then update and upgrade to PHP 7.2

sudo apt update

Next, run the commands below to install PHP 7.2 and related modules.

sudo apt install php7.2 libapache2-mod-php7.2 php7.2-common php7.2-gmp php7.2-curl php7.2-intl php7.2-mbstring php7.2-xmlrpc php7.2-mysql php7.2-gd php7.2-bcmath php7.2-xml php7.2-cli php7.2-zip php7.2-sqlite

After installing PHP 7.2, run the commands below to open the PHP default config file for Apache2.

sudo nano /etc/php/7.2/apache2/php.ini

Then, save the changes on the following lines below in the file. The value below is an ideal setting to apply in your environment.

file_uploads = On
allow_url_fopen = On
short_open_tag = On
memory_limit = 256M
upload_max_filesize = 100M
max_execution_time = 360
max_input_vars = 1500
date.timezone = America/Chicago

After making the change above, please save the file and close it.

To test PHP 7.2 settings with Apache2, create a phpinfo.php file in the Apache2 root directory by running the commands below

sudo nano /var/www/html/phpinfo.php

Then, type the content below and save the file.

<?php phpinfo( ); ?>

Save the file. Then browse to your server hostname followed by /phpinfo.php

http://localhost/phpinfo.php

You should see the PHP default test page.

Create a Live Helper Chat Database

To create a Live Helper Chat database, log into MariaDB using your root password and run the SQL command to create a new database named livehelperchat. This dedicated database keeps all your chat conversations and application settings organized and accessible.

Run the commands below to log on to MariaDB. When prompted for a password, type the root password you created above.

sudo mysql -u root -p

Then, create a database called livehelperchat

CREATE DATABASE livehelperchat;

Create a database user called livehelperchatuser with a new password

CREATE USER 'livehelperchatuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'new_password_here';

Then grant the user full access to the livehelperchat database.

GRANT ALL ON livehelperchat.* TO 'livehelperchatuser'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;

Finally, save your changes and exit.

FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Download Live Helper Chat Latest Release

To download the Live Helper Chat latest release, install wget, move to the temporary folder, and download the master zip file from GitHub. This gets the source files ready on your server so you can move them to your web root and finish the setup.

sudo apt install wget
cd /tmp
wget https://github.com/remdex/livehelperchat/archive/master.zip
unzip master.zip
sudo mv livehelperchat-master /var/www/livehelperchat

To do that, run the commands below:

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/livehelperchat/
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/livehelperchat/

Configure Apache2

To configure Apache2 for Live Helper Chat, create a new site configuration file in the sites-available directory using the nano text editor and paste your server settings. This file tells Apache how to handle web traffic for your chat application and connects everything properly.

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/livehelperchat.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>
     ServerAdmin admin@example.com
     DocumentRoot /var/www/livehelperchat/lhc_web
     ServerName example.com
     ServerAlias www.example.com

     <Directory /var/www/livehelperchat/lhc_web/>
        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.

Enable the Live Helper Chat and Rewrite Module

After configuring the VirtualHost above, please enable it by running the commands below.

sudo a2ensite livehelperchat.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo systemctl restart apache2.service

Then open your browser and browse to the server domain name or hostname. This is often localhost but can be a hostname or IP address. Your server admin or hosting company will have this information available.

http://example.com/

Continue with the installation wizard, validate that all requirements are met, and continue.

Next, enter the database username and password and the database created above.

After that, create an admin account to manage the platform.

After installing, log in and start to begin managing your platform.

Conclusion:

You have learned to install Live Helper Chat on Ubuntu with an Apache2 HTTP server. If you find any errors above, please leave a comment below.

Thanks,