‍Are you looking to create an online digital collection and exhibit cultural heritage objects? Omeka, a free and open-source content management system, is the perfect solution for you. With its user-friendly interface and extensive customization options, Omeka allows you to publish and showcase your collections in a visually appealing manner. In this step-by-step guide, we will show you how to install Omeka on Rocky Linux 8 using the LEMP stack. Let’s get started!

Create Database

The first step is to create a database and a user for Omeka to interact with. Open your terminal and log in as the root user. Once logged in, enter the following commands:

mysql -u root
CREATE DATABASE shapehost;
CREATE USER 'shapehost'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'YOUR-PASSWORD-HERE';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON shapehost.* TO 'shapehost'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
quit

Make sure to replace ‘YOUR-PASSWORD-HERE’ with a strong and secure password of your choice. These commands will create a database named “shapehost” and a user named “shapehost” with full privileges on the database.

Configuring Nginx Reverse Proxy

Next, we need to configure Nginx as a reverse proxy for Omeka. Open the nginx.conf file using the following command:

nano /etc/nginx/nginx.conf

Replace the contents of the nginx.conf file with the following configuration:

# For more information on configuration, see:
# * Official English Documentation: http://nginx.org/en/docs/
# * Official Russian Documentation: http://nginx.org/ru/docs/

nginx;
worker_processes auto;
error_log /var/log/nginx/error.log;
pid /run/nginx.pid;

# Load dynamic modules. See /usr/share/doc/nginx/README.dynamic.
include /usr/share/nginx/modules/*.conf;

events {
 worker_connections 1024;
}

http {
 log_format main '$remote_addr - $remote_user [$time_local] "$request" '
 '$status $body_bytes_sent "$http_referer" '
 '"$http_user_agent" "$http_x_forwarded_for"';

 access_log /var/log/nginx/access.log main;

 sendfile on;
 tcp_nopush on;
 tcp_nodelay on;
 keepalive_timeout 65;
 types_hash_max_size 2048;

 include /etc/nginx/mime.types;
 default_type application/octet-stream;

 # Load modular configuration files from the /etc/nginx/conf.d directory.
 # See http://nginx.org/en/docs/ngx_core_module.html#include
 # for more information.
 include /etc/nginx/conf.d/*.conf;
}

To save and exit the file, press Ctrl+O followed by Ctrl+X.

Now, let’s create a new Nginx configuration file for our domain. Execute the following command:

vi /etc/nginx/conf.d/shapehost.conf

Add the following code to the newly created file:

server {
listen 80;
server_name your-domain.com;
root /var/www/html/omeka;
index index.php index.html index.htm;

location / {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
}

location = /favicon.ico {
log_not_found off;
access_log off;
}

location ~* \.(js|css|png|jpg|jpeg|gif|ico)$ {
expires max;
log_not_found off;
}

location = /robots.txt {
allow all;
log_not_found off;
access_log off;
}

location ~ \.php$ {
include /etc/nginx/fastcgi_params;
fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php-fpm/www.sock;
fastcgi_index index.php;
fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
}

listen 443 http2 ssl; # managed by Certbot
ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/fullchain.pem; # managed by Certbot
ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/your-domain.com/privkey.pem; # managed by Certbot
include /etc/letsencrypt/options-ssl-nginx.conf; # managed by Certbot
ssl_dhparam /etc/letsencrypt/ssl-dhparams.pem; # managed by Certbot
}

Remember to replace “your-domain.com” with your actual domain name. Also, make sure to update the SSL certificate paths accordingly. Once done, press Esc, type :wq!, and hit Enter to save and exit the file.

For SELinux enabled systems, run the following command to allow Nginx to connect to the network:

setsebool -P httpd_can_network_connect1

Finally, restart Nginx and verify its status using the following commands:

systemctl restart nginx
systemctl status nginx

Enable HTTP and HTTPS (80/443)

To enable HTTP and HTTPS connections through the firewall, execute the following commands:

firewall-cmd --permanent --zone=public --add-service=http
firewall-cmd --permanent --zone=public --add-service=https
firewall-cmd --reload

Install Omeka

Now that the server is properly configured, it’s time to download and install Omeka. Change to the appropriate directory using the following command:

cd /var/www/html

Create a directory for Omeka and navigate into it:

mkdir omeka && cd omeka

Download the latest version of Omeka using the following command:

wget https://github.com/omeka/omeka-s/releases/download/v3.1.1/omeka-s-3.1.1.zip

Unzip the downloaded file:

unzip omeka-s-3.1.1.zip

Remove the zip file:

rm omeka-s-3.1.1.zip

Navigate into the Omeka-S directory:

cd omeka -s

Setting up Database Details

Before we proceed with the installation, we need to provide Omeka with the necessary database details. Open the config/database.ini file using the following command:

nano config/database.ini

Update the file with the following configurations:

user = "shapehost"
password = "YOUR-PASSWORD-HERE"
dbname = "shapehost"
host = "localhost"
port = "3306"

Make sure to replace “YOUR-PASSWORD-HERE” with the password you set for the “shapehost” user in the earlier steps. Save and exit the file by pressing Ctrl+O followed by Ctrl+X.

Setting up File Permissions

To ensure that Omeka can access and modify the necessary files, we need to set the correct file permissions. Execute the following commands:

chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/omeka/omeka-s
chmod -R 777 /var/www/html/omeka/omeka-s/files
chown -R nginx:nginx /var/www/html/omeka/omeka-s
chcon -R -t httpd_sys_content_rw_t /var/www/html/omeka/omeka-s

Once done, restart Nginx and verify its status:

systemctl restart nginx
systemctl status nginx

Configuring Omeka

Now that everything is set up, it’s time to configure Omeka through the web interface. Open your browser and enter your server’s IP address or domain name, followed by “/admin”. For example, https://your-domain.com/admin.

Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation process. Make sure to provide the necessary information, such as the site title, administrator email, and password.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed Omeka with the LEMP stack on Rocky Linux 8. You can now start building your online digital collection and sharing your cultural heritage objects with the world.

Conclusion

In this article, we have explained how to install Omeka on Rocky Linux 8 using the LEMP stack. We covered the necessary prerequisites, database setup, Nginx configuration, Omeka installation, and configuration. By following these steps, you can create a powerful platform for managing and showcasing your digital collections. If you encounter any issues during the installation process, don’t hesitate to reach out to our 24/7 customer support for assistance.

Remember, Omeka is an excellent tool for curating and sharing cultural heritage objects. With its intuitive interface and robust features, you can build a visually stunning online collection that engages your audience. So, why wait? Install Omeka on Rocky Linux 8 today and unlock the full potential of your digital collections!

Christian Wells