How to Install Ackee (Self-Hosted Analytics) on Ubuntu 24.04

Ackee (Self-Hosted Analytics) on Ubuntu 24.04

Ackee is a lightweight, open-source self-hosted web analytics platform built with a strong focus on privacy, simplicity, and data ownership. It offers the most important website metrics—such as page views, referrers, browsers, devices, and screen sizes—without cookies, user profiling, or invasive tracking.

Unlike traditional analytics platforms, Ackee is designed to be GDPR-friendly by default, making it ideal for websites that want meaningful insights without cookie banners or legal complexity.

Running Ackee on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (Noble Numbat) provides a modern, secure, and long-term supported base system. Ubuntu 24.04 ships with OpenSSL 3, systemd 255, and excellent Docker support, making it a solid choice for deploying Ackee with Docker, MongoDB, Nginx, and HTTPS in a clean and production-ready setup.

Architecture Overview

Layer	Component	Role
OS	Ubuntu 24.04 LTS	Stable, long-term supported Linux base
Container Runtime	Docker / Docker Compose	Runs Ackee and MongoDB services
Application	Ackee (Node.js)	Analytics engine and dashboard
Database	MongoDB	Stores anonymized analytics data
Reverse Proxy	Nginx	HTTPS termination, routing, compression
TLS	Let’s Encrypt / PKI	Secure access to the analytics dashboard

Ackee’s architecture is intentionally minimal, which makes it easy to deploy, easy to maintain, and easy to back up.

Why Use Ackee?

Privacy-first analytics – no cookies, no user tracking, no profiling
GDPR-compliant by design – usually no consent banner required
Self-hosted & open-source – complete control over your analytics data
Lightweight and fast – minimal impact on website performance
Clean dashboard – focuses only on meaningful metrics
Simple JS tracking snippet – easy to integrate into any website
Multiple sites support – track several domains from one instance

Ackee is perfect for users who want ethical analytics without unnecessary complexity.

Ackee vs Other Analytics Platforms

Feature / Capability	Ackee	Google Analytics	Plausible	Umami
Hosting	Self-hosted	Cloud only	Cloud / self-hosted	Cloud / self-hosted
Cookies	❌ No	✅ Yes	❌ No	❌ No
GDPR friendly	✅ Yes	❌ No (by default)	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Data ownership	Full	Google-controlled	Partial	Full
Tracking depth	Essential	Very detailed	Essential	Moderate
Cost	Free, open-source	Free / Paid	Paid	Free / Paid

Ackee is best suited for blogs, company sites, landing pages, and privacy-focused projects where trust and transparency matter.

Security & Best Practices

Run Ackee behind Nginx with HTTPS enabled.
Keep Ackee and MongoDB accessible only via internal Docker networks.
Store admin tokens and database credentials using environment variables.
Enable UFW and allow only ports 80 and 443.
Automate SSL certificate renewal using Certbot.
Regularly update Ubuntu, Docker, Ackee, and MongoDB images.
Back up MongoDB data volumes on a scheduled basis.
Restrict dashboard access to trusted users or IP ranges if needed.

Typical Use Cases

Personal blogs & portfolios – privacy-respecting visitor insights
Company websites – GDPR-friendly analytics without cookie banners
Landing pages – track referrers and traffic sources ethically
Agencies & developers – analytics for multiple client websites
Open-source or non-profit projects – transparent and ethical tracking

Deploying Ackee on Ubuntu 24.04 with Docker, MongoDB, Nginx, and SSL gives you a fast, privacy-friendly, and fully self-hosted analytics solution—offering essential insights while respecting user privacy and keeping your data entirely under your control.

Create an Ubuntu 24.04 Instance on Shape.Host

Go to https://shape.host and log in

Click Create

Choose Instance

Select a server location

Shape.host instance form with the data center location selector highlighted.

Choose Ubuntu 24.04 (64-bit)

Pick a plan (recommended minimum):

2 vCPU

4 GB RAM

20 GB NVMe SSD

Shape.host instance form with the operating system image selector highlighted.

Click Create Instance

Wait for provisioning

Shape.host instance form with the Create Instance button highlighted.

Copy the public IP address

Shape.host Resources dashboard with the server IP address highlighted.

Step 1: Connect to the Server via SSH

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

You are now logged in as the root user.

Step 2: Update the System

apt update
apt upgrade -y

Updates package lists and installs the latest security updates.

Terminal showing APT package management commands and output.

Step 3: Install Required System Packages

apt install ca-certificates curl gnupg lsb-release

These packages are required to securely add external repositories.

Step 4: Create Docker Keyrings Directory

mkdir -p /etc/apt/keyrings

Stores trusted GPG keys for package verification.

Step 5: Add Docker GPG Key

curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg

Ensures Docker packages are verified and trusted.

Step 6: Add Docker Repository

echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg] \
https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu \
$(lsb_release -cs) stable" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list

Adds the official Docker repository.

Step 7: Update Package List Again

apt update

Loads the newly added Docker repository.

Step 8: Install Docker and Docker Compose

apt install docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

Installs Docker Engine and Docker Compose v2.

Step 9: Verify Docker Installation

docker version
docker compose version

Confirms Docker is installed correctly.

Step 10: Create Ackee Directory

mkdir -p /opt/ackee
cd /opt/ackee

This directory will store Ackee configuration and MongoDB data.

Terminal showing the installed Docker Compose version.

Step 11: Create Docker Compose File

nano docker-compose.yml

Paste the following configuration:

services:
  mongo:
    image: mongo:6
    container_name: ackee-mongo
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - ./mongo-data:/data/db

  ackee:
    image: electerious/ackee:latest
    container_name: ackee
    restart: unless-stopped
    depends_on:
      - mongo
    environment:
      - ACKEE_MONGODB=mongodb://mongo:27017/ackee
      - ACKEE_USERNAME=admin
      - ACKEE_PASSWORD=STRONG_ADMIN_PASSWORD
      - ACKEE_ALLOW_ORIGIN=https://analytics.example.com
    ports:
      - "127.0.0.1:3000:3000"

Explanation:

MongoDB stores analytics data
Ackee runs only on localhost for security
Admin credentials are set via environment variables
ACKEE_ALLOW_ORIGIN must match your domain

Save and exit the file.

Terminal showing application configuration fields.

Step 12: Start Ackee

docker compose up -d

Starts MongoDB and Ackee in the background.

Terminal showing container image download progress.

Step 13: Check Running Containers

docker ps

Both ackee and ackee-mongo containers should be running.

Terminal showing the Docker container listing.

Step 14: Test Ackee Locally

curl http://127.0.0.1:3000

Confirms Ackee is responding before exposing it to the internet.

Terminal showing curl commands or output during Test Ackee Locally.

Step 15: Install Nginx

apt install nginx

Nginx will act as a reverse proxy.

Step 16: Enable and Start Nginx

systemctl enable nginx
systemctl start nginx

Terminal showing systemd service management commands or output.

Step 17: Create Nginx Reverse Proxy Configuration

nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/ackee

Paste:

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

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Terminal showing web server configuration text.

Step 18: Enable the Nginx Site

ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/ackee /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/ackee
rm /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/default

Step 19: Test and Reload Nginx

nginx -t
systemctl reload nginx

Step 20: Install SSL Certificate

apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx
certbot --nginx -d ubuntu-tutorials.shape.host

Certbot automatically configures HTTPS.

Terminal showing Certbot certificate commands and messages.

Access Ackee Analytics

https://your-domain.com

Username: admin
Password: STRONG_ADMIN_PASSWORD

Ackee analytics overview showing visitor, view and duration statistics.

Ackee runs best on fast, reliable infrastructure.

Shape.Host Linux SSD VPS provides:

NVMe SSD storage
Instant deployment
Clean Linux images
Stable networking
Perfect performance for Docker workloads

Deploy your next self-hosted analytics stack at https://shape.host.