Cerb is a powerful and versatile platform for business collaboration and email automation. It offers a range of features such as shared mailboxes, e-mail management, mobile functionality, and real-time monitoring. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of installing Cerb on Ubuntu 22.04, ensuring that you have all the necessary prerequisites, configuring the required components, and securing your installation with Let’s Encrypt SSL.

Prerequisites

Before you begin the installation process, make sure you have the following prerequisites in place:

• A server running Ubuntu 22.04.
• A valid domain name pointed to your server IP.
• A root password configured on the server.

Getting Started

Let’s get started by updating all system packages to the latest version. Open the terminal and run the following commands:

apt update -y
apt upgrade -y

Once your system is updated, you can proceed to the next step.

Install Apache, MySQL, and PHP

To install Cerb, you need to have Apache web server, MySQL database server, PHP, and other required modules installed on your system. Run the following command to install them:

apt install apache2 mysql-server php libapache2-mod-php php-mysql php-mbstring php-gd php-imap php-curl php-mailparse php-yaml php-gmp php-dev php-pear git wget unzip -y

Additionally, you need to install the Mailparse PHP extension. Download the latest version of Mailparse using the following command:

wget https://pecl.php.net/get/mailparse-3.1.4.tgz

Extract the downloaded file:

tar -xvzf mailparse-3.1.4.tgz

Navigate to the extracted directory and configure Mailparse:

cd mailparse-3.1.4
phpize
./configure
sed -i 's/^\\(#error .* the mbstring extension!\\)/\/\/\1/' mailparse.c

Install the Mailparse extension:

make
make install

Open the php.ini file:

nano /etc/php/8.1/apache2/php.ini

Update the following lines:

memory_limit = 256M
upload_max_filesize = 100M
max_execution_time = 360
date.timezone = UTC
extension=mailparse.so

Save and close the file. Restart the Apache service to apply the changes:

systemctl restart apache2

Create a Database for Cerb

Next, you need to create a database and user for Cerb. Log into the MySQL shell:

mysql

Create a database and user:

CREATE DATABASE cerbdb CHARACTER SET utf8;
CREATE USER cerbuser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'password';

Grant all privileges to the Cerb user:

GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON cerbdb.* TO cerbuser@localhost;

Flush the privileges and exit the MySQL shell:

FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Install Cerb

Now, you can proceed with installing Cerb. Download the latest version of Cerb from the Git repository:

cd /var/www/html
git clone https://github.com/cerb/cerb-release.git cerb

Navigate to the Cerb directory and rename the .htaccess-dist file:

cd cerb
mv .htaccess-dist .htaccess

Set the ownership and permissions of the Cerb directory:

chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/cerb
chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/cerb

Create Apache Virtual Host for Cerb

To serve Cerb, you need to create an Apache virtual host configuration file. Create the file using the following command:

nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/cerb.conf

Add the following lines to the file:

<VirtualHost *:80>
ServerAdmin [email protected]
DocumentRoot /var/www/html/cerb
ServerName cerb.linuxbuz.com

<Directory /var/www/html/cerb/>
Options FollowSymlinks
AllowOverride All
Require all granted
</Directory>

ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Save and close the file. Enable the Cerb virtual host:

a2ensite cerb.conf

Reload the Apache service to apply the configuration changes:

systemctl restart apache2

Verify the status of the Apache service:

systemctl status apache2

Install Let’s Encrypt SSL on Cerb

Securing your Cerb web interface with Let’s Encrypt SSL is highly recommended. Install the Certbot client in your system:

apt install snapd
snap install core
snap refresh core
snap install --classic certbot
ln -s /snap/bin/certbot /usr/bin/certbot

Download and install Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates:

certbot --apache

Follow the prompts to select your domain and provide a valid email address. Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates will be installed and managed by the Certbot client.

Access Cerb Web Interface

After configuring the necessary components, you can now access the Cerb web interface. Open your web browser and enter the URL https://cerb.linuxbuz.com. You will be redirected to the Cerb setup page.

Verify all PHP extensions and click on the “Continue” button. Accept the License agreement and provide your database details. Verify the mail settings and provide your name, email, and password. Click on the “Continue” button to start the installation.

Once the installation is complete, click on the “Log in and get started” button. Enter your email and password to access the Cerb dashboard.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully installed Cerb Collaboration and Email Automation on Ubuntu 22.04. You can now explore the extensive features of Cerb and start collaborating with your team efficiently. Should you have any questions or face any issues, feel free to reach out to our expert support team at Shape.host. We provide reliable Linux SSD VPS hosting solutions to empower businesses with scalable and secure cloud hosting.

Christian Wells