Published June 19, 2018 by

Install NextCloud On Ubuntu/Debian

This post shows you how to install NextCloud on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS with Apache2, MariaDB, and PHP. NextCloud is a fork of OwnCloud. Like DropBox and other cloud storage services, NextCloud and OwnCloud provide similar functions and unlike the others, they both are free to use.

This brief tutorial shows students and new users steps to install and configure NextCloud on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS Servers their own environment.


To get started with installing NextCloud, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Install Apache2

NextCloud requires a web server to function and the most popular web server in use today is Apache2. So, go and install Apache2 on Ubuntu by running the commands below:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install apache2 -y

After installing Apache2, run the commands below to disable directory listing.

sudo sed -i "s/Options Indexes FollowSymLinks/Options FollowSymLinks/" /etc/apache2/apache2.conf

Next, run the commands below to stop, start and enable 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

Step 2: Install MariaDB

NextCloud also requires a database server to function.. and MariaDB database server is a great place to start. To install it run the commands below.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install mariadb-server mariadb-client -y

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

sudo systemctl stop mysql.service
sudo systemctl start mysql.service
sudo systemctl enable mysql.service

After that, run the commands below to secure MariaDB server.


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

sudo systemctl restart mysql.service

Step 3: Install PHP 7.1 And Related Modules

Run the commands below to add the below third party repository to upgrade to PHP 7.1


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

Then update and upgrade to PHP 7.1

sudo apt update

Run the commands below to install PHP 7.1 and related modules.

sudo apt install php7.1 libapache2-mod-php7.1 php7.1-common libapache2-mod-php7.1 php7.1-mbstring php7.1-xmlrpc php7.1-soap php7.1-apcu php7.1-smbclient php7.1-ldap php7.1-redis php7.1-gd php7.1-xml php7.1-intl php7.1-json php7.1-imagick php7.1-mysql php7.1-cli php7.1-mcrypt php7.1-ldap php7.1-zip php7.1-curl -y

After install PHP 7.1, run the commands below to open PHP-FPM default file.

sudo vim /etc/php/7.1/apache2/php.ini

Then make the change the following lines below in the file and save.

file_uploads = On
allow_url_fopen = On
memory_limit = 256M
upload_max_filesize = 64M
max_execution_time = 360
date.timezone = Asia/Kolkata


Step 4: Create NextCloud Database and Configure

Now that you’ve install all the packages that are required, continue below to start configuring the servers. First run the commands below to create NextCloud database.

Run the commands below to logon to the database server. When prompted for a password, type the root password you created above.

sudo mysql -u root -p

Then create a database nextcloud

CREATE DATABASE nextcloud;

Create a database user nextclouduser with new password

CREATE USER 'nextclouduser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';

Then grant the user full access to the database.

GRANT ALL ON nextcloud.* TO 'nextclouduser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password' WITH GRANT OPTION;

Finally, save your changes and exit.

FLUSH PRIVILEGES; EXIT;



Step 5: Download NextCloud Latest Release

Next, visit NextCloud site to download your free copy. The community edition is what you’ll want to download.

After downloading, run the commands below to extract the download file into Apache2 root directory.

cd /tmp
wget https://download.nextcloud.com/server/releases/nextcloud-13.0.4.zip
apt-get install unzip -y
unzip nextcloud-13.0.4.zip
sudo mv nextcloud /var/www/html/nextcloud/

Then run the commands below to set the correct permissions for NextCloud to function.

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/nextcloud/
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/nextcloud/


Step 6: Configure Apache2

Finally, configure Apahce2 site configuration file for NextCloud. This file will control how users access NextCloud content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called
nextcloud.conf

sudo vim /etc/apache2/sites-available/nextcloud.conf

Then copy and paste the content below into the file and save it. Replace the highlighted line with your own domain name and directory root location.

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin admin@example.com
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/nextcloud/
    ServerName example.com
    ServerAlias www.example.com
    Alias /nextcloud "/var/www/html/nextcloud/"


    <Directory /var/www/html/nextcloud/>
            Options +FollowSymlinks
            AllowOverride All
            Require all granted
                   <IfModule mod_dav.c>
                          Dav off
                   </IfModule>
             SetEnv HOME /var/www/html/nextcloud
             SetEnv HTTP_HOME /var/www/html/nextcloud
    </Directory>


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


</VirtualHost>

Save the file and exit.

Step 7: Enable The NextCloud And Rewrite Module

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

sudo a2ensite nextcloud.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo a2enmod headers sudo a2enmod env sudo a2enmod dir sudo a2enmod mime

Step 8 : Restart Apache2

To load all the settings above, restart Apache2 by running the commands below.

sudo systemctl restart apache2.service

Step 9 : Reboot Server

reboot

Step 10 : Access Nextcloud

Then open your browser and browse to the server_ip/nextcloud. You should see NextCloud setup wizard to complete. Please follow the wizard carefully.


Click Finish setup and you’re done.