How to Install GetSimple CMS on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS

GetSimple CMS is a free, open source, simple and easy to use web Content Management System that can be used to create blogs and websites. It is written in PHP language and uses XML files to store the content. It is suitable for medium to large websites, you can extend it’s functionality via plug-ins and themes.

In this tutorial, we will explain how to install GetSimple CMS on Ubuntu 18.04 server.

Requirements

• A server running Ubuntu 18.04.
• A non-root user with sudo privileges.

Install Apache and PHP

Before starting, you will need to install Apache web server and PHP to your system. By default, the latest version of the PHP is not available in the Ubuntu 18.04 default repository. So, you will need to add the ondrej repository first. You can add this by running the following command:

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

Once the repository is installed, update the repository and install PHP, Apache and other PHP libraries by running the following command:

sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt-get install apache2 wget uzip php7.2 libapache2-mod-php7.2 php7.2-common php7.2-mbstring php7.2-xmlrpc php7.2-soap php7.2-gd php7.2-xml php7.2-cli php7.2-curl php7.2-zip -y

Once all the packages are installed, start Apache web server and enable it to start on boot time with the following command:

sudo systemctl start apache2
sudo systemctl enable apache2

Next, you will need to modify php.ini file and make some changes:

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

Make the following changes:

memory_limit = 256M
upload_max_filesize = 100M
max_execution_time = 360
date.timezone = Asia/Kolkata

Save and close the file, when you are finished.

Install GetSimple CMS

Next, you will need to download the latest version of the GetSimple CMS from their official website. You can do this by running the following command:

wget http://get-simple.info/data/uploads/releases/GetSimpleCMS-3.3.13.zip

Once the download is completed, extract the downloaded file to the Apache web root directory:

sudo mkdir /var/www/html/getsimplecms
sudo unzip GetSimpleCMS-3.3.13.zip -d /var/www/html/getsimplecms

Next, give proper permissions to the getsimplecms directory:

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

Next, you will need to create an Apache virtual host file for GetSimple CMS. You can do this with the following command:

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/getsimplecms.conf

Add the following lines:

<VirtualHost *:80>
 ServerAdmin [email protected]
 DocumentRoot /var/www/html/getsimplecms
 ServerName example.com
 ServerAlias www.example.com

 <Directory /var/www/html/getsimplecms/>
 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. Then, enable virtual host file and Apache rewrite module using the following command:

sudo a2ensite getsimplecms.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite

Finally, restart Apache web server to apply all the changes:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Access GetSimpleCMS

Now, open your web browser and type the URL http://example.com/admin. You will be redirected to the GetSimple CMS web installation wizard:

Here, click on the Continue with Setup button, you should see the following page:

Here, provide your website name and admin username, then click on the Install Now button. You should see the GetSimple CMS dashboard in the following image:

Links