Annotation of doc/build/FC38_install.frag, revision 1.3
1.1 raeburn 1: <h1>Installing LON-CAPA on a minimal Fedora 38 System</h1>
2: <p>
3: This document guides you through the process of setting up a new LON-CAPA
4: server or virtual machine running Fedora 38 with a minimum of packages installed.
5: The server or virtual machine will be configured solely as a LON-CAPA server and will be
6: expected to have no other services running. Your server or virtual machine is expected to have
7: a fast connection to the internet.
8: </p><p>
9: More information is available at
10: <a href="http://install.lon-capa.org/">http://install.lon-capa.org/</a>.
11: </p>
12:
13: <h2>Before you begin</h2>
14: <p>
15: Installing Linux is straightforward.
16: You will be required to log in to the machine and execute
17: some routine Unix commands. Familiarity with the Apache web server, mod_perl,
18: perl, and MySQL are not required to install and run LON-CAPA.
19: </p>
20:
21: <h2>Installation Overview</h2>
22: <p>
23: The installation process takes the following steps:
24: </p>
25: <ol>
26: <li><a href="#obt">Obtain Fedora 38 (server) installation iso file</a></li>
27: <li><a href="#net">Determine Network Settings</a></li>
28: <li><a href="#lin">Install Fedora 38</a></li>
29: <li><a href="#upd">Update your system</a></li>
30: <li><a href="#ilc">Install LON-CAPA</a></li>
31: <li><a href="#cdc">Create a Domain Coordinator</a></li>
32: <li><a href="#sts">Start/Restart services</a></li>
33: <li><a href="#log">Log in to LON-CAPA</a></li>
34: </ol>
35:
36: <hr />
37: <h2>1. <a id="obt">Obtain Fedora 38</a></h2>
38: <p>
39: Fedora 38 Server isos can be obtained from links included on the
40: <a href="https://getfedora.org/">Fedora download page</a>.
41: Either download the Standard ISO image for x86_64 or the Netinstall ISO image for x86_64.
42: </p>
43:
44: <h2>2. <a id="net">Determine Network Settings</a></h2>
45: <p>
46: You will need to know the following network settings for your installation.
47: <b>Note: </b>You must have a static IP address to use LON-CAPA.
48: DHCP is <em>not</em> supported.
49:
50: <ul>
51: <li>ip address </li>
52: <li>netmask </li>
53: <li>hostname </li>
54: <li>gateway </li>
55: <li>domain name server(s) </li>
56: </ul>
57:
58: <h2>3. <a id="lin">Minimal Fedora 38 Install</a></h2>
59: <p>
60: Documentation is available from
61: <a href="https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/docs/">
62: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/docs/</a>
63: Most of the installation screens are self explanatory.
64: There are a few steps that require comment and are dealt with below.
65: </p>
66: <dl style="list-style:square outside none">
67: <dt>Installation Language</dt>
68: <dd>Use English as your installation language.</dd>
69: <dt>Installation Destination</dt>
70: <dd>For a fresh install may want to use the automatic partitioning feature of the installer.
71: If you want to customize partitioning check the "I will configure partitioning" radio button.
72: LON-CAPA resource files are stored in the /home directory, so the
73: majority of the disk space should be allocated here. If you have 20 GB
74: of space for Fedora, /home should receive at least 10 to 12 GB.
75: Since Mariadb uses the /var filesystem to store its databases you should
76: have at least 4 GB of space available on /var. Be sure to
77: include adequate swap space. A minimum is 512 MB, but you should
78: typically have 1 or 2x as much swap space as you do physical RAM.</dd>
79: <dt>Network and Hostname</dt>
80: <dd>LON-CAPA will <b>not</b> work with a machine set up to use a dynamic
81: IP address. When configuring your network card, be sure to unselect
82: the DHCP option and enter your network information. Enter your hostname</dd>
83: <dt>Software Selection</dt>
84: <dd>Check the "Fedora Custom Operating System" radio button (or "Minimal install", if available)
85: in the "Base Environment" panel, and check the "Standard" checkbox in the
86: "Add-Ons for Selected Environment" panel.</dd>
87: </dl>
88: <p>
89: Finish installing your server, reboot it, and log in as root.
90: </p>
91: <h3>Firewall Configuration</h3>
92: <p>
93: LON-CAPA can use Firewalld, available by default for Fedora 38. Enable access to standard
94: web server ports (i.e., http and https):
95: </p>
96: <pre>
97: systemctl enable firewalld
98: systemctl start firewalld
99: firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-service=http
100: firewall-cmd --zone=public --permanent --add-service=https
101: firewall-cmd --reload
102: </pre>
103:
104: <h2>4. <a id="upd">Update your system</a></h2>
105: <p>
106: Update your system to the latest versions of the system software using dnf.
107: </p>
108: <pre>
109: dnf update
110: </pre>
111: <p>
112: If the kernel was updated, reboot your system before continuing with the installation.
113: </p>
114:
115: <h3>Set up access to package repositories</h3>
116: <p>
117: Install the loncapa.repo file from the LON-CAPA install site:
118: </p>
119: <pre>
120: wget -O /etc/yum.repos.d/loncapa.repo http://install.loncapa.org/versions/fedora/38/loncapa.repo
121: </pre>
122: <p>
123: Verify the required repositories are enabled:
124: </p>
125: <pre>
126: dnf repolist enabled
127: </pre>
128: <p>
129: The list of enabled repos should be as follows:
130: </p>
131: <table style="border: 0px; border-collapse: collapse;">
132: <tr><th>repo id</th><th>repo name</th></tr>
133: <tr><td>fedora</td><td>Fedora 38 - x86_64</td></tr>
134: <tr><td>fedora-modular</td><td>Fedora Modular 38 - x86_64</td></tr>
135: <tr><td>loncapa-updates-basearch</td><td>Fedora 38 LON-CAPA x86_64 Updates</td></tr>
136: <tr><td>loncapa-updates-noarch</td><td>Fedora 38 LON-CAPA noarch Updates</td></tr>
137: <tr><td>updates</td><td>Fedora 38 - x86_64 - Updates</td></tr>
138: <tr><td>updates-modular</td><td>Fedora Modular 38 - x86_64 - Updates</td></tr>
139: </table>
140:
141: <h3>Install and enable a Mail Transfer Agent (MTA), e.g., postfix</h3>
142: <pre>
143: dnf install postfix
144: systemctl enable postfix
145: systemctl start postfix
146: </pre>
147:
148: <h3>Configure SELinux</h3>
149: <p>
150: The default Fedora 38 installation includes SELinux enabled. Until such time as an SELinux security policy has been created for LON-CAPA, SELinux should be disabled.
151: Retrieve the loncapa_selinux_config file from the LON-CAPA install site:
152: </p>
153: <pre>
154: wget http://install.loncapa.org/versions/fedora/38/loncapa_selinux_config
155: </pre>
156: <p>
157: Install the selinux config file
158: </p>
159: <pre>
160: mv /etc/selinux/config /etc/selinux/config.backup
161: mv loncapa_selinux_config /etc/selinux/config
162: reboot
163: </pre>
164:
165: <h2>5. <a id="ilc">Installing LON-CAPA</a></h2>
166: <h3>Install prerequisites</h3>
167: <p> Execute: </p>
168: <pre>
169: dnf install LONCAPA-prerequisites
170: </pre><p>
171: This may take some minutes due to LON-CAPA's large number of dependencies.
172: </p>
173: <h3>Retrieve and execute LON-CAPA setup program</h3>
174: <p>
175: Retrieve the LON-CAPA setup with the following command:
176: </p>
177: <pre>
178: wget http://install.loncapa.org/linux/install.tar
179: </pre>
180: <p>
181: Extract the archive with the following command:
182: </p>
183: <pre>
184: tar xf install.tar
185: </pre>
186: <p>
187: This creates a directory named <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console','Menlo','Monaco','Courier', monospace;">installation</span>.
188: Change to it and execute the setup script with the following commands:
189: </p>
190: <pre>
191: cd installation
192: ./install.pl
193: </pre>
194: <p>
195: The script is used to prepare a Linux system to run LON-CAPA, and can also be
196: used to check the configuration of a system on which LON-CAPA has already been installed. Typically, though, you will run this script only once, when you first install LON-CAPA.
197: </p>
198: <p>
199: The script will analyze your system to determine which actions are recommended. The script will then prompt you to choose the actions you would like taken.
1.2 raeburn 200: Once a choice has been entered for all ten possible actions, required changes will be made.
1.1 raeburn 201: </p>
202: <p>The possible actions are:</p>
203: <ul>
204: <li>Create the www user/group</li>
205: <li>Install the package LON-CAPA uses to authenticate users.</li>
206: <li>Set-up the MySQL (Mariadb) database</li>
207: <li>Set-up MySQL (Mariadb) permissions</li>
208: <li>Configure Apache web server</li>
1.2 raeburn 209: <li>Configure systemd security settings for Apache web server</li>
1.1 raeburn 210: <li>Configure start-up of services</li>
211: <li>Check firewall settings</li>
212: <li>Stop services not used by LON-CAPA, e.g., services for a print server: cups daemon</li>
213: <li>Download LON-CAPA source code in readiness for installation</li>
214: </ul>
215: <h3>Determine LON-CAPA Settings</h3>
216: <p>
217: LON-CAPA requires a number of identifying parameters to be set in order
218: for it to function at all. Below is a list with descriptions.
219: </p>
220: <dl>
221: <dt>Host Type (library or access)</dt>
222: <dd>The server must be designated a 'library' or an 'access' server. In
223: general you should have a library server for your instructors to create
224: their course content on and run their courses. Students should connect
225: to access servers. If you are doing the first install of LON-CAPA at
226: your site, or if you are playing with it for your own edification you
227: should make your machine a 'library' server.</dd>
228: <dt>LON-CAPA domain</dt>
229: <dd>Each site or school which installs LON-CAPA needs its own domain.
230: Here at MSU we use 'msu'. You should choose something short but
231: meaningful. <i>Restriction: One word, no underscores, and no special
232: characters except . or -</i> .<br />Domain names which include a departmental
233: abbreviation are not recommended as although LON-CAPA may start in
234: a single department, other departments frequently join subsequently.
235: For a domain name: 'msu' is a superior choice to 'msuphys' for example.
236: </dd>
237: <dt>LON-CAPA host id</dt>
238: <dd>Each LON-CAPA server requires a unique internal name. We use names
239: such as "msul1" for the first library server. <i>Restriction: One word,
240: no underscores, and no special characters except -</i> .
241: </dd>
242: <dt>Domain's Primary Library Server ID</dt>
243: <dd>If you are setting up a domain with a single library server, then the domain's primary library server ID will be the LON-CAPA host id of that server (e.g., msul1). Once your domain grows and you need to add more servers, one of the library servers in the domain should be assigned as the domain's primary library server. This will be where domain-wide settings will be stored.<dd>
244: <dt>Host administrator email</dt>
245: <dd>The amount of email sent to this address is relatively minimal. Messages
246: are sent every time the system starts up, or if the system is in
247: serious trouble. If you are installing a LON-CAPA instance on a laptop,
248: because you are planning to contribute to LON-CAPA development,
249: make this <span style="font-family: 'Lucida Console','Menlo','Monaco','Courier', monospace;">
250: root@localhost</span>.
251: </dd>
252: <dt>Support email address</dt>
253: <dd>Enter an e-mail address here, so users of the system
254: will be able to click an "Ask Helpdesk" link in the system to
255: display a web form which they will complete to request support from
256: your institution's helpdesk. On form submission the contents
257: will be sent to the e-mail address you specify.
258: </dd>
259: </dl>
260:
261: <h3>Configuring LON-CAPA</h3>
262: <p>
263: To configure and install LON-CAPA, execute the following commands:
264: </p>
265: <pre>
266: cd /root/loncapa-X.Y.Z (X.Y.Z should correspond to a version number like '2.11.5')
267: ./UPDATE
268: </pre>
269: <p>
270: You will need to enter the LON-CAPA configuration information you determined
271: in the previous section.
272: </p>
273:
274: <h2>6. <a id="cdc">Creating a Domain Coordinator</a></h2>
275: <p>
276: You will need at least one user at your site who has the role of
277: 'domain coordinator'. This user creates accounts for other users and
278: grants them additional privileges. The make_domain_coordinator.pl script
279: invoked below requires that you enter the user's password.
280: Feel free to use the "passwd username" command to change it later.
281: Replace USERNAME and DOMAIN with an appropriate user name and your domain.
282: If installing a library server and an access server on separate machines or VMs
283: you need only run make_domain_coordinator.pl on the library server.
284: </p>
285: <pre>
286: cd /root/loncapa-X.Y.Z/loncom/build
287: perl make_domain_coordinator.pl USERNAME DOMAIN
288: </pre>
289:
290: <h2>7. <a id="sts">Start/Restart Services</a></h2>
291: <p>
292: The LON-CAPA network services take a moment to start. Most misconfigurations
293: will be apparent at this step.
294: </p>
295: <pre>
296: /home/httpd/perl/loncontrol start
297: systemctl start httpd
298: </pre>
299: <p>
300: If you receive warnings about missing perl modules, when starting the httpd service
301: please make sure that the LONCAPA-prerequisites rpm is installed using this command:
302: </p>
303: <pre>
1.3 ! raeburn 304: rpm -q LONCAPA-prerequisites
1.1 raeburn 305: </pre>
306: <p>
307: If it is not installed, ensure that the required Linux repositories are enabled (see
308: the "Set up access to package repositories" section above), then install it:
309: </p>
310: <pre>
311: dnf install LONCAPA-prerequisites
312: </pre>
313: <p>
314: If you still have errors, please contact the LON-CAPA Helpdesk: helpdesk at loncapa.org
315: </p>
316: <p>Ensure that LON-CAPA network services and the httpd service are set to start on boot:
317: <pre>
318: systemctl enable loncontrol
319: systemctl enable httpd
320: </pre>
321:
322: <h2>8. <a id="log">Log in to your LON-CAPA Machine</a></h2>
323: <p>
324: Point a web browser at your new machine and log in as the domain
325: coordinator. Congratulations!
326: </p>
327:
328: <hr>
329: <h2>If things aren't working right</h2>
330: <p>
331: If you've followed the steps above and the server doesn't start or you think
332: there's something wrong, please contact the LON-CAPA helpdesk.
333: Installation/update support is available from: helpdesk at loncapa.org
334: (replace " at " with @).
335: If there were errors in installation of the dependency RPMs or errors during the
336: automatic setup, please send us as much information as possible.
337: If some part of this document is unclear please let us know.
338: </p>
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