Knowledgebase

Laravel is one of the most popular PHP frameworks, known for its elegant syntax, robust features, and scalability. Installing Laravel on a Virtual Private Server (VPS) is ideal for developers looking to harness the power of VPS hosting for their applications, offering improved performance and flexibility. This guide will take you step-by-step through installing Laravel on a VPS, from setting up the server environment to configuring Laravel for deployment.

Step 1: Set Up Your VPS Environment

• 1.1 Choose a VPS Provider

  • Overview of popular VPS providers (e.g., DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, AnonVM) with factors to consider, such as pricing, support, and server locations.

• 1.2 Connect to Your VPS Using SSH

  • Guide to SSH access: from Windows (using PuTTY) and macOS/Linux (using Terminal).
     

    ssh root@your-server-ip

• 1.3 Update and Upgrade Your Server

  • Use these commands to update your server packages:
     

    sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade

Step 2: Install Required Software (Apache, MySQL, and PHP)

• 2.1 Install Apache or Nginx

  • Apache installation:
     

    sudo apt install apache2
  • Set up Nginx (if preferred):
     

    sudo apt install nginx

• 2.2 Install MySQL for Database Management

  • Commands to install MySQL:
     

    sudo apt install mysql-server
  • Secure MySQL installation:
     

    sudo mysql_secure_installation

• 2.3 Install PHP and Required Extensions

  • Commands to install PHP (version 8.0 or later recommended) and required modules for Laravel:
     

    sudo apt install php php-mbstring php-xml php-bcmath php-json php-zip php-curl php-mysql

Step 3: Create a Database for Laravel

• 3.1 Log in to MySQL

   

  sudo mysql -u root -p

• 3.2 Create Database and User

  • Commands to create a database and user for Laravel:
    sql

     

    CREATE DATABASE laravel_app; CREATE USER 'laravel_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your-password'; GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON laravel_app.* TO 'laravel_user'@'localhost'; FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

Step 4: Install Composer

• 4.1 What is Composer?

  • Explanation of Composer as a dependency manager for PHP, essential for Laravel installation.

• 4.2 Install Composer

  • Command to download and install Composer globally:
     

    curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer | php sudo mv composer.phar /usr/local/bin/composer

• 4.3 Verify Composer Installation

   

  composer -v

Step 5: Install Laravel

• 5.1 Create a Directory for Laravel

  • Create a project directory:
     

    mkdir /var/www/laravel-app cd /var/www/laravel-app

• 5.2 Install Laravel via Composer

  • Command to install Laravel:
     

    composer create-project --prefer-dist laravel/laravel .

Step 6: Configure Apache or Nginx for Laravel

• 6.1 Apache Configuration

  • Create a virtual host file for your Laravel application:
     

    sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/laravel-app.conf
  • Example configuration:
    apache

     

    <VirtualHost *:80> ServerName your-domain.com DocumentRoot /var/www/laravel-app/public <Directory /var/www/laravel-app> AllowOverride All </Directory> ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined </VirtualHost>
  • Enable the site and rewrite module:
     

    sudo a2ensite laravel-app sudo a2enmod rewrite sudo systemctl restart apache2

• 6.2 Nginx Configuration (Alternative)

  • Example configuration for Nginx:
    nginx

     

    server { listen 80; server_name your-domain.com; root /var/www/laravel-app/public; index index.php index.html; location / { try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string; } location ~ \.php$ { include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf; fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php8.0-fpm.sock; } location ~ /\.ht { deny all; } }
  • Restart Nginx:
     

    sudo systemctl restart nginx

Step 7: Set Environment Variables for Laravel

• 7.1 Configure Database in .env File

  • Open .env in the Laravel root directory:
     

    nano /var/www/laravel-app/.env
  • Update database settings:
    plaintext

     

    DB_CONNECTION=mysql DB_HOST=127.0.0.1 DB_PORT=3306 DB_DATABASE=laravel_app DB_USERNAME=laravel_user DB_PASSWORD=your-password

• 7.2 Generate Laravel Application Key

   

  php artisan key:generate

Step 8: Testing Your Laravel Installation

• 8.1 Clear Laravel Cache

   

  php artisan cache:clear

• 8.2 Set Correct Permissions

  • Set permissions for the storage and bootstrap/cache directories:
     

    sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/laravel-app sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/laravel-app

• 8.3 Access Your Laravel Application

  • Visit http://your-domain.com to test if the application is running.

Step 9: Secure Your VPS and Laravel Application

• 9.1 Enable SSL with Let’s Encrypt

  • Install Certbot and configure SSL:
     

    sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-apache sudo certbot --apache

• 9.2 Secure Server with Basic Firewall Rules

  • Example commands to set up UFW:
     

    sudo ufw allow OpenSSH sudo ufw allow 'Apache Full' # or Nginx Full if using Nginx sudo ufw enable

• 9.3 Additional Security Recommendations

  • Tips such as disabling root login, regular backups, and updating software.

Conclusion

Installing Laravel on a VPS can greatly enhance the performance and scalability of your PHP applications. By following this guide, you’ve configured your VPS for optimal performance, installed Laravel, and set up a secure environment. Regular maintenance, backups, and security updates will help keep your application running smoothly and securely.