RedHat Linux installation

2005-11-23T18:14:35Z

Sea: /* STEP 7: Set up the cron job. */

Note : These instructions apply to RedHat version 8. They have also been found to work for RedHat 9.0 and for Fedora Core 1 and 2. Fedora Core 3 requires the php-gd package in addition to php. I see no reason why they should not work for later versions, but....

FIRST: RTFM!! Please read carefully the Moodle installation documentation at http://moodle.org/doc/?file=install.html

Redhat installation considerations: There are many installation options available when installing Redhat. I assume that you are installing on a server and will have selected a Server type install. There is however no reason why this should not work on a desktop or Workstation installation.

==STEP 1: Make sure you have installed the following packages.==
(You will need to select the option to customize the default set of packages on installation OR bring up the package manager by putting disk 1 back in the drive for an existing system):

* X Windows System (not vital but easier)
* Gnome or KDE desktop environment (as above)
* Server Configuration Tools
* Web Server
** Click "Details" and make sure all PHP modules are ticked (except ODBC and PGSQL, they're not neccesary)
** make sure not to miss the MYSQL-PHP module (not installed by default)
* SQL Database
** Click "Details" and tick MySQL server box
* Also make sure you set up the firewall. You probably only need to enable HTTP (and perhaps FTP and SSH) access to your server machine, unless you know different.

==STEP 2: Download Moodle...==
(I will install under /usr/moodle, data in /usr/moodle_data)

* Download your favourite version of Moodle from moodle.org (.zip archive is easiest)
* as Root create folder under /usr and copy zip
** su
** mkdir /usr/moodle
** mkdir /usr/moodle_data
** cp moodle_111.zip /usr/moodle
* If you prefer you can install the CVS version directly for all the latest features. Instead of downloading and copying the zip file..
** cd /usr/moodle
** cvs -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/moodle login
** cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/moodle co moodle

==STEP 3: Unpack and set file permission etc.==

* Still as root we unpack moodle and rename to something appropiate (I have multiple moodle installs, hence this setup). I will call this install mymoodle.
** cd /usr/moodle
** unzip moodle_111.zip
** mv moodle mymoodle
*** (optional step - I have more than one install under /usr/moodle)
** mkdir /usr/moodle_data/mymoodle
*** (same name as the moodle install above)
** chown -R apache:apache /usr/moodle
*** (! Giving Apache full rights to your Moodle programs is not secure. Check out the forums for recomendations on how to secure a production environment.)
** chown -R apache:apache /usr/moodle_data

==STEP 4: Setup config.php==

* Still as root copy and edit the config file, you should know the host/domain name for your server
** cd /usr/moodle/mymoodle
** cp config-dist.php config.php
** vi config.php (or whatever your favourite editor is!)
* Your config.php settings should be something like...
** dbtype = "mysql"
** dbhost = "localhost"
** dbname = "mymoodle"
** dbuser = "moodleuser"
** dbpass = "moodlepass" (<-- better make this something of your own)
** prefix = ""
*** (keep the default 'mdl_' prefix if you plan on sharing the database with other applications)
** wwwroot = "http://myhost.mydomain/mymoodle"
*** (If you only want to try moodle out and will not be accessing it from other machines you can use "http://localhost/mymoodle")
** dirroot = "/usr/moodle/mymoodle"
** dataroot = "/usr/moodle_data/mymoodle"
* Save your changes and exit from the editor

==STEP 5: Setup MySQL==

* First you need to get the MySQL daemon running, it is not running by default.
** On the Desktop find and launch "Services" (on KDE and Gnome it's under System Settings=>Server Settings=>Services, but you might have to hunt around).
** Tick the box for MySQL and (with it selected) press the Start icon - ensure it starts up
** Choose "Save Changes" from the menu, and exit the program.
* If you haven't yet, as root, change the MySQL root password
** mysqladmin -u root password mysqlpass (<-- should change this to something of your own)
* Next, set up the MySQL database (see http://moodle.org/doc/?file=install.html#database for more details)
* Launch MySQL as root
** mysql -u root -p
*** (at the password prompt, enter the password from above)
* At the '>' MySQL prompt, enter the following commands (MySQL commands are ended with a ';')
** CREATE DATABASE mymoodle;
*** (the name 'mymoodle' is the same name as the database from Step 4)
** GRANT SELECT,INSERT,UPDATE,DELETE,CREATE,DROP,INDEX,ALTER ON mymoodle.*
*** (as above, 'mymoodle' is from Step 4)
** TO moodleuser@localhost IDENTIFIED BY 'moodlepass';
*** ('moodleuser' and 'moodlepass' are from Step 4)
** quit
* Still as root, reload MySQL
** mysqladmin -p reload
* (! Consider MySQL security - not covered here. If you run a firewall, you don't have too much to worry about.)

==STEP 6: Setup Apache==

* Edit the Apache configuration file at /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf
* Right at the end of the file add the following lines: (once again 'mymoodle' as from Step 3)
** <Directory "/usr/moodle/mymoodle">
** DirectoryIndex index.php
** AcceptPathInfo on
** AllowOverride None
** Options None
** Order allow,deny
** Allow from all
** </Directory>
** Alias /mymoodle "/usr/moodle/mymoodle"
* Don't insert a space in "allow,deny" (common mistake!)
* You might also want to run through the rest of the config file and make some other (obvious) changes - administrator email and suchlike. Not vital though.
* Run the Services application (same as for Mysql) - tick and start "httpd", then save changes and exit.

==STEP 7: Set up the cron job.==

* As root user type the command:
** crontab -e
* Add the following line (you need to know vi, 'o' adds a line in vi):
** */5 * * * /usr/bin/wget -g -O /dev/null http://localhost/mymoodle/admin/cron.php
*** (change the URL as appropriate for your site)
* Save the file and exit (in vi that is <Esc>, then ':wq')

==THAT'S IT!! Try your new installation...==

http://myhost.mydomain/mymoodle/admin

or, if you are running the browser on the same machine

http://localhost/mymoodle/admin

If anybody tries this and comes unstuck either update this page or contact me at howard.miller@udcf.gla.ac.uk and I will try to help AND make the instructions better :-)
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RedHat Linux installation