Introduction

Fork CMS is a user-friendly content management system (CMS) that allows you to create and manage your websites easily. This guide will walk you through the installation of Fork CMS on Ubuntu Server 22.04, which can be effectively hosted on a Windows VPS UK for optimal performance and reliability.

Prerequisites

• An Ubuntu 22.04 server with root access
• Basic knowledge of Linux commands
• Apache, PHP, and MySQL/MariaDB installed on your server

Step 1: Update Your System

Start by updating your package index and upgrading any existing packages:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Apache

If you haven’t already installed Apache, you can do so with the following command:

sudo apt install apache2 -y

Enable Apache to start on boot and start the service:

sudo systemctl enable apache2
sudo systemctl start apache2

Step 3: Install PHP and Extensions

Install PHP and the necessary extensions for Fork CMS:

sudo apt install php php-mysql php-xml php-mbstring php-curl php-zip -y

Step 4: Install MySQL/MariaDB

If you haven't installed MySQL or MariaDB yet, you can run:

sudo apt install mariadb-server -y

Secure your installation:

sudo mysql_secure_installation

Log into MySQL and create a database for Fork CMS:

sudo mysql -u root -p
CREATE DATABASE fork_cms;
CREATE USER 'fork_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON fork_cms.* TO 'fork_user'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Step 5: Download Fork CMS

Navigate to the web root directory:

cd /var/www/html

Download the latest version of Fork CMS:

sudo wget https://fork-cms.com/download/forkcms.zip

Unzip the downloaded file:

sudo apt install unzip -y
sudo unzip forkcms.zip

Change the ownership of the Fork CMS directory:

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/forkcms

Step 6: Configure Apache for Fork CMS

Create a new configuration file for Fork CMS:

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

Add the following configuration:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin admin@your_domain.com
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/forkcms
    ServerName your_domain.com

    <Directory /var/www/html/forkcms>
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/forkcms_error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/forkcms_access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Enable the new site and the rewrite module:

sudo a2ensite forkcms.conf
sudo a2enmod rewrite

Restart Apache to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Step 7: Complete the Installation

Open your web browser and navigate to http://your_domain.com. You will be guided through the Fork CMS installation process. Enter the database details you created earlier during this setup.

Step 8: Conclusion

You have successfully installed Fork CMS on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, allowing you to create and manage your website easily. This setup can greatly benefit from being hosted on a Windows VPS. For additional options, explore various VPS UK Windows solutions, including Windows Virtual Private Server Hosting and Windows VPS Hosting UK for optimal performance.