Step 1: Update Your System

Before installing Calibre, ensure your system is up to date by running the following commands:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Keeping your system updated is crucial for security and performance, whether you're running it on a local server or on a VPS Windows Servers platform.

Step 2: Install Calibre

The easiest way to install Calibre on Ubuntu is by using the official Calibre installation script. Run the following command:

sudo -v && wget -nv -O- https://download.calibre-ebook.com/linux-installer.sh | sudo sh /dev/stdin

This command downloads and installs the latest version of Calibre.

Step 3: Start Calibre Content Server

Once Calibre is installed, you can start the ebook server using the following command:

calibre-server --port 8080 --with-library /path/to/your/library

Replace /path/to/your/library with the actual path to your ebook library. By default, the server will run on port 8080. You can access the server via a web browser by navigating to:

http://:8080

Step 4: Running Calibre Server in the Background

To keep the Calibre Ebook Server running in the background, you can use the nohup command as follows:

nohup calibre-server --port 8080 --with-library /path/to/your/library &

This will allow the server to continue running even if you close the terminal.

Step 5: Set Up Calibre Server as a Systemd Service

To ensure the server starts automatically at boot, you can set it up as a systemd service. Create a service file:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/calibre-server.service

Add the following content to the file:

[Unit]
Description=Calibre eBook Server
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/calibre-server --with-library /path/to/your/library --port 8080
User=
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
            

Replace /path/to/your/library with your actual library path and with your username.

Enable and start the service:

sudo systemctl enable calibre-server
sudo systemctl start calibre-server

Step 6: Accessing Calibre Ebook Server

Once the server is running, you can access it from a web browser using the following URL:

http://:8080

This will open the Calibre Web Interface, where you can browse, search, and download books from your ebook library.