Laravel is a popular PHP framework for building web applications. In this guide, we will walk through the steps to install Laravel on AlmaLinux 8 using Nginx as the web server and securing it with a free Let's Encrypt SSL certificate.

Step 1: Update Your System

Start by ensuring your system is up to date:

sudo dnf update

Step 2: Install Required Packages

Install the necessary packages, including PHP and Nginx:

sudo dnf install -y nginx php php-cli php-fpm php-mysqlnd php-xml php-mbstring php-json php-zip

Step 3: Start and Enable Nginx

Start the Nginx service and enable it to run at startup:

sudo systemctl start nginx
sudo systemctl enable nginx

Step 4: Install Composer

Composer is a dependency manager for PHP, required for installing Laravel. Download and install Composer:

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

Step 5: Create a Directory for Laravel

Create a directory for your Laravel application:

sudo mkdir -p /var/www/laravel
cd /var/www/laravel

Step 6: Install Laravel

Use Composer to create a new Laravel project:

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

Step 7: Set Permissions

Set the correct permissions for the Laravel directory:

sudo chown -R nginx:nginx /var/www/laravel
sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/laravel/storage

Step 8: Configure Nginx for Laravel

Create a new Nginx configuration file for your Laravel application:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/conf.d/laravel.conf

Add the following configuration:

server {
        listen 80;
        server_name your_domain.com;

        root /var/www/laravel/public;
        index index.php index.html index.htm;

        location / {
            try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
        }

        location ~ \.php$ {
            include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf;
            fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php-fpm/www.sock;
            fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
            include fastcgi_params;
        }

        location ~ /\.ht {
            deny all;
        }
    }

Replace your_domain.com with your actual domain name.

Step 9: Test Nginx Configuration

Test the Nginx configuration for syntax errors:

sudo nginx -t

If there are no errors, restart Nginx:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Step 10: Install Certbot for Let's Encrypt SSL

Install Certbot to obtain a free SSL certificate:

sudo dnf install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Step 11: Obtain a Free SSL Certificate

Run the following command to obtain and install your SSL certificate:

sudo certbot --nginx -d your_domain.com

Follow the prompts to complete the process.

Conclusion

You have successfully installed Laravel on AlmaLinux 8 with Nginx and secured it using a free Let's Encrypt SSL certificate. This setup provides a robust platform for developing and hosting your web applications.

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