Matomo (formerly Piwik) is a powerful open-source web analytics platform that gives you insights into your website's traffic and user behavior. In this guide, we will walk through the steps to install Matomo on Debian 11.

Step 1: Update Your System

Start by ensuring your system is up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Required Dependencies

Install the necessary packages, including a web server, PHP, and database server:

sudo apt install -y apache2 php php-mysql libapache2-mod-php php-xml php-curl php-gd php-mbstring php-zip php-json

Step 3: Install MySQL/MariaDB

Install MariaDB to manage your database:

sudo apt install -y mariadb-server

Start and secure your MariaDB installation:

sudo systemctl start mariadb
sudo systemctl enable mariadb
sudo mysql_secure_installation

Step 4: Create a Database for Matomo

Log into the MariaDB shell:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Run the following commands to create a database and user for Matomo:

CREATE DATABASE matomo;
CREATE USER 'matomouser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON matomo.* TO 'matomouser'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Replace your_password with a strong password for your Matomo user.

Step 5: Download Matomo

Download the latest version of Matomo:

wget https://builds.matomo.org/matomo-latest.zip

Unzip the downloaded file:

unzip matomo-latest.zip

Move the extracted files to the Apache web directory:

sudo mv matomo /var/www/html/

Step 6: Configure Apache for Matomo

Create a new Apache configuration file for Matomo:

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

Add the following configuration:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin webmaster@localhost
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/matomo

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

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/matomo_error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/matomo_access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Step 7: Enable Apache Modules and Site

Enable the necessary Apache modules and the new site configuration:

sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo a2ensite matomo.conf
sudo systemctl restart apache2

Step 8: Complete Matomo Installation via Web Interface

Open your web browser and navigate to:

http://your_domain_or_ip/matomo

Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. During setup, enter the database details you created earlier.

Conclusion

You have successfully installed Matomo Web Analytics on Debian 11. This powerful analytics platform will help you gain insights into your website traffic and user behavior.

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