Sentrifugo HRM is a powerful open-source human resource management (HRM) system that offers a wide range of features for managing HR activities. This guide will walk you through the steps to install Sentrifugo HRM on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. Whether you're using a Windows VPS UK or another VPS hosting solution, Sentrifugo provides an efficient way to manage HR processes in your organization.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

• An Ubuntu 18.04 LTS server, which could be hosted on a UK Windows VPS, Windows Virtual Private Servers, or another Windows VPS Hosting UK solution.
• Root or sudo privileges on your server.
• LAMP stack (Linux, Apache, MySQL/MariaDB, PHP) installed on your server.

Step 1: Update Your System

Before installing any software, make sure your system is up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Apache and PHP

Apache is the web server that will serve Sentrifugo, and PHP is required to run the application. Install both by running:

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

Once installed, start and enable Apache:

sudo systemctl start apache2
sudo systemctl enable apache2

Step 3: Install MariaDB and Create a Database

MariaDB will be used to store the Sentrifugo HRM data. Install MariaDB by running:

sudo apt install mariadb-server -y

After installation, secure your MariaDB installation:

sudo mysql_secure_installation

Log in to MariaDB and create a database for Sentrifugo:

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

Step 4: Download Sentrifugo

Navigate to your web root directory and download the latest version of Sentrifugo:

cd /var/www/html
sudo wget https://sourceforge.net/projects/sentrifugo/files/latest/download -O sentrifugo.zip

Unzip the downloaded file:

sudo apt install unzip
sudo unzip sentrifugo.zip -d /var/www/html/

Rename the extracted folder for convenience:

sudo mv Sentrifugo_*/ sentrifugo

Step 5: Set Permissions for Sentrifugo

Set the correct permissions for the Sentrifugo files:

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/sentrifugo
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/sentrifugo

Step 6: Configure Apache for Sentrifugo

Create a new Apache virtual host configuration file for Sentrifugo:

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

Add the following configuration, replacing your-domain.com with your actual domain:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin admin@your-domain.com
    ServerName your-domain.com
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/sentrifugo

    <Directory /var/www/html/sentrifugo/>
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Enable the new configuration and the Apache rewrite module:

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

Step 7: Complete Sentrifugo Installation via Web Interface

Now that Apache is configured, open your web browser and navigate to http://your-domain.com. You will be greeted by the Sentrifugo installation wizard. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation by entering your database details and setting up the HRM system.

Step 8: Secure Sentrifugo with Let's Encrypt SSL (Optional)

To secure your Sentrifugo installation, you can obtain a free SSL certificate from Let's Encrypt. First, install Certbot:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-apache -y

Obtain an SSL certificate for your domain:

sudo certbot --apache -d your-domain.com -d www.your-domain.com

Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process. Certbot will automatically configure Apache to use SSL.

Conclusion

By following these steps, you have successfully installed and configured Sentrifugo HRM on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS. Whether you're hosting Sentrifugo on a Windows VPS UK, Windows VPS Italy, or another Windows Virtual Private Server Hosting solution, this HRM system provides comprehensive tools to manage your organization's human resources effectively.