How to Install PeerTube on Linux Mint

PeerTube is a free, open-source federated video sharing platform that allows users to upload, share, and watch videos in a decentralized manner. It is a great alternative to centralized video platforms like YouTube. In this tutorial, we will show you how to install PeerTube on Linux Mint.

Prerequisites

Before installing PeerTube, make sure you have the following:

  • A Linux Mint installation with sudo privileges
  • Node.js version 12.x or higher (you can check your version using node -v)
  • PostgreSQL version 10 or higher (you can check your version using psql --version)
  • Redis version 4 or higher (you can check your version using redis-cli --version)
  • A domain name or subdomain pointing to the IP address of your Linux Mint server

Step 1: Install Dependencies

To install PeerTube, we need to install several dependencies. Open your terminal and run the following commands to install Node.js, PostgreSQL, and Redis:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nodejs postgresql redis

Step 2: Create a PeerTube User and Database

Next, we need to create a PostgreSQL user and database for PeerTube. Run the following commands to create a new user and database:

sudo -u postgres psql
CREATE USER peertube WITH PASSWORD 'yourpassword';
CREATE DATABASE peertube_prod OWNER peertube;
\q

Replace yourpassword with a strong password.

Step 3: Download and Install PeerTube

Download the latest version of PeerTube from the official website using the following command:

cd ~
git clone https://github.com/Chocobozzz/PeerTube.git -b develop

Now change to the PeerTube directory:

cd PeerTube

Next, we need to install the required dependencies:

npm install

Step 4: Configure PeerTube

Copy the .env.sample file to .env and modify the configuration options as needed:

cp .env.sample .env
nano .env

Update the following configuration options:

NODE_ENV=production
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://peertube:yourpassword@localhost/peertube_prod
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379/

Replace yourpassword with the password you set in Step 2.

Save and close the file.

Step 5: Build and Run the Server

We're almost there! Now we need to build and run the server. Run the following command to build the server:

npm run build

Once the build is complete, start the PeerTube server using the following command:

npm start

You should now be able to access your PeerTube instance on your domain name or subdomain.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully installed PeerTube on Linux Mint. You can now create an account, upload and share videos, and join the growing decentralized video sharing community.