How to Install Diaspora* on Ubuntu Server Latest

Diaspora* is a free and open-source decentralized social network. In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Diaspora* on Ubuntu Server Latest.

Requirements

Before we start, make sure you have the following:

• Ubuntu Server Latest installed on a virtual machine or a physical machine.
• SSH access to your server with root privileges.
• A domain name pointed to your server's IP address.
• 2 GB of RAM or more.
• A non-root user account.

Step 1: Update the System

Before we start, let's update the system. To do this, run the following command:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Dependencies

Diaspora* needs several dependencies to run. Install them by running the following command:

sudo apt install -y postgresql libpq-dev libxml2-dev libxslt1-dev imagemagick ffmpeg libssl-dev zlib1g-dev postgresql-contrib npm nodejs git curl

Step 3: Install Ruby

Next, we need to install Ruby version 2.7.4:

sudo apt-add-repository ppa:brightbox/ruby-ng
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y ruby2.7 ruby2.7-dev

Step 4: Install Bundler

Bundler manages Ruby app dependencies. We need to install it:

sudo gem install bundler -v 2.2.22

Step 5: Clone Diaspora*

Now we're ready to clone Diaspora*. Run the following command to clone the project:

git clone https://github.com/diaspora/diaspora.git

Step 6: Install Diaspora*

Now, we need to install Diaspora*. Change the directory to diaspora and run the following commands:

cd diaspora
bundle install
RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rake db:create db:schema:load

Step 7: Configure Diaspora*

We need to configure Diaspora*. Copy the example configuration files:

cp config/database.yml.example config/database.yml
cp config/application.yml.example config/application.yml

Edit the database.yml file and insert your PostgreSQL database credentials:

production:
  database: diaspora_production
  username: postgres
  password: your_password_here
  host: localhost
  pool: 5
  timeout: 5000

Edit the application.yml file and change the pod_url:

pod_url: "https://your_domain_name_here"

Make sure the port 3000 is open in your firewall.

Step 8: Start Diaspora*

We're ready to start Diaspora*:

RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rails server -b 0.0.0.0

Now you can access your Diaspora* pod by navigating to https://your_domain_name_here:3000 in a web browser.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we showed you how to install Diaspora* on Ubuntu Server Latest. Now you have your own decentralized social network!