Installing Mastodon on macOS

Mastodon is a free and open-source social networking platform that allows users to create customizable communities. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to install Mastodon on macOS.

Prerequisites

Before installing Mastodon, you need to ensure that you have the following software installed on your macOS.

• Homebrew
• Ruby
• Postgresql

Installation

Once you have installed the prerequisites, you can proceed with installation of Mastodon by following these steps.

Step 1: Clone Mastodon Repository

Open up a Terminal window and run the following command to clone the Mastodon repository:

$ git clone https://github.com/tootsuite/mastodon.git

Step 2: Install Dependencies

Change your current directory to the cloned repository:

$ cd mastodon

Run the following command to install all dependencies using bundler:

$ bundle install --deployment --without development test

Step 3: Configure Environment Variables

Create a new file called .env.production in the mastodon directory and add the following lines to it:

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://mastodon:@localhost:5432/mastodon_production
SECRET_KEY_BASE=$(openssl rand -hex 64)
OTP_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 64)
LOCAL_DOMAIN=your.domain.com
WEBPACK_DEV_SERVER_HOST=localhost

Note: Replace your.domain.com with your own domain name.

Step 4: Set Up Database

Create a new Postgres database for Mastodon:

$ createdb -O mastodon mastodon_production

Run the database migrations:

$ RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rails db:migrate

Step 5: Precompile Assets

Compile all assets using the following command:

$ RAILS_ENV=production bin/rails assets:precompile

Step 6: Start Mastodon

Finally, start Mastodon with the following command:

$ bin/tootctl start

Conclusion

You have now successfully installed Mastodon on your macOS. You can now begin customizing your Mastodon instance and inviting your friends to join your new social network. Enjoy!