How to install PiGallery 2 on NixOS Latest

PiGallery 2 is an open-source photo gallery software designed for personal use. It is built on a popular PHP framework called Symfony which means it can be easily customized to fit your needs. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the steps required to install PiGallery 2 on NixOS Latest.

Step 1: Install NixOS

To install PiGallery 2 on NixOS, you must first have NixOS installed on your machine. If you have not already done so, visit the official NixOS website and follow their instructions for installation.

Step 2: Update NixOS

After installing NixOS, it is important to update the system to ensure you have the latest software and security patches. You can update NixOS by opening the terminal and running the following command:

sudo nixos-rebuild switch

Step 3: Install LEMP Stack

Before we can install PiGallery 2, we need to install a LEMP stack, which stands for Linux, Nginx, MySQL/MariaDB, and PHP. Nginx is a popular web server that provides excellent performance and security while MariaDB is a reliable relational database management system.

To install the LEMP stack, run the following command:

sudo nix-env -iA nixos.nginx nixos.mariadb nixos.php-fpm

This command installs the required packages for a basic LEMP stack.

Step 4: Install PiGallery 2

To install PiGallery 2, run the following command:

sudo nix-env -iA nixos.pigallery2

This command installs PiGallery 2 on your system along with all its dependencies.

Step 5: Configure Nginx

Now that PiGallery 2 is installed, we need to configure Nginx to serve the gallery. To do this, open the terminal and run the following command:

sudo vim /etc/nixos/nginx/conf.d/pigallery2.conf

Add the following configuration to the file:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com;
    root /var/www/pigallery2/web;

    location / {
        try_files $uri /index.php$is_args$args;
    }

    location ~ \.php$ {
        fastcgi_split_path_info ^(.+\.php)(/.+)$;
        fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php-fpm/php-fpm.sock;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        include fastcgi_params;
    }
}

Replace "yourdomain.com" with your actual domain name. Save and close the file.

Now, reload the Nginx configuration by running the following command:

sudo nixos-rebuild switch

Step 6: Configure PiGallery 2

At this point, PiGallery 2 is ready to use, but before we can view the gallery, we need to configure it.

Open the terminal and navigate to the PiGallery 2 installation directory by running the following command:

cd /var/www/pigallery2

Create a "config.yml" file by running the following command:

sudo cp app/config/parameters.yml.dist app/config/parameters.yml

Open the "config.yml" file with your favorite text editor and configure your database settings. You can use Nano or Vim as text editors.

parameters:
     database_driver: pdo_mysql
     database_host: localhost
     database_port: ~
     database_name: pigallery2
     database_user: root
     database_password: yourpassword

Replace "yourpassword" with your actual database password.

Save and close the file.

Step 7: Create the Database

To create the database, run the following command:

sudo mysql -u root -p < app/sql/pigallery2_mysql.sql

Enter your password when prompted, and the database will be created.

Step 8: Restart Services

To ensure that all changes take effect, restart the services by entering the following command:

sudo systemctl restart nginx php-fpm mariadb

Step 9: Test the Gallery

To test the gallery, go to your web browser and enter your domain name. You should see the PiGallery 2 homepage. If you get an error message, check your configuration files.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed PiGallery 2 on NixOS!