The Complete Guide to Install Nextcloud Using RunCloud

Nextcloud is a powerful self-hosted cloud storage solution that offers a range of features and flexibility.

To install Nextcloud using RunCloud, you'll need to create a new server instance on their platform, which can be done in just a few clicks.

RunCloud's user-friendly interface makes it easy to set up a Nextcloud server, even for those with limited technical expertise.

You can choose from a variety of server plans, including a free plan that's perfect for small projects or personal use.

To install Nextcloud, you'll need a server that meets its system requirements. This can be a Debian 12 server with at least 4 GB of memory and 2 CPUs, or an Ubuntu 24.04 server.

A non-root user with administrator privileges is also required. This is essential for making changes to the server and installing Nextcloud.

You'll also need a domain name pointed to the server's IP address. This will allow you to access Nextcloud through a custom domain.

Here are the specific system requirements for each server type:

Lastly, it's worth noting that some servers may not meet the necessary capacity to handle additional load. If you're planning to use an existing server, make sure it has the necessary resources to handle the increased load.

To install Nextcloud, start by launching your web browser and visiting the domain name of your Nextcloud installation. You'll be automatically redirected to a secure HTTPS connection.

You'll be asked to create an administrator user for Nextcloud. Input the new admin user and password, and you can also set up a custom data directory or leave it as default.

Scroll to the bottom of the page and input the database details, including the name, user, and password. Then click Finish Setup to complete the installation.

Once the installation is complete, you'll be recommended to install some Nextcloud apps. Click Skip to install them later.

To access the file manager, click on the folder icon. You can also access the Administration Settings by clicking on the user icon on the left menu and selecting Administration Settings.

From the Administration section, click Overview to view information about your Nextcloud version and any recommendations for security and performance optimizations.

To view the default Nextcloud configuration, open the file /var/www/nextcloud/config/config.php using a text editor.

To configure Nextcloud, you'll need to input your admin user and password, select the storage path, and input the database details. Here are the steps:

To set up Nextcloud, you'll need to create a new database and user for it to use. This involves logging in to the MariaDB server via the mariadb client command, which you can do by inputting the MariaDB root password when prompted.

You'll then need to run a series of queries to create a new database and user. For example, you can create a database named nextcloud_db and a user named nextclouduser with the password StrongPassword. Be sure to change the password to a new one.

Here are the basic steps to create a new database and user:

You can also use a utility like mariadb-secure-installation to secure the MariaDB server and create a new database and user. This will prompt you to set up a new password for the MariaDB root user and remove the default anonymous user.

Remember to replace the password with a strong and unique one to ensure the security of your database.

Performance and Security is a top priority when it comes to Nextcloud. Nextcloud is built with security in mind, with end-to-end encryption for sensitive data.

The self-contained nature of Nextcloud means it's less vulnerable to external threats. This is because it's not connected to the internet by default, reducing the attack surface.

With regular updates, Nextcloud stays ahead of potential security risks. This ensures your data remains secure and up-to-date, giving you peace of mind.

Securing with SSL/TLS is a crucial step in protecting your Nextcloud server. You'll want to use the Certbot tool to generate free SSL/TLS certificates from Letsencrypt.

To install Certbot and its Apache plugin, simply run the apt install command with the necessary confirmation. This will allow you to configure HTTPS automatically for multiple web servers.

The Certbot command to generate SSL/TLS certificates for your Nextcloud domain name is quite straightforward. Just be sure to change the domain name and email address within the command to match your setup.

Once the process is finished, your Nextcloud domain name should be configured with HTTPS. This is managed by the Certbot Apache plugin, which also stores the SSL/TLS certificates in the /etc/letsencrypt/live/domain-name.com/ directory.

Basic Performance Tuning is a crucial step in optimizing your Nextcloud installation. To enable memory caching, add the following configuration to your Nextcloud installation's $CONFIG = array section.

Enabling memory caching via OPCache is a simple yet effective way to boost performance. This step is essential for Nextcloud installations.

To set up cron via crontab, run the following command to create a new crontab that will be used to run the Nextcloud crontab script. The -u www-data parameter is used because the Apache2 web server is running on top of that user.

The crontab file needs to be edited to include the necessary configuration. Add the following configuration to the crontab file.

Saving and exiting the file is the next step. Ensure you've added the correct configuration before saving.

Verify the crontab list for the user www-data using the following command to ensure the crontab script is added correctly.

To ensure secure access to your Nextcloud, you must open the HTTP and HTTPS ports on your Ubuntu server.

UFW, or Uncomplicated Firewall, must be configured and enabled on your Ubuntu server to allow access to the Nextcloud.

To open both HTTP and HTTPS ports on Ubuntu, execute the ufw command: "ufw allow in on eth0 to any port 80,443".

Verify the list of rules on UFW with the command: "ufw status".

Backups are a crucial aspect of maintaining a secure and reliable system. It's easy to think that because your server is in the cloud, you're protected from data loss, but that's not the case.

You should make regular backups to another storage device, such as a NAS or a USB disk. This will ensure that your data is safe even if your server experiences issues.

Files are stored in the NextCloud folder, specifically in the data subfolder. For example, for the admin user, the default location is /var/www/html/nextcloud/data/admin/files/.

To make a backup, simply copy the /var/www/html/nextcloud/data folder to another location. This will give you a safe copy of your data.

Troubleshooting is a crucial step after installing NextCloud. You'll need to tweak a few settings to properly secure your server.

Click on the user icon in the top right corner of your screen and navigate to “Administration Settings”. This is where you'll find the security and setup warning section. Ideally, you should see the green “All check passed” message.

However, after installing NextCloud, it's possible that you might see messages in any of three different colors: red (error), yellow (warning), or black (notice).

To remove these messages, you can use RunCloud, which makes it easy to troubleshoot. Let's start with red ones first. Save the file and check the NextCloud security and setup warning section again. The warning message should disappear.

If you're getting the WebDAV interface seems to be broken error, you'll need to tweak your server settings. The exact steps vary for different tech stacks on RunCloud, so you can find your application stack under the “Web Application Stack” section on the Settings page for your application.

Here are the different types of messages you might see in the security and setup warning section, along with some tips on how to remove them:

To install Nextcloud, you'll need to set up your operating system and server. A minimal edition of Debian is recommended for hosting a Nextcloud server, as it's more stable and doesn't require a desktop environment.

You can also use Ubuntu or other Debian-based distributions, but make sure the server is connected to the network and enable SSH. Run `sudo apt update` and `sudo apt upgrade` to update the system.

You'll need a Debian 12 server with at least 4 GB of memory and 2 CPUs, as well as a non-root user with administrator privileges and a domain name pointed to the server IP address.

Here are the specific requirements:

Alternatively, you can use an Ubuntu 24.04 server, which also requires a non-root user with administrator privileges, a domain name pointed to the server IP address, and a UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall) up and running.

If you're using the default hybrid stack on RunCloud, you'll need to create a custom Nginx configuration file for your Nextcloud application.

This configuration file should be set to "location.main-before" and have a descriptive name.

To do this, paste the following code snippet into the provided text box.

Once you save the configuration file, you can go back to your Nextcloud application and refresh the page to check if the error still persists.

To get started with setting up your server for Nextcloud, you'll need to meet the prerequisites. A Debian 12 server with at least 4 GB of memory and 2 CPUs is a good starting point, along with a non-root user with administrator privileges and a domain name pointed to the server IP address.

A non-root user with administrator privileges is essential for installing and managing software on your server. This user should have the necessary permissions to install and configure software packages.

You'll also need a server with a UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall) up and running, as seen in Ubuntu 24.04 servers. This will help protect your server from unauthorized access.

Here are the specific system requirements you should look for in a server:

To configure and set up NextCloud, you'll need to create a new database user and database. Go to the RunCloud dashboard and create a new database user, then create a new database and grant its access to the user you just created.

The database details will look like this: User: nextcloud, Password: "password" (your password), Database: nextcloud, Host: localhost. After creating the database, return to the NextCloud installation and enter the login credentials of your administrator account.

You can also change the default path to store data if you wish. After installation, you'll be asked if you want to install the recommended apps. You can skip this step if you wish, and install any apps at a later time from the dashboard.

To set up an Apache virtual host for Nextcloud, you'll first need to create a new configuration file using the nano command.

You should create the file in the /etc/apache2/sites-available directory, and make sure to change the domain name within the ServerName parameter to your own domain.

After creating the file, run the a2ensite command to enable the virtual host configuration, and then verify the overall Apache2 configuration via the apachectl command.

If everything is correct, you should see the output "Syntax OK".

Next, restart the apache2 service using the systemctl command to apply the Nextcloud virtual host configuration.

Once Apache has restarted, you should be able to access your Nextcloud installation via an insecure HTTP protocol.

To secure your Nextcloud installation with HTTPS, you'll need to generate SSL certificates using the certbot command.

Make sure to change the domain name and email address with your own information when generating the certificates.

You can significantly improve your NextCloud server performance with memory caching, where frequently-requested objects are stored in memory for faster retrieval. This is a crucial step in optimizing your server.

NextCloud has two types of caches available: a PHP opcode cache and data caching for your Web server. If you don't install and enable a local memcache, you'll see a warning on your NextCloud admin page.

You can safely ignore the warning if you prefer not to use a memcache. However, if you're using RunCloud, you can use either Redis or Memcached for memory cache.

To use Redis, you'll need to start the Redis service from the RunCloud dashboard panel. This is a straightforward process that requires minimal technical expertise.

Once Redis is running, you'll need to edit the config/config.php file inside your NextCloud installation. This file is where you'll add the code for Redis memory cache.

Enabling Imagick is a straightforward process that can greatly improve your NextCloud experience.

Imagick is a PHP extension used by NextCloud for preview generation.

You won't need Imagick if you have only a few users, and you can safely ignore the warning message.

However, if you want to enable it, you can follow the quick guide provided by NextCloud.

To configure Nextcloud, you'll need to create a new Apache2 virtual host configuration. This involves creating a new file at /etc/apache2/sites-available/nextcloud.conf using the nano command.

Make sure to change the domain name within the ServerName parameter to your actual domain, and update the log file paths for both ErrorLog and CustomLog parameters.

Next, run the a2ensite command to enable the virtual host configuration, followed by the apachectl command to verify the Apache2 configuration. If everything is set up correctly, you should see the output "Syntax OK".

To apply the Nextcloud virtual host configuration, restart the apache2 service using the systemctl command.

Once the Apache2 service has restarted, your Nextcloud installation should be accessible via an insecure HTTP protocol. Visit your Nextcloud domain name, and you should see the installation page.

Here's a quick rundown of the steps:

To access your NextCloud server from anywhere, you'll need to set up remote access. This involves forwarding a port on your Internet router to make your server reachable from the internet.

If you're hosting NextCloud at home, you'll likely have a dynamic IP address, which means your IP address changes periodically. In this case, you can use a service like NoIP to map your domain name to your current IP address.

You can also use Let's Encrypt to install an SSL certificate, which is highly recommended for security reasons. This will encrypt the data transmitted between your device and the NextCloud server.

To do this, you'll need to configure Apache, which is covered in the Installation on Linux manual.

Before we dive into configuring Nextcloud, it's essential to update and upgrade our system to the latest version. This ensures we're working with the most recent features and security patches.

To update and upgrade all system packages, we can use a single command. Execute the following command to update and upgrade the system.

Start and enable the MariaDB service to ensure it's running smoothly. This step is crucial for a seamless Nextcloud installation.