Introduction

Here is a detailed guide to installing Nextcloud with PHP 8.3 on a Linux server, using Ubuntu Server and MariaDB as the database.

Step 1: Update the Server

Start by updating your system:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install PHP 8.3 and Required Extensions

To run Nextcloud, you need PHP 8.3 and several extensions:

Adding the PHP 8.3 Repository

First, add the `ppa:ondrej/php` repository to get PHP 8.3:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php

sudo apt update

Installing PHP 8.3 and Extensions

Install PHP 8.3 and the necessary extensions:

sudo apt install Apache libapache2-mod-php8.3 -y

sudo apt install php8.3 php8.3-gd php8.3-mysql php8.3-curl php8.3-mbstring php8.3-intl php8.3-imagick php8.3-xml php8.3-zip php8.3-bz2 php8.3-apcu -y

PHP extensions functionalities:

Each of these PHP extensions is required for different Nextcloud functionalities:

- `php8.3-gd`: Image processing library.

- `php8.3-mysql`: MySQL/MariaDB connection.

- `php8.3-curl`: URL transfer library.

- `php8.3-mbstring`: Multi-byte string handling.

- `php8.3-intl`: Internationalization functions.

- `php8.3-imagick`: Image processing.

- `php8.3-xml`: XML processing.

- `php8.3-zip`: ZIP archiving.

- `php8.3-bz2`: Bzip2 compression support.

- `php8.3-apcu`: APCu caching support.

Verify PHP Version

Check that PHP 8.3 was installed correctly:

php -v

Step 3: Install and Configure MariaDB Database

Install MariaDB:

sudo apt install mariadb-server -y

Secure MariaDB Installation

Secure the MariaDB installation:

sudo mysql_secure_installation

This wizard helps you set the root password, remove anonymous users, disable remote root login, and delete the test database.

Create a Database for Nextcloud

Log into MariaDB and create a database and user for Nextcloud:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Run the following SQL commands:

CREATE DATABASE nextcloud;

CREATE USER 'nextclouduser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_password';

Replace `your_password` with a strong password.

GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON nextcloud.* TO 'nextclouduser'@'localhost';

FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

EXIT;

Step 4: Download and Install Nextcloud

Download Nextcloud

Download and unzip the latest Nextcloud release:

wget https://download.nextcloud.com/server/releases/nextcloud-29.0.5.zip

unzip nextcloud-29.0.5.zip

sudo mv nextcloud /var/www/

Set File Permissions

Set the appropriate permissions for Apache to access the Nextcloud files:

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/nextcloud/

sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/nextcloud/

Step 5: Configure Apache Web Server

To run Nextcloud on Apache, create a configuration file:

Apache Nextcloud Configuration File

Create a new virtual host file for Nextcloud:

sudo nano /etc/Apache/sites-available/nextcloud.conf

Paste the following content:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    DocumentRoot /var/www/nextcloud/
    ServerName your-domain.com

    <Directory /var/www/nextcloud/>
        Options +FollowSymlinks
        AllowOverride All

        <IfModule mod_dav.c>
            Dav off
        </IfModule>

        SetEnv HOME /var/www/nextcloud
        SetEnv HTTP_HOME /var/www/nextcloud
    </Directory>

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/nextcloud_error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/nextcloud_access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Enable Apache Modules

Enable the necessary Apache modules:

sudo a2ensite nextcloud.conf

sudo a2enmod rewrite headers env dir mime

Restart Apache:

sudo systemctl restart Apache

Step 6: SSL Setup (Optional)

For security, enable HTTPS using an SSL certificate from Let's Encrypt or another provider.

Install Let's Encrypt SSL Certificate

You can install a free SSL certificate from Let's Encrypt:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-apache -y

sudo certbot --apache

Step 7: Complete Nextcloud Setup via Web Interface

Open your web browser and navigate to `http://your-domain.com`. The Nextcloud setup wizard should appear.

Database Configuration

- **Database user**: `nextclouduser`
- **Database password**: `your_password`
- **Database name**: `nextcloud`
- **Database host**: `localhost`
            

Complete the setup to start using Nextcloud.

Step 8: Security and Performance Improvements (Optional)

You can take some additional steps to secure your Nextcloud installation and improve performance:

1. Security Improvements

Review the security settings recommended by Nextcloud:

• Protect `.htaccess` files: Ensure that the `.htaccess` files in the Nextcloud root directory are working correctly by making sure the `AllowOverride All` setting is enabled in your Apache configuration.
• Review security and setup warnings: Apply the recommended security settings in the Nextcloud admin interface.

2. Performance Improvements

To enhance the performance of Nextcloud, follow these steps:

• Enable APCu Caching: Install the `php8.3-apcu` package to enable APCu caching.
• Install Redis: You can use Redis for file locking and caching by installing it:

sudo apt install redis-server php8.3-redis -y

Edit the `config.php` file to add Redis to Nextcloud:

'memcache.locking' => '\\OC\\Memcache\\Redis',
        'redis' => [
          'host' => 'localhost',
          'port' => 6379,
          ],

3. Scheduled Tasks (Cron Jobs)

Set up a cron job to ensure that Nextcloud performs maintenance tasks on time:

sudo crontab -u www-data -e

Add the following line:

*/5 * * * * php -f /var/www/nextcloud/cron.php

Conclusion

Following these steps, you will have a fully functional Nextcloud instance running with PHP 8.3.