How to host Cachet on Vultr Server - ServerAvatar

Published : Mar 25, 2023

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cloud-platform

Vultr

Vultr is one of the simplest cloud platforms available. It is very easy to create and manage infrastructure in Vultr. You can create on-demand cloud instances or servers at 28 different locations world wide.

Get started with Vultr
application

Cachet

In simpler terms, it is a tool that allows businesses to create a web page that displays the current status of their website, application, or service—letting their customer know if everything is working smoothly or any issues are being addressed.

More info

Create a Cloud Instance in Vultr

To create a server in Vultr, follow the below given steps. If you want to learn How to use Vultr to manage your infrastructure in Vultr, You can refer our Vultr cloud guide.

Step 1: Go to Instance Creation Page

Vultr provides lots of different types of cloud instances. From the server creation page, you can create lots of different types of cloud instances, like Regular VMs, Dedicated, Bare Metal, Cloud GPUs and some managed services.

To access the server creation page, log in to your Vultr account and click on the Deploy New Server option from the + button given on the dashboard.

Create server in Vultr - Step 1

Step 2: Choose Server

You can create 4 different types of cloud instances. They are Optimised cloud compute, Cloud compute, Cloud GPU and Bare Metal. Select the one that fits your requirements.

Create server in Vultr - Step 2

Step 3: Choose Server Type

Based on your selection of the server in the second step, You will have to select a specific type of server. If you have selected Optimised cloud compute instance, You will see options like the following image.

Create server in Vultr - Step 3

Step 4: Select Server Location

Location is very important option. Make sure to select a server location closest to your major traffic source demographically. You can select locations in 5 different continents.

Create server in Vultr - Step 4

Step 5: Select Server Image

In simple terms, Server image is an operating system running on the server. So here, You have to select an OS for your server.

If you are managing your servers with ServerAvatar, Select Ubuntu 20.04 or Ubuntu 22.04.

Create server in Vultr - Step 5

Step 6: Select Server Size

Here, Select a server size according to your requirements. If you are just getting started with the project, You can start small and then upgrade according to the future requirements.

Create server in Vultr - Step 6

Step 7: Add Auto Backups and Additional Features

We recommend you to enable auto backups for important websites or apps. If you are creating a temporary server, You can skip the auto backups.

In additional features, You can enable DDOS Protection if needed. Enable other options according to your requirements.

Do not enable "No Public IPv4 Address" option. It will result in a server without IPv4, which is not possible to connect with ServerAvatar.

Step 8: Select an SSH Key

If you use SSH key to authenticate with the server, Select an SSH key in this section. If you haven't uploaded your key yet, You can do it by clicking on the Add New option.

SSH key is not mandatory. If you do not use SSH keys, Ignore this option. You can still connect with server using password.

Create server in Vultr - Step 8

Step 9: Firewall Group

If you are using Vultr firewall, You can select the firewall group from here.

If you do not have 43210 port enabled in your firewall group, you need to configure it to connect a server with ServerAvatar.

Create server in Vultr - Step 9

Step 10: Server Hostname and Label

You have to choose the hostname and the label for the server in this step. You can set the same hostname and label. They are used for identification purpose only.

Create server in Vultr - Step 10

Step 11: Deploy Now!

Finally, click on the Deploy Now button to create a server. It might take a minute or two to fully boot up your server. Once it is ready, You will see it in the Products section in Vultr.

Create server in Vultr - Step 11

Initial Server Configuration

The Initial server configuration includes installation and configuration of various packages required to host your website. Usually, You have to write commands and modify configuration files. Luckily, With ServerAvatar, Your full server configuration and optimisation can be automated.

Here are the three ways to automatically configure your server with ServerAvatar.

Install and Setup Cachet status page system with ServerAvatar

Step 1. Create a PHP application

To create an application, go to the ServerAvatar server panel, navigate to the Applications tab, and click the Create button like the following image.

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1. Fill in basic detail

In the first step, fill in the basic details, including Application Name, select the Domain type, and type the Primary Domain/Test Domain Name.

Note that:

If you want to host Joomla CMS on your domain, then make sure to point your domain to the current IP address of your server, and for that:

  1. Log in to your hosting provider site, where you buy your domain. You can check your domain information with one click.
  2. Access DNS Manager to edit your DNS records(contact the support team if you don’t find them)
  3. Change the IP address of A Record of your website to the current server’s IP address.

Note that:

For accessing Cachet on the subdomain, you need to add your subdomain on A Record that points to the current IP address of your server. To point to an IPV6 address, you would need to use an AAAA record

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Click the Next Step to continue.

2. Select the application creation method

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Here you can fill in the required details. It includes-

  1. Select the Git method and GitHub as a service provider so we can deploy an application from Git public repository.
  2. Mark on Public repository.
  3. Type/Paste GitHub project URL. You’ll find the link on GitHub in the image below.

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  1. Type the Branch of the GitHub project.

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  1. Type the below commands in the deployment script.

php7.3 /usr/bin/composer install cp .env.example .env php7.3 artisan key:generate

Note that:

Note that: Cachet supports PHP7.1 To 7.3, we need to specify the version in the command in the deployments script.

3. Allocate system user

System users manage the resources of the application. You can create a new application user or give permission to the existing user.

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Click the Next Step to continue.

4. Other Options

In this step, select PHP version 7.3. Cachet supports PHP 7.1 - 7.3. And type Public in the Custom Webroot field.

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5. Review your application details

Review your application details. And click the Create Application button.

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Step 2. Create Cachet database

On the server panel, navigate to the Databases tab from the sidebar and click the Create button to create a MySQL database.

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Fill in database details, including-

  • Database Name
  • Database Username
  • Database Password

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Step 3. Delete the .env.example file and update the database information

To delete the .env.example file, go to the application panel>>file manager and access the public_html folder. Now check the Show Hidden Files. The .env.example file is at the top of the multiple hidden files. Please select the file and delete it like the following image.

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Now open the .env file and change the database details we created in the second step. It includes-

DB_DATABASE: Database Name DB_USERNAME: Database Username DB_PASSWORD: Database Password

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Don’t forget to save the file(CTRL+s) after making appropriate changes.

Step 4. Install SSL

To install SSL for your application. Go to your application panel and click the SSL Certificate from the sidebar.

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You can install Automatic SSL or a Custom installation method to secure your site with an SSL certificate. It is recommended to install automatic SSL for your application.

Step 5. Install and Set up Cachet

1. Environment set up

Access your domain/subdomain on the browser to install and set up Cachet. The setup screen will look like the following image.

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Fill in the required details in the above image and click the Next button.

2. Status Page Setup

On the next page, you’ll need to set up the status page. Here you can fill up the details, including your Website Name, Website Domain, Timezone, and Language.

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Click the Next button to continue.

3. Administrator Account

Fill up admin details, including** Admin Username**, Email, and Password.

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Once you enter all the details, click the Complete Setup button. The message will display like the following image. Click the Go To Dashboard button to continue.

Notice: you may see the error “An error occurs, and this resource cannot be displayed.”

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If it occurred, log in to your application using an SSH connection. You can see the credentials in the application panel in the following image.

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Execute the following command in your terminal to log in to your application-

ssh Username@Host Now go to your application path using “cd Application_Name/public_html” and execute the following command.

Php7.3 artisan migrate:refresh After that, go to your setup page and click the Complete Setup button. It will configure cachet successfully.

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Once you access the dashboard, you’ll create and manage components and incidents, including updating incidents with additional information and marking them as resolved when the issue is fixed.

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That’s it. Your CacheT instance should be live and you can start working on your status pages. We hope this tutorial was helpful to you. You can also refer to other deployment tutorials given below.