How to host Symfony on AWS EC2 VM Instance - ServerAvatar

Symfony is an open-source PHP framework known for its flexibility and comprehensive features. With its extensive range of components and customization options, Symfony facilitates the creation of web solutions without requiring extensive technical knowledge. It allows developers to efficiently create and manage sophisticated web applications, providing tools for routing, templating, and security. When choosing a hosting platform for Symfony, opting for AWS EC2 ensures reliability with its scalable infrastructure and straightforward deployment options. ServerAvatar makes the deployment of Symfony on the AWS EC2 platform an easy step-by-step process.

Create an AWS EC2 Instance

Getting Started with AWS EC2:

In the dynamic landscape of cloud computing, Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) stands as a cornerstone service provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS), offering a flexible and scalable solution for hosting virtual servers in the cloud. Designed to cater to a diverse range of computing needs, EC2 allows businesses and developers to deploy virtual machines quickly and securely, enabling them to run various applications and manage workloads with ease.

From startups seeking cost-effective computing power to enterprises requiring robust, scalable infrastructure, EC2 provides a vast array of instance types optimized for different use cases. These instances offer customizable configurations, including computing power, memory, storage, and networking capabilities, empowering users to tailor their virtual environments precisely to their application requirements.

Whether it's launching a single instance for a small-scale project or orchestrating a complex network of instances across multiple regions, EC2 simplifies the process with its intuitive management console and comprehensive APIs. This versatility makes it a preferred choice for businesses looking to leverage the scalability and reliability of cloud computing without the overhead of managing physical hardware.

Using AWS EC2 instances offers a multitude of benefits that cater to diverse business needs and technical requirements. Here are some key advantages:

• Scalability: EC2 enables swift adjustments to your computing capacity according to demand, offering elasticity that efficiently manages fluctuating workloads for businesses, preventing resource over-provisioning.
• Cost-Effectiveness: With EC2, you pay only for the compute capacity you use. This pay-as-you-go pricing model eliminates the need for upfront investments in hardware and allows for cost optimization by scaling resources as needed.
• Flexibility: EC2 provides a diverse range of instance types tailored for various use cases, including compute-optimized, memory-optimized, storage-optimized, and GPU instances. This versatility allows you to select the ideal instance type that best suits your specific application needs.
• Security: AWS offers a secure environment for hosting EC2 instances, incorporating features such as security groups, network access control lists (ACLs), and Virtual Private Clouds (VPCs) to manage network access effectively. Integration with other AWS services, such as AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), further enhances security by providing detailed access control capabilities.
• Ease of Use: EC2 instances can be easily launched, managed, and configured using the AWS Management Console, Command Line Interface (CLI), or SDKs/APIs. Automation tools like AWS CloudFormation and AWS Elastic Beanstalk further simplify deployment and management tasks.
• Reliability: AWS ensures a high level of reliability for EC2 instances with SLAs that guarantee a specific level of uptime. Additionally, EC2 instances can be configured to automatically recover from failures using features like Auto Scaling and Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS) snapshots.

Let’s Get started with Creating a Virtual Machine on AWS EC2:

To create a server in Amazon. First log in to Amazon web service. Once you are there, Follow the steps given below.

Step 1: Search for the EC2 service in the AWS search bar

• The first step is to search for EC2 services, as Amazon provides multiple web services. Then click on the EC2 with virtual servers in the cloud option which is shown in the image below.

Step 2: Launching Instances from the EC2 Dashboard

• Now you are in the EC2 Dashboard, navigate to the running instances section. After that new tab for instances will be displayed there you have to click on the Launch Instances button as shown in the images below.

Step 3: Naming and Tagging Your EC2 Instance

• The next step is to name the instance of your choice and you can also add tags to your instance which can help organize, manage, and track resources.

Step 4: Select the OS for your Instance

• After following the steps, proceed to select the operating system for your instance. The Symfony application requires Ubuntu 18.04 LTS or a later version for compatibility and support.
• In this case, First, click on Ubuntu and then select the Amazon Machine Image of Ubuntu Server 22.04 LTS as an operating system. In addition to this, select the architecture to 64-bit(x64/86) as shown in the image below.

Step 5: Select the Instance type

• In this step, select the size of your VM instance. AWS EC2 provides lots of different options when it comes to plans and pricing. The selection of instances completely depends on the requirements. So, select the instance based on the complexity and traffic of your sites.

Step 6: Select SSH Key pair or create one

• Here you can select the Key pair name for SSH. If you don't have any key pair stored, you can also create a new key pair by clicking on the Create new key pair option as shown in the following image.

Step 7: Configuring Network Settings

• In this step, you have to configure the network by simply clicking on the Edit button as shown in the following image.

• Then you have to create a new security group by selecting the create security group radio button. You can enter the security group name of your choice and can also add a description for your security group for that you can refer to the image below.

Step 8: Add Inbound Security Group Rules

• The next step is to add inbound security group rules which are necessary to configure for connecting your instance to ServerAvatar. Click on the button shown in the image below to add security group rules.

• ServerAvatar requires 43210 port to be open. In total, You need to keep the following ports open on the instance.
  • 22 (SSH): To access your server via SSH
  • 80 (HTTP): To access your sites on HTTP
  • 443 (HTTPS): To access your sites on HTTPS
  • 43210 (ServerAvatar): To allow communication between ServerAvatar and your instance
• To understand and proceed further, please take the reference of the image depicted below.

Step 9: Configure the storage for your instance

• The final step is to configure the storage. You can select the size of the storage according to your needs. However, it is recommended to select at least 25GB disk volume, and in AWS EC2 there is also an option to select the root volume which you can choose as per your requirements. Now click on the Launch Instance button, as shown in the image below.

• Congratulations! You have successfully created your AWS EC2 Instance which is now ready to connect with ServerAvatar.

Initial Server Configuration

The Initial server configuration includes the 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 optimization can be automated.

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

wget https://srvr.so/install
chmod +x install
./install

Install and Setup Symfony on Cloud using ServerAvatar

Getting Started With Symfony:

Symfony is a powerful PHP framework used to develop web applications. It offers a robust set of features and tools to help streamline the development process. Whether you're building a simple blog or a complex enterprise application, Symfony provides the structure and flexibility you need. In this blog post, we will guide you through the steps to create and configure your Symfony application, ensuring you have a solid foundation to start your development journey.

Requirements:

• PHP 8.2 or higher: Symfony requires a modern version of PHP to leverage the latest features and improvements. Ensure you have PHP 8.2 or a higher version installed on your machine.

Install and Setup Symfony on Cloud using ServerAvatar:

Step 1: Create a Custom Application

• The first step is to create a new custom application. This can be done easily from your server dashboard. Navigate to the application section and click on the Create button to set up your new application.

• To proceed with the installation and deployment of Symfony, ensure you have met the prerequisites.

• Enter an Application Name of your choice.

• Specify a Domain (choose between a Test Domain or a Primary Domain).

  • Note: If you're hosting Symfony on your domain, make sure your domain is correctly pointed to your server's current IP address.

• Select a Method as a Custom from the given options. Click on the Create Application option.

Step 2: Enable SSH Credentials

• To securely access your server, you need to enable SSH credentials. SSH (Secure Shell) provides a secure way to log in to your server remotely, ensuring that your data and commands are encrypted. This step is crucial for managing your server and deploying your Symfony application.

Step 3: Login Using SSH Credentials

• Once you have your SSH credentials enabled, you can log in to your server. Open a terminal and use the following command:
  • sudo ssh {username}@{ip}
• Replace {username} with your actual username and {ip} with your server's IP address. You will be prompted to enter your password. After successful authentication, you will have remote access to your server.

Step 4: Navigate to the Application Path

• With SSH access established, navigate to your application's directory on the server. This is where you will set up your Symfony project. Use the cd command to change directories to your application's root path.

Step 5: Remove the Default index.html

• Your server might have a default index.html file in the application directory. To avoid conflicts and ensure a clean setup, remove this file by running:
  • rm -rf index.html

Step 6: Run Composer to Create a New Symfony Project

• Composer is a dependency manager for PHP that makes it easy to install and manage libraries and frameworks. Use Composer to create a new Symfony project in your current directory by executing:
  • composer create-project symfony/skeleton .

• This command downloads and sets up the basic structure of a Symfony application.

Step 7: Install Webapp Pack

• To add essential tools and features to your Symfony project, you need to install the Symfony web app pack. Run the following command:
  • composer require symfony/webapp-pack
• This package includes commonly used bundles and components that will help you develop your web application efficiently.

Step 8: Configuration Without Docker

• During the setup process, you may be prompted to configure the application with Docker. For simplicity, choose not to use Docker by entering n when prompted. This will configure Symfony to run in a traditional server environment.

Step 9: Set Custom Webroot

• Next, set the custom webroot as public for your application. This can be done from the application dashboard in the application settings. The webroot is the directory where your web server looks for the application files to serve.

Step 10: Fix Permissions

• Fix file permissions are essential for your application to run smoothly. Adjust the permissions from the application dashboard in the application settings to ensure your web server can access and modify the necessary files.

Step 11: Verify Installation

• To confirm that your Symfony installation is successful, visit your application domain in a web browser. You should see the Symfony welcome page, indicating that your setup is complete and your application is ready for development.

Step 12: Configure Environment File

• Edit the .env File: The .env file in your Symfony project contains environment-specific settings, such as database credentials and configuration options. Open this file in a text editor and update the settings according to your environment.

Step 13: Set Up the Database

• Create a Database: From the server dashboard, navigate to the databases section and create a new database. This database will store your application's data.

• Configure Database Credentials: Update the .env file with your database credentials. Replace the placeholders with your actual database information:
  • DATABASE_URL=”mysql://db_user:db_password@127.0.0.1:3306/db_name

• Run Migrations: If your Symfony application includes database migrations, run them to set up your database schema. Migrations are a way to define changes to your database structure in a version-controlled manner. Execute the following command to apply the migrations:
  • php bin/console doctrine:migrations:migrate

Conclusion:

Congratulations! You have successfully created and configured your Symfony application. With your environment set up and your database connected, you're now ready to start building your web application using Symfony's powerful tools and features. Whether you're developing a small personal project or a large-scale enterprise application, Symfony provides the flexibility and capabilities to help you achieve your goals. Enjoy your journey with Symfony!