MODX with Nginx and Ubuntu can be a powerful combination. If you’re looking for a simple and straightforward content management platform to manage your websites or blogs and 100% free, you’ll find MODX to be useful. This brief tutorial is going to show students and new users how to install MODX CMS on Ubuntu 17.04 | 17.10 with Nginx, MariaDB, and PHP support. This post covers installing the latest version of MODX, which at the time of writing was  2.6.1 To get started with installing MODX, follow the steps below:

Install Nginx

MODX requires a webserver to function and the second most popular web server in use today is Nginx. So, go and install Nginx on Ubuntu by running the commands below: Next, run the commands below to stop, start and enable the Nginx service to always start up with the server boots.

Install MariaDB

MODX also requires a database server to function. and MariaDB database server is a great place to start. To install it run the commands below. After installing, the commands below can be used to stop, start and enable the MariaDB service to always start up when the server boots. After that, run the commands below to secure the MariaDB server. When prompted, answer the questions below by following the guide.

Enter current password for root (enter for none): Just press the Enter Set root password? [Y/n]: Y New password: Enter password Re-enter new password: Repeat password Remove anonymous users? [Y/n]: Y Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n]: Y Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n]:  Y Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n]:  Y

Restart MariaDB server

MODX is based on PHP. so you’ll need to install it. To install PHP-FPM and related modules run the commands below After installing PHP, run the commands below to open the PHP-FPM default file. Then make the change the following lines below in the file and save.

Create MODX Database

Now that you’ve installed all the packages that are required, continue below to start configuring the servers. First, run the commands below to create the MODX database. Run the commands below to log on to the database server. When prompted for a password, type the root password you created above. Then create a database called modx Create a database user called modxuser with a new password Then grant the user full access to the database. Finally, save your changes and exit.

Download MODX Latest Release

Next, visit the MODX site and download the latest version. After downloading, run the commands below to extract the downloaded file into the Nginx root directory. Then run the commands below to set the correct permissions for MODX to function.

Configure Nginx

Finally, configure the Nginx site configuration file for MODX. This file will control how users access MODX content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called modx Then copy and paste the content below into the file and save it. Replace the highlighted line with your own domain name and directory root location. Save the file and exit.

Enable the MODX and Rewrite Module

After configuring the VirtualHost above, enable it by running the commands below To load all the settings above, restart Nginx by running the commands below. Then open your browser and browse to the server domain name. You should see MODX setup wizard complete. Please follow the wizard carefully. Then follow the on-screen instructions until you’ve successfully installed MODX. Select your language and continue Then choose new install and continue Next, enter the database information you created above and continue Then click the link to create or test selection of your database. this will allow you to create the site admin account Finally, install MODX Enjoy! Congratulations! You’ve successfully installed MODX CMS on Ubuntu with Nginx, MariaDB and PHP You may also like the post below: