Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04 | Easy Control Panel

In this comprehensive guide, you will discover How To Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04. Froxlor is a powerful, open-source server management panel primarily designed for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) needing to efficiently deploy web and email server installations for their customers. Its feature set simplifies many aspects of server administration, making it a valuable tool for managing hosting environments.

However, the utility of Froxlor extends far beyond the realm of ISPs. Businesses of all sizes can readily leverage this tool to rapidly establish new domains or sub-domains for various departments, remote offices, branches, and more. The ability to quickly provision and manage web hosting environments can significantly streamline operations and improve agility.

Since Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04 is open-source and relatively simple to set up, a task that might typically consume hours can be accomplished in mere minutes, all without incurring any licensing costs. This accessibility makes it an attractive option for organizations seeking cost-effective and efficient server management solutions. You can now proceed to the guide steps below to set up Froxlor control panel on Ubuntu 22.04.

Steps To Install and Configure Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04

Before embarking on the installation process, ensure you meet the following prerequisites. First, you must be logged into your Ubuntu 22.04 server as a non-root user with sudo privileges. If you haven’t already configured this, refer to our guide on Initial Server Setup with Ubuntu 22.04.

Secondly, you need a fully functional LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL/MariaDB, PHP) stack installed on your server. If you don’t have one, consult our guide on How To Install LAMP Stack on Ubuntu 22.04.

Once these requirements are met, proceed with the following steps to Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04.

1. Install Additional PHP Packages on Ubuntu 22.04

Assuming you have PHP installed as part of the LAMP stack, you must install several additional PHP packages that Froxlor relies on. Execute the following command to install these necessary packages:

sudo apt install php-xml php-posix php-mbstring php-curl php-bcmath php-zip php-json -y

This command will install the php-xml, php-posix, php-mbstring, php-curl, php-bcmath, php-zip, and php-json extensions for PHP. These extensions provide essential functionalities required by Froxlor for various tasks, such as XML parsing, process control, multi-byte string handling, making HTTP requests, performing mathematical calculations, handling ZIP archives, and working with JSON data.

2. Create a Database For Froxlor

Next, you need to create a dedicated database and user account for Froxlor within your MariaDB server. This ensures data isolation and proper access control.

First, log in to your MariaDB shell as the root user:

sudo mysql -u root -p

You’ll be prompted for the MariaDB root password. Enter it to access the MariaDB shell.

Within the MariaDB shell, create a new database for Froxlor. In this example, we’ll name it froxlordb:

<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> CREATE DATABASE <mark>froxlordb</mark>;

Now, create a new user specifically for Froxlor and grant it all privileges on the froxlordb database. This user will be used by Froxlor to access and manage its data. Here, we name the user froxloruser:

<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> CREATE USER '<mark>froxloruser</mark>'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY '<mark>password</mark>';
<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON <mark>froxlordb</mark>.* TO '<mark>froxloruser</mark>'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;

Important: Replace <mark>password</mark> with a strong, unique password for the froxloruser account.

Finally, flush the privileges to apply the changes and exit the MariaDB shell:

<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> EXIT;

Note: You will need to specify this user as the MySQL root user in the web installer.

Also, you need to create another user for the MySQL non-privileged account. Again login to your MariaDB shell and run the commands below:

<mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark> <mark><span>CREATE USER '</span></mark><span><mark>froxloruser1</mark></span><mark><span>'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY '</span></mark><span><mark>password</mark></span><mark><span>'; </span></mark>
<mark><span><mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark></span></mark> <mark><span>GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON <mark>froxlordb</mark>.* TO '</span></mark><span><mark>froxloruser1</mark></span><mark><span>'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION; </span></mark>
<mark><span><mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark></span></mark> <mark><span>FLUSH PRIVILEGES; </span></mark>
<mark><span><mark><strong>MariaDB [(none)]&gt;</strong></mark></span></mark> <mark><span>EXIT;</span></mark>

3. Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04

To install Froxlor, you need to add its official repository to your system. This ensures you receive the latest version and updates directly from the Froxlor team.

First, install the necessary dependencies for adding HTTPS repositories:

sudo apt -y install apt-transport-https lsb-release ca-certificates gnupg

Add Froxlor GPG Key

Next, add the GPG key for Froxlor to your system’s trusted keys. This allows apt to verify the authenticity of the packages downloaded from the Froxlor repository:

sudo curl -sSLo /usr/share/keyrings/deb.froxlor.org-froxlor.gpg https://deb.froxlor.org/froxlor.gpg

Add Froxlor Repository

Now, add the Froxlor repository to your system’s list of software sources:

sudo sh -c 'echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/deb.froxlor.org-froxlor.gpg] https://deb.froxlor.org/ubuntu $(lsb_release -sc) main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/froxlor.list'

After adding the repository, update your local package index to reflect the new software sources:

sudo apt update

Finally, install Froxlor using the following command:

sudo apt install froxlor

During the installation process, you will be prompted to choose a mail server configuration type. Select the option that best suits your needs and press Enter to continue.

4. Apache Configuration for Froxlor Control Panel

To ensure Froxlor functions correctly with Apache, you need to make a minor adjustment to the default Apache virtual host configuration file.

Open the file using your preferred text editor (e.g., vi, nano):

sudo vi /etc/apache2/sites-enabled/000-default.conf

Locate the DocumentRoot directive, which typically points to /var/www/html. Remove the /html portion of the path so that it becomes:

DocumentRoot /var/www

Save the changes and close the file. Restart Apache to apply the new configuration:

sudo service apache2 restart

5. Access Froxlor Dashboard

With the installation and configuration complete, you can now access the Froxlor dashboard through your web browser. Simply enter your server’s IP address followed by /froxlor:

http://<mark>your_ip</mark>/froxlor

You will be presented with the Froxlor welcome screen. Click "Start install" to begin the web-based installation process.

Proceed through the web installer, verifying the system requirements and clicking "Click here to continue" to advance to the next step.

Next, configure your database connection settings and server name. Click "Click here to continue" to proceed.

Enter your domain name in the server name field. If all settings are correctly configured, the Froxlor installation will commence. Click "Click here to continue" to move forward.

Once the installation is complete, you will be redirected to the Froxlor login screen. Enter your administrator credentials and click "Login."

You will now be greeted by the Froxlor dashboard, providing access to its various management features.

Conclusion

You have now successfully learned how to Install Froxlor on Ubuntu 22.04 and configure it for basic operation. Froxlor provides a lightweight yet comprehensive control panel for managing domains, email accounts, FTP access, databases, and server configurations. Its ease of use and extensive feature set make it an excellent choice for hosting providers and system administrators alike. This process provides a simple control panel for managing domains, email accounts, FTP access, databases, and server configurations, making it ideal for hosting providers and system administrators.

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Alternative Solutions for Server Management on Ubuntu 22.04

While Froxlor provides a viable solution for server management, other alternatives offer varying features and complexity levels. Here are two alternative approaches:

1. Using Virtualmin/Webmin:

Virtualmin is a widely used, powerful, and flexible web hosting control panel built on top of Webmin, a general-purpose system administration tool. It offers a comprehensive suite of features for managing domains, email, databases, and other server resources.

Explanation: Webmin provides a web-based interface for system administration, covering tasks like user management, service configuration, and log file analysis. Virtualmin adds domain management capabilities, including virtual host creation, email account management, and database administration. Virtualmin offers both an open-source (Virtualmin GPL) and a commercial version.
Installation: The installation process is relatively straightforward. You typically download and run the Virtualmin installation script, which handles the installation and configuration of Webmin and Virtualmin along with its dependencies.
```
wget https://software.virtualmin.com/gpl/scripts/install.sh
sudo bash install.sh
```
This script automates much of the setup process. The user will have to answer a few configuration questions during the install, and the system will be ready to manage domains and users when complete.

2. Docker-based Deployment with Portainer:

Docker allows you to containerize your web applications and services, making them easier to deploy and manage. Portainer provides a web-based UI for managing Docker containers, images, and networks. This approach offers a higher degree of isolation and portability.

Explanation: Docker packages applications and their dependencies into containers, ensuring consistency across different environments. Portainer simplifies Docker management by providing a user-friendly interface for deploying, scaling, and monitoring containers. You could set up a LAMP stack using Docker containers and then use Portainer to manage those containers. This is a more advanced approach that requires some familiarity with Docker concepts.
Implementation:
1. Install Docker:
```
sudo apt update
sudo apt install docker.io
sudo systemctl start docker
sudo systemctl enable docker
```
2. Install Portainer:
```
docker volume create portainer_data
docker run -d -p 8000:8000 -p 9000:9000 --name=portainer --restart=always -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock -v portainer_data:/data portainer/portainer-ce:latest
```
3. Access Portainer: Open your web browser and navigate to http://<your_server_ip>:9000.
4. Create Docker Containers for LAMP: Use Portainer to create Docker containers for Apache, MySQL/MariaDB, and PHP. You can find pre-built Docker images for these components on Docker Hub. Define environment variables for database credentials and other configuration settings.
5. Link Containers: Use Docker networking to link the containers together, allowing them to communicate with each other. This ensures that your PHP application can access the database.

These alternative solutions offer different trade-offs in terms of complexity, features, and resource utilization. Choosing the right approach depends on your specific requirements and technical expertise.