Installing Mediagoblin on Webfaction

The following are the steps I used to install Mediagoblin on Webfaction.  They are based on the slightly out-of-date instructions found here.  And Mediagoblin’s own deploy instructions are helpful, of course.  Feel free to peruse them but the instructions below should be all you need to install Mediagoblin on Webfaction.

1. Install a Custom app (listening on port) named ‘mediagoblin’.
2. Mount your MediaGoblin application on a domain with a website.
3. Set up a Postgres database.
4. Connect to your server with SSH.
5. Install the MediaGoblin core dependencies:
   1. Python dependencies:
      
      $ easy_install-2.7 lxml $ easy_install-2.7 virtualenv $ easy_install-2.7 flux

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      $ easy_install-2.7 lxml   $ easy_install-2.7 virtualenv   $ easy_install-2.7 flux

   2. Nodejs: see my own Installing nodejs on Webfaction.
6. Get the Mediagoblin code:
   
   $ cd webapps $ git clone git://git.savannah.gnu.org/mediagoblin.git mediagoblin -b stable $ cd mediagoblin $ git submodule init && git submodule update

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   $ cd webapps $ git clone git://git.savannah.gnu.org/mediagoblin.git mediagoblin -b stable $ cd mediagoblin $ git submodule init && git submodule update

7. Set up the environment:
   
   $ ./bootstrap.sh && ./configure && make

   1	$ ./bootstrap.sh && ./configure && make

8. Create local versions of mediagoblin.ini and paste.ini like so:
   
   $ cp -av mediagoblin.ini mediagoblin_local.ini && cp -av paste.ini paste_local.ini

   1	$ cp -av mediagoblin.ini mediagoblin_local.ini && cp -av paste.ini paste_local.ini

9. Edit mediagoblin_local.ini.
   1. Uncomment the line that begins # sql_engine = and edit it so that is has the following form:
      
      sql_engine = postgresql://<db_username>:<db_password>@localhost/<db_name>

      1	sql_engine = postgresql://<db_username>:<db_password>@localhost/<db_name>

      
      where <db_username>, <db_password> and <db_name> are the values for the database user name, password and database name, respectively, that were created in step 3.
   2. Change the value of email_debug_mode from true to false.
   3. Optionally, set up email notifications:
      
      email_sender_address = 'someemail@yourdomain.com' email_smtp_host = 'smtp.webfaction.com' email_smtp_port = 465 email_smtp_user = 'webfaction_mailbox_name' email_smtp_pass = 'password_for_that_mailbox'

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      email_sender_address = 'someemail@yourdomain.com' email_smtp_host = 'smtp.webfaction.com' email_smtp_port = 465 email_smtp_user = 'webfaction_mailbox_name' email_smtp_pass = 'password_for_that_mailbox'

      
      Note that you’ll have to create the webfaction_mailbox_name mailbox, if it does not already exist, as well as a corresponding email address. You can do that by following the instructions here.

      If you do not set up email notifications, you’ll need to leave email_debug_mode set to true so that you can get the email verification code in the terminal where you start the server.

10. Edit paste_local.ini.  Change the port to the value set in step 1.
11. Initialize the database:
    $ ./bin/gmg dbupdate

    1	$ ./bin/gmg dbupdate

12. Start the server:
    $ ./lazyserver.sh

    1	$ ./lazyserver.sh

You should now be able to visit the site at the domain set up in step 2.  If you see the Mediagoblin front page, congratulations!