Automate Wordpress Setup using Vagrant (IAC) - Day 16/90

Introduction

Creating a local development environment for a WordPress site can be a complex task, but we are going to simplify the process by automating this setup using vagrant. In this blog post, we'll guide you through the steps of installing and configuring a WordPress site on a virtual machine using a Vagrantfile. The provided Vagrantfile includes a script that automates the installation of necessary components such as Apache, MySQL, and PHP, making the process efficient and hassle-free.

If your are unaware with vagrant setup and installation then do check out my previous blogs, links as below:

1. Vagrant Installation

2. Your First Virtual Machine

3. Provisioning in Vagrant

Step 1: Create a Virtual Machine with Vagrant

Start by creating a new directory for your project and navigate to it in the terminal. Run the following command to initialize a new Vagrantfile:

vagrant init ubuntu/jammy64
            #Replace this with your linux distro name

This command creates a basic Vagrantfile in your project directory. Open the file with a text editor to customize it.

Step 2: Configure the Vagrantfile

Replace the content of the Vagrantfile with the following configuration:

Vagrant.configure("2") do |config|
  config.vm.box = "ubuntu/jammy64"
  config.vm.network "public_network"
  config.vm.network "private_network", ip: "192.168.56.50"
  # you can change the IP address, but be careful so they don't collide with some occupied ip

  config.vm.provision "shell", inline: <<-SHELL
    #installing dependencies
    sudo apt update
    sudo apt install apache2 \
                     ghostscript \
                     libapache2-mod-php \
                     mysql-server \
                     php \
                     php-bcmath \
                     php-curl \
                     php-imagick \
                     php-intl \
                     php-json \
                     php-mbstring \
                     php-mysql \
                     php-xml \
                     php-zip -y

    #installing wordpress
    sudo mkdir -p /srv/www
    sudo chown www-data: /srv/www
    curl https://wordpress.org/latest.tar.gz | sudo -u www-data tar zx -C /srv/www

    #configure apache2
    cat > /etc/apache2/sites-available/wordpress.conf << EOF
<VirtualHost *:80>
  DocumentRoot /srv/www/wordpress
  <Directory /srv/www/wordpress>
    Options FollowSymLinks
    AllowOverride Limit Options FileInfo
    DirectoryIndex index.php
    Require all granted
  </Directory>
  <Directory /srv/www/wordpress/wp-content>
    Options FollowSymLinks
    Require all granted
  </Directory>
</VirtualHost>
EOF
    #enabling wordpress site
    sudo a2ensite wordpress

    #enabling URL rewriting
    sudo a2enmod rewrite

    #Disabling the default page “It Works” site
    sudo a2dissite 000-default

    #configuring mysql database
    sudo mysql -u root -e 'CREATE DATABASE wordpress;'
    sudo mysql -u root -e 'CREATE USER wordpress@localhost IDENTIFIED BY "yourpassword";'
    sudo mysql -u root -e 'GRANT SELECT,INSERT,UPDATE,DELETE,CREATE,DROP,ALTER ON wordpress.* TO wordpress@localhost;'
    sudo mysql -u root -e 'FLUSH PRIVILEGES;'

    #configuring wordpress to connect with mysql
    sudo -u www-data cp /srv/www/wordpress/wp-config-sample.php /srv/www/wordpress/wp-config.php

    sudo -u www-data sed -i 's/database_name_here/wordpress/' /srv/www/wordpress/wp-config.php
    sudo -u www-data sed -i 's/username_here/wordpress/' /srv/www/wordpress/wp-config.php
    sudo -u www-data sed -i 's/password_here/yourpassword/' /srv/www/wordpress/wp-config.php

    #restart mysql and apache2 to apply changes
    systemctl restart mysql
    systemctl restart apache2
  SHELL
end

This Vagrantfile sets up a virtual machine based on the Ubuntu image and provisions it with the necessary components for running WordPress.

Step 3: Start the Virtual Machine

Save the modified Vagrantfile and run the following command to start the virtual machine:

vagrant up

Vagrant will download the Ubuntu box(imagefile of ubuntu) and execute the provisioning script to install and configure the required software.

Step 4: Access Your WordPress Site

Once the virtual machine is up and running, you can access your WordPress site by opening a web browser and navigating to your public IP address. You can see the ip address of your machine using following command

sudo ip addr show

You should see the WordPress installation page.

Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the WordPress setup, and you're ready to start developing your website locally.

Conclusion

Setting up a WordPress site on a virtual machine using Vagrant provides a convenient and isolated environment for development. The provided Vagrantfile automates the installation process, saving you time and effort. Feel free to customize the Vagrantfile to suit your specific requirements and start building amazing WordPress projects with ease.