Blazing Moon

Installing Koha 3.0 on Ubuntu 8.10

Packages

Our next step is to install a number of packages Koha requires.

Download Koha Source Files

First download and unpack the Koha 3.0 source files, making yourself root if you aren't already. If you're using a later version of Koha you'll need to update the version number appropriately in the file and directory names below.

sudo su
cd /build
wget http://download.koha.org/koha-3.00.00.tar.gz
tar -xzvf koha-3.00.00.tar.gz
cd koha-3.00.00

You need to have the Koha files in place for a step in the next section. However, it's also worth noting that the Koha directories include two files with installation instructions:

  • /build/koha-3.00.00/INSTALL
  • /build/koha-3.00.00/INSTALL.debian

These are valuable resources, and this guide is based in part upon their contents. However, depending upon your background you might find the INSTALL files cryptic at times since they assume a certain level of understanding of Linux and Koha.

Also, the INSTALL files are finalized before the Koha release becomes generally available. Once any software release is in general distribution people will inevitably find a variety of new problems and necessary tweaks. Resolutions to these issues might be posted on personal web pages or the Koha Mailing List—too late for inclusion in the INSTALL files. I've included the relevant resolutions I'm aware of in this guide.

Even so, the INSTALL files are worth reviewing in general, and are particularly important resources if you hit problems during the installation process. And if you're installing a version of Koha after 3.00.00 you really must read these files carefully in case of significant changes to the installation process.

Prepare for Package Installation

apt-get vs. aptitude install

Some Debian-based install guides (for Koha or otherwise) use apt-get and some use aptitude install. There were important differences between these in earlier Ubuntu versions but they don't need to concern you for this guide.

We're about to use the apt-get utility to install a number of dependencies. Before doing this we need to tell apt-get where it can find the packages. Edit the list of package sources:

gedit /etc/apt/sources.list

Add the following lines to the sources.list file then save and quit:

deb http://ftp.indexdata.dk/debian etch main
deb-src http://ftp.indexdata.dk/debian etch main

You also need to download a digitally signed key to let apt-get happily use these sources. You could complete the install without this key but you would get some error messages telling you the sources you've added aren't trusted.

cd /build
wget http://ftp.indexdata.dk/debian/indexdata.asc
apt-key add indexdata.asc

Then refresh your list of available packages. This command should complete without error messages.

apt-get update

Install the Packages

Fortunately the Koha source includes a package list that lets you install the majority of the required packages without seeing the details.

cd koha-3.00.00
dpkg --set-selections < install_misc/debian.packages

Next install the dselect module and run it:

apt-get install dselect
dselect

Choose [I]nstall to install the packages.

Issue: nullmailer

You may see some prompts as dselect tries to install nullmailer. If you plan to let this server send email, either fill in the prompts as appropriate for your network or contact someone who's familiar with Linux mail administration for help. Otherwise you can simply delete the text at each of these two prompts and hit enter to continue with the installation.

Installation of the prerequisites will take a good while—at least several minutes. You may receive one or more prompts during the installation process, so keep an eye on it periodically.

When you're asked whether to delete previously downloaded .deb files, accept the default of Y. Then:

  1. Choose [C]onfigure.
  2. Choose [R]emove.
  3. Choose [Q]uit.

Next you'll need to install a few packages individually:

apt-get install libexpat1-dev
apt-get install idzebra
apt-get install libgd2-xpm-dev
apt-get install libgdbm-dev