How to install Firefly III on Elementary OS Latest

Firefly III is a free and open-source personal finance manager that can help you manage your personal financial accounts, budgeting, and investment tracking.

In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of installing Firefly III on Elementary OS Latest. Follow the steps below to get started.

Prerequisites

Before installing Firefly III, you need to make sure that you have the following prerequisites installed:

You can install these packages by running the following command in the terminal:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install apache2 php7.4 php7.4-cli php7.4-common php7.4-json php7.4-mysql php7.4-mbstring php7.4-gd php7.4-zip mariadb-server mariadb-client git

Install Firefly III

To install Firefly III, follow the steps below:

  1. Clone the Firefly III repository from GitHub:

    git clone https://github.com/firefly-iii/firefly-iii.git
    
  2. Move the firefly-iii folder to the root folder of your web server, which is typically /var/www/html/:

    sudo mv firefly-iii /var/www/html/
    
  3. Change to the root directory of your web server:

    cd /var/www/html/
    
  4. Create a new MySQL database and user for Firefly III by running the following commands in the terminal:

    sudo mysql -u root -p
    

    Enter your root password when prompted.

    mysql> CREATE DATABASE firefly_db;
    mysql> CREATE USER 'firefly_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
    mysql> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON firefly_db.* TO 'firefly_user'@'localhost';
    mysql> FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
    mysql> EXIT;
    

    Replace password with the password you want to set for the firefly_user MySQL user.

  5. Import the Firefly III database schema and default data by running the following command:

    mysql -u firefly_user -p firefly_db < /var/www/html/firefly-iii/storage/sql/mysql/structure.sql
    

    Enter the password for the firefly_user MySQL user.

  6. Rename the .env.example file in the /var/www/html/firefly-iii/ folder to .env:

    cd /var/www/html/firefly-iii/
    mv .env.example .env
    
  7. Edit the new .env file to configure your Firefly III installation:

    DB_DATABASE=firefly_db
    DB_USERNAME=firefly_user
    DB_PASSWORD=password
    APP_ENV=production
    APP_URL=https://YOUR-DOMAIN-NAME/firefly-iii
    

    Replace password with the password you set for the firefly_user MySQL user. Replace YOUR-DOMAIN-NAME with the domain name or IP address of your server.

  8. Generate a new application key and clear the application cache by running the following commands:

    php artisan key:generate
    php artisan cache:clear
    
  9. Update the ownership and permission of the /var/www/html/firefly-iii/ folder:

    sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/firefly-iii/
    sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/html/firefly-iii/
    
  10. Restart your Apache web server:

    sudo systemctl restart apache2
    

That's it! You have successfully installed Firefly III on Elementary OS Latest. You can launch Firefly III by visiting the web URL you set in the .env file.

If you want to self-host in an easy, hands free way, need an external IP address, or simply want your data in your own hands, give IPv6.rs a try!

Alternatively, for the best virtual desktop, try Shells!