How to Install Open Web Analytics on Windows 11

Open Web Analytics is an open-source web analytics software that enables website owners to track visitor behavior and gather data to optimize web content. In this tutorial, we will provide step-by-step instructions on how to install Open Web Analytics on Windows 11.

Prerequisites

Before getting started with the installation process, make sure to have the following system requirements met:

• PHP (version 5.2 or higher)
• MySQL (version 5.0 or higher)
• Apache (version 2.0 or higher)

Step 1: Download Open Web Analytics

The first step is to download the latest version of Open Web Analytics from the official website at http://www.openwebanalytics.com/. Once downloaded, extract the files to your desired installation directory.

Step 2: Configure Apache

Open Web Analytics requires a web server to run, and Apache is the recommended web server. To install and configure Apache, follow these steps:

1. Download Apache from the official Apache website at https://httpd.apache.org/download.cgi
2. Extract the installation files to the desired directory.
3. Navigate to the conf folder in the Apache installation directory and open the httpd.conf file.
4. Edit the file to make sure it includes the following lines:

LoadModule php5_module "path_to_php/php5apache2_4.dll"
AddHandler application/x-httpd-php .php
PHPIniDir "path_to_php"

Replace path_to_php with the path to the installation directory of PHP on your system.

5. Save the changes and close the file.

Step 3: Install PHP

Open Web Analytics requires PHP to run. Follow these steps to install PHP:

1. Download PHP from the official PHP website at http://php.net/downloads.php
2. Extract the installation files to the desired directory.
3. Copy the php.ini-development file to php.ini.
4. Open the php.ini file and make sure the following extensions are enabled:

extension=php_mysql.dll
extension=php_mysqli.dll
extension=php_gd2.dll
extension=php_mbstring.dll

5. Save the changes and close the file.

Step 4: Configure MySQL

Open Web Analytics requires a MySQL database to store data. Follow these steps to configure MySQL:

1. Download MySQL from the official MySQL website at https://dev.mysql.com/downloads/mysql/
2. Install MySQL and set a password for the root user.
3. Create a new database for Open Web Analytics using the following command:

CREATE DATABASE owa;

4. Create a new user with access to the database using the following command:

CREATE USER 'owauser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'owapassword';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON owa.* TO 'owauser'@'localhost';

Replace owauser and owapassword with your desired username and password respectively.

5. Save the changes and close the file.

Step 5: Install Open Web Analytics

Now that we have Apache, PHP, and MySQL configured, we can start installing Open Web Analytics. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Open Web Analytics installation directory in your web server's htdocs folder.
2. Open a web browser and navigate to http://localhost/owa/install/index.php.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation process.
4. Once the installation is complete, navigate to http://localhost/owa/ in your web browser to access the Open Web Analytics dashboard.

Congratulations, you have successfully installed Open Web Analytics on Windows 11! You can now start tracking website visitors and optimizing your website based on the data collected.

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!