How to Install eLabFTW on macOS

Introduction

eLabFTW is an open-source electronic lab notebook that can help you manage your laboratory data. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the steps to install eLabFTW on a macOS.

Prerequisites

Before installing eLabFTW, you need to make sure that the following software is installed on your system:

• Apache 2.4 or higher (installed and running)
• MySQL 5.6 or higher (installed and running)
• PHP 7.2 or higher (installed and running)
• Composer (installed)

Step 1: Download eLabFTW

The first step is to download eLabFTW from the official website at https://www.elabftw.net.

Step 2: Install Dependencies

Next, you need to install the required dependencies using the following command in your terminal:

$ cd /path/to/elabftw
$ composer install --no-dev --optimize-autoloader

Step 3: Configure Apache

Now, you need to create a virtual host for eLabFTW in your Apache configuration file. Here's an example of what you should add:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName elabftw.example.com
    DocumentRoot /path/to/elabftw/web
    <Directory /path/to/elabftw/web>
        AllowOverride None
        Order Allow,Deny
        Allow from All
        Require all granted
        <IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
            Options -MultiViews
            RewriteEngine On
            RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
            RewriteRule ^(.*)$ index.php [QSA,L]
        </IfModule>
    </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

Save the changes and restart Apache:

$ sudo apachectl restart

Step 4: Configure MySQL

Create a new MySQL database and user for eLabFTW:

$ mysql -u root -p
Enter password:

mysql> CREATE DATABASE elabftw;
mysql> CREATE USER 'elabftw-user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_password';
mysql> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON elabftw.* TO 'elabftw-user'@'localhost';
mysql> FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
mysql> EXIT;

Step 5: Configure eLabFTW

Copy the file parameters.yml.dist to parameters.yml:

$ cp app/config/parameters.yml.dist app/config/parameters.yml

Then, edit the parameters.yml file to include your database details:

parameters:
    database_driver: pdo_mysql
    database_host: 127.0.0.1
    database_port: null
    database_name: elabftw
    database_user: elabftw-user
    database_password: your_password

Step 6: Install eLabFTW

Run the following command in your terminal:

$ php bin/console install

This will install eLabFTW and create the necessary tables in your database.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you have successfully installed eLabFTW on a macOS. You can now access eLabFTW by visiting the URL you specified in the Apache virtual host configuration file.

For more information about using eLabFTW, you can consult the official documentation at https://www.elabftw.net/docs.

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!