Installation Guide

How to Install OpenEduCat on CentOS

Step-by-step guide to install OpenEduCat Free Edition on CentOS 7/8 or Rocky Linux with PostgreSQL, Python dependencies, and Nginx reverse proxy.

This guide covers installing OpenEduCat on CentOS 7, CentOS 8, or Rocky Linux 8, which are common choices for enterprise and government-sector deployments due to their stability and long support cycles. CentOS and Rocky Linux require additional configuration steps compared to Ubuntu, including EPEL repository setup, firewall rules, and SELinux policies. This guide addresses all of these platform-specific requirements. The complete installation takes approximately 45-60 minutes and produces a production-ready deployment behind an Nginx reverse proxy with automatic service management via systemd.

Prerequisites

CentOS 7/8 or Rocky Linux 8
Minimum 4GB RAM (8GB recommended)
20GB free disk space
Root or sudo access
Internet connection

Installation Steps

Step 1: Update System Packages

$ sudo yum update -y

Note: Or use dnf on CentOS 8/Rocky Linux.

Step 2: Install EPEL Repository

$ sudo yum install epel-release -y

Step 3: Install PostgreSQL

$ sudo yum install postgresql-server postgresql-contrib -y
$ sudo postgresql-setup initdb
$ sudo systemctl start postgresql
$ sudo systemctl enable postgresql

Step 4: Create Database User

$ sudo -u postgres createuser -s openeducat
$ sudo -u postgres psql -c "ALTER USER openeducat WITH PASSWORD 'your_password';"

Note: Replace your_password with a secure password.

Step 5: Install Python Dependencies

$ sudo yum install python3 python3-pip python3-devel -y
$ sudo yum install libxml2-devel libxslt-devel openldap-devel -y

Step 6: Install wkhtmltopdf

$ sudo yum install wkhtmltopdf -y

Note: Required for PDF report generation.

Step 7: Download OpenEduCat

$ cd /opt
$ sudo git clone https://github.com/openeducat/openeducat_erp.git openeducat

Step 8: Install Python Packages

$ cd /opt/openeducat
$ pip3 install -r requirements.txt

Step 9: Configure Firewall

$ sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=8069/tcp
$ sudo firewall-cmd --reload

Step 10: Configure SELinux for OpenEduCat

$ sudo setsebool -P httpd_can_network_connect on
$ sudo semanage port -a -t http_port_t -p tcp 8069

Note: If SELinux is enforcing, these commands allow Nginx to proxy to the OpenEduCat application port. Skip this step if SELinux is disabled or set to permissive mode.

Step 11: Create a Systemd Service

$ sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/openeducat.service

Note: Add a systemd unit file so OpenEduCat starts automatically on boot and can be managed with systemctl start, stop, and restart commands. Set the User to the openeducat system account, the WorkingDirectory to /opt/openeducat, and the ExecStart to python3 openeducat-bin with your configuration file.

Step 12: Enable and Start the Service

$ sudo systemctl daemon-reload
$ sudo systemctl enable openeducat
$ sudo systemctl start openeducat

Note: The enable command ensures OpenEduCat starts automatically after a server reboot. Check status with sudo systemctl status openeducat.

Step 13: Install and Configure Nginx as Reverse Proxy

$ sudo yum install nginx -y
$ sudo systemctl enable nginx
$ sudo systemctl start nginx

Note: Configure an Nginx server block to proxy requests from port 80 or 443 to localhost:8069. This provides HTTPS termination, static file caching, and connection handling. Use proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:8069 in your location block and set appropriate proxy headers for X-Forwarded-For and X-Forwarded-Proto.

Step 14: Verify the Installation

$ curl -I http://localhost:8069
$ sudo systemctl status openeducat
$ sudo systemctl status nginx

Note: Confirm that OpenEduCat responds on port 8069 and that both the application and Nginx services are running. Open your browser and navigate to http://your-server-ip to access the OpenEduCat web interface through the Nginx reverse proxy. The default administrator credentials are admin/admin. Change the password immediately after your first login.

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