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Installation Steps

Installation Methods​

info

Please note that we provide a one-time free first time installation service with your purchase. You can make use of this service if you are not technical or experience any difficulties following these steps. You can request the service at https://zentutor.pro/#free-installation-service

Depending on your hosting environment, follow the appropriate steps:

Shared Hosting (cPanel)​

Step 1: Prepare Your cPanel Account​

  1. Log in to your cPanel account.
  2. Go to MySQL Databases and create a new database (e.g., zen_teacher_db).
  3. Create a database user and assign it to the database with All Privileges.
  4. Note down the database name, user, and password for later use.

Step 2: Upload Files​

For Main Domain Installation:​

  1. In cPanel, open File Manager.

  2. Navigate to your home directory (not inside public_html).

  3. Upload the ZenTutor Pro .zip file and extract it.

  4. Rename the extracted folder to zentutor.

  5. Make note of the full path (e.g., /home/username/zentutor).

  6. Now you need to link the project's public directory to your public_html:

    # Backup existing public_html if needed
    mv public_html public_html_backup

    # Create symbolic link
    ln -s /home/username/zentutor/public public_html

    You can use ssh connection or terminal menu in cpanel to perform step 6.

For Subdomain Installation:​

  1. In cPanel, go to Subdomains and create a new subdomain (e.g., app.yourdomain.com).
  2. Open File Manager and navigate to the subdomain's directory (usually in a format like app.yourdomain.com).
  3. Upload the ZenTutor Pro .zip file to this directory and extract it.
  4. Modify the subdomain's document root to point to the public folder inside your extracted directory.
    • Go to Domains > find your subdomain > click Manage.
    • Change the document root to include /public at the end (e.g., /home/username/app.yourdomain.com/public).
    • Save changes.

Step 3: Configure Environment File​

  1. In the project directory (zentutor for main domain or subdomain directory), locate the .env.example file.
  2. Make a copy of this file and rename it to .env (or use File Manager to copy and rename).
  3. Edit the .env file and update the database details: 
    DB_DATABASE=zen_teacher_db
    DB_USERNAME=your_db_user
    DB_PASSWORD=your_db_password
  4. Update other settings as needed (APP_URL, etc.).
  5. Save the file.

Step 4: Set Up Application​

  1. Open cPanel Terminal or use SSH to connect to your server.

  2. Navigate to your project directory:

    # For main domain
    cd /home/username/zentutor

    # For subdomain
    cd /home/username/app.yourdomain.com

  3. Run the following commands:

    php artisan key:generate
    php artisan migrate --seed
    php artisan config:cache
    php artisan route:cache
    php artisan view:cache
    php artisan storage:link

  4. Set file permissions:

    chmod -R 775 storage bootstrap/cache

Step 5: Configure Cron Jobs​

  1. Go to Cron Jobs in cPanel.

  2. Add the following cron job to run every minute:

    # For main domain

    * * * * * cd /home/username/zentutor/ && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

    * * * * * cd /home/username/zentutor/ && php artisan queue:work --queue=default --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

    * * * * * cd /home/username/zentutor/ && php artisan queue:work --queue=emails --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1


     # For subdomain


    * * * * * cd /home/username/app.yourdomain.com/ && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

    * * * * * cd /home/username/app.yourdomain.com/ && php artisan queue:work --queue=default --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

    * * * * * cd /home/username/app.yourdomain.com/ && php artisan queue:work --queue=emails --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

Replace /home/username/ with your actual home directory path.

Step 6: Access Your Application​

Visit your domain or subdomain URL to access ZenTutor Pro:

  • Main domain: https://yourdomain.com
  • Subdomain: https://app.yourdomain.com

Self-Hosting (VPS/Dedicated Server)​

Step 1: Server Preparation​

Ensure your server meets the requirements.

1. Update Server Packages​

Run the following commands to update your system:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

2. Install Required Software​

sudo apt install -y nginx mysql-server php8.1 php8.1-cli php8.1-fpm php8.1-mbstring php8.1-xml php8.1-curl php8.1-zip php8.1-bcmath php8.1-gd php8.1-mysql unzip git redis

Step 2: Set Up Database​

# Secure MySQL installation
sudo mysql_secure_installation

# Access MySQL
sudo mysql

# Create database and user
CREATE DATABASE zentutor_db;
CREATE USER 'zentutor_user'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_secure_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON zentutor_db.* TO 'zentutor_user'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Step 3: Upload the Project​

  1. Upload the ZenTutor Pro package to your server
  2. Extract it to /var/www/zentutor

Step 4: Configure Environment Variables​

Copy the example environment file and update it:

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Edit the following fields:

APP_NAME="ZenTutor Pro"
APP_URL=https://yourdomain.com
DB_DATABASE=zentutor_db
DB_USERNAME=zentutor_user
DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_password

Save and exit (CTRL+X, then Y, then Enter).

Step 5: Install Dependencies​

# Install Composer if not already installed
curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer | php
sudo mv composer.phar /usr/local/bin/composer

# Install PHP dependencies
cd /var/www/zentutor
composer install --no-dev --optimize-autoloader

# Install and build frontend assets (if needed)
npm install && npm run build

Step 6: Set Up Application​

Run the migrations and seed the database:

php artisan key:generate
php artisan migrate --seed
php artisan config:cache
php artisan route:cache
php artisan view:cache
php artisan storage:link

Step 7: Set File Permissions​

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/zentutor
sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/zentutor/storage /var/www/zentutor/bootstrap/cache

Step 8: Configure Web Server (Nginx)​

Create a new Nginx configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/zentutor

Paste the following:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com;
    root /var/www/zentutor/public;
    index index.php index.html;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
    }

    location ~ \.php$ {
        include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf;
        fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php/php8.1-fpm.sock;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        include fastcgi_params;
    }

    location ~ /\.ht {
        deny all;
    }
}

Save and exit. Then enable the configuration:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/zentutor /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl restart nginx

Step 9: Set Up Cron Job​

sudo crontab -e

Add the following line:


   * * * * * cd /var/www/zentutor && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

   * * * * * cd /var/www/zentutor && php artisan queue:work --queue=default --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

   * * * * * cd /var/www/zentutor && php artisan queue:work --queue=emails --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1


sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx
sudo certbot --nginx -d yourdomain.com

Docker-Based Deployment​

warning

This method is recommended only for users who is experienced in docker based deployment. If you are faimiliar with deploying Laravel apps with docker then you could follow this step.

Step 1: Install Docker & Docker Compose​

Ensure Docker and Docker Compose are installed:

# For Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker.io docker-compose

# Start and enable Docker
sudo systemctl start docker
sudo systemctl enable docker

# Add your user to the docker group (optional, for convenience)
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
# Log out and log back in for this to take effect

Step 2: Prepare Project Files​

# Create project directory
mkdir -p ~/zentutor
cd ~/zentutor

# Download or clone the project
git clone https://github.com/your-repo/zentutor-pro.git .
# OR upload your project files to this directory

Step 3: Create Environment File​

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Update the environment settings for Docker:

APP_URL=http://localhost
DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=db
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=zentutor
DB_USERNAME=zentutor
DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_password

Step 4: Create Docker Compose File​

Create or edit docker-compose.yml:

nano docker-compose.yml

Add the following content:

version: "3"
services:
  app:
    build:
      context: .
      dockerfile: Dockerfile
    container_name: zentutor-app
    restart: unless-stopped
    volumes:
      - ./:/var/www/html
    networks:
      - zentutor-network
    depends_on:
      - db
      - redis

  nginx:
    image: nginx:latest
    container_name: zentutor-nginx
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "80:80"
    volumes:
      - ./:/var/www/html
      - ./docker/nginx/default.conf:/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf
    networks:
      - zentutor-network
    depends_on:
      - app

  db:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: zentutor-db
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      MYSQL_DATABASE: ${DB_DATABASE}
      MYSQL_USER: ${DB_USERNAME}
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
    volumes:
      - zentutor-db-data:/var/lib/mysql
    networks:
      - zentutor-network

  redis:
    image: redis:alpine
    container_name: zentutor-redis
    restart: unless-stopped
    networks:
      - zentutor-network

networks:
  zentutor-network:
    driver: bridge

volumes:
  zentutor-db-data:
    driver: local

Step 5: Create Dockerfile and Nginx Config​

Create the necessary Docker configuration files:

# Create directories
mkdir -p docker/nginx

# Create Dockerfile
nano Dockerfile

Add the following content to Dockerfile:

FROM php:8.1-fpm

# Install dependencies
RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y \
    git \
    curl \
    libpng-dev \
    libonig-dev \
    libxml2-dev \
    libzip-dev \
    zip \
    unzip

# Clear cache
RUN apt-get clean && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*

# Install PHP extensions
RUN docker-php-ext-install pdo_mysql mbstring exif pcntl bcmath gd zip

# Get latest Composer
COPY --from=composer:latest /usr/bin/composer /usr/bin/composer

# Set working directory
WORKDIR /var/www/html

# Copy application files
COPY . /var/www/html

# Set file permissions
RUN chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html

# Expose port 9000
EXPOSE 9000

# Start PHP-FPM server
CMD ["php-fpm"]

Create Nginx configuration:

nano docker/nginx/default.conf

Add the following content:

server {
    listen 80;
    index index.php index.html;
    server_name localhost;
    error_log  /var/log/nginx/error.log;
    access_log /var/log/nginx/access.log;
    root /var/www/html/public;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
    }

    location ~ \.php$ {
        try_files $uri =404;
        fastcgi_split_path_info ^(.+\.php)(/.+)$;
        fastcgi_pass app:9000;
        fastcgi_index index.php;
        include fastcgi_params;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        fastcgi_param PATH_INFO $fastcgi_path_info;
    }
}

Step 6: Run the Application​

Build and start the containers:

docker-compose up -d

Step 7: Set Up the Application​

Run the necessary Laravel commands:

docker-compose exec app composer install --optimize-autoloader --no-dev
docker-compose exec app php artisan key:generate
docker-compose exec app php artisan migrate --seed
docker-compose exec app php artisan config:cache
docker-compose exec app php artisan route:cache
docker-compose exec app php artisan view:cache

Step 8: Configure Cron Job​

Set up a cron job on the host system:

crontab -e

Add the following line:

* * * * * cd /opt/zentutor && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

* * * * * cd /opt/zentutor && php artisan queue:work --queue=default --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

* * * * * cd /opt/zentutor && php artisan queue:work --queue=emails --stop-when-empty >> /dev/null 2>&1

Step 9: Access the Application​

Visit http://localhost or your server's IP address to access ZenTutor Pro.

🚀 Installation complete! You can now log in and start using ZenTutor Pro.

ZenTutor Dashboard

Troubleshooting​

Common Issues and Solutions​

  1. 500 Internal Server Error

    • Check your .env file configuration
    • Verify file permissions on storage and bootstrap/cache directories
    • Check the Laravel log file at storage/logs/laravel.log

  2. Database Connection Errors

    • Verify your database credentials in .env
    • Make sure your database server is running
    • Check if the database user has proper permissions

  3. Blank Page After Installation

    • Check if you've correctly linked the public directory
    • Verify that your web server is properly configured
    • Check your web server's error logs

If you encounter any other issues, please contact our support team or request our free installation service.