How to Install Alfresco Community Edition on RHEL/CentOS 76 and Debian 8?

Alfresco is a powerful open-source document management system that provides a platform for storing, managing, and sharing files across an organization. In this article, we will walk through steps for installing Alfresco Community Edition on two popular Linux distributions - RHELCentOS 76 and Debian 8.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, make sure that you have following prerequisites installed on your system −

• Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 8 or above

• PostgreSQL database server

• LibreOffice 6.2 or above (required for previewing documents in Alfresco)

Install Alfresco Community Edition on RHELCentOS 76

Follow these steps to install Alfresco Community Edition on RHELCentOS 76 −

Step 1: Install Java Runtime Environment

Alfresco requires Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 8 or above. You can install OpenJDK 11, which is available in default CentOS repository, by running following command −

sudo yum install java-11-openjdk-devel

Step 2: Install PostgreSQL

Alfresco requires a database to store its data. We will use PostgreSQL as our database server. To install PostgreSQL, run following command −

sudo yum install postgresql-server

Initialize PostgreSQL database by running following command −

sudo postgresql-setup initdb

Start PostgreSQL service and enable it to start automatically on boot by running following commands −

sudo systemctl start postgresql
sudo systemctl enable postgresql

Step 3: Download and Install Alfresco Community Edition

Download latest version of Alfresco Community Edition from official website. In this tutorial, we will download Alfresco Community Edition 6.2.

wget https://dl.alfresco.com/release/community/201911-GA/community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Make installer executable by running following command −

chmod +x community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Run installer and follow prompts to install Alfresco Community Edition. You can accept default values for most of options, but make sure to select PostgreSQL as database and specify PostgreSQL username and password that you set earlier.

sudo ./community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Once installation is complete, start Alfresco service by running following command −

sudo systemctl start alfresco

You can access Alfresco Community Edition by navigating to http://localhost:8080/share/ in your web browser.

Install Alfresco Community Edition on Debian 8

Follow these steps to install Alfresco Community Edition on Debian 8 −

Step 1: Install Java Runtime Environment

Alfresco requires Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 8 or above. You can install OpenJDK 11, which is available in default Debian repository, by running following command −

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install openjdk-11-jdk

Step 2: Install PostgreSQL

Alfresco requires a database to store its data. We will use PostgreSQL as our database server. To install PostgreSQL, run following command −

sudo apt-get install postgresql postgresql-contrib

Initialize PostgreSQL database by running following command −

sudo -u postgres psql -c "CREATE USER alfresco WITH PASSWORD 'alfresco';"
sudo -u postgres createdb -O alfresco alfresco

Step 3: Download and Install Alfresco Community Edition

Download latest version of Alfresco Community Edition from official website. In this tutorial, we will download Alfresco Community Edition 6

wget https://dl.alfresco.com/release/community/201911-GA/community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Make installer executable by running following command −

chmod +x community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Step 4: Install LibreOffice

Alfresco requires LibreOffice 6.2 or above to be installed in order to preview documents. You can install LibreOffice by running following command −

sudo apt-get install libreoffice

Step 5: Install additional dependencies

Alfresco also requires some additional dependencies. You can install them by running following command −

sudo apt-get install imagemagick ghostscript libreoffice-pdfimport libwpd-tools

Step 6: Install Alfresco Community Edition

Run installer and follow prompts to install Alfresco Community Edition. You can accept default values for most of options, but make sure to select PostgreSQL as database and specify PostgreSQL username and password that you set earlier.

sudo ./community-installer-201911-EA-linux-x64.bin

Once installation is complete, start Alfresco service by running following command −

sudo systemctl start alfresco

You can access Alfresco Community Edition by navigating to http://localhost:8080/share/ in your web browser.

Alfresco Community Edition is a powerful open-source document management system that offers features such as document versioning, metadata management, workflow automation, and collaboration tools. It is a popular choice for organizations that need a scalable, customizable, and secure document management system.

When installing Alfresco Community Edition, it is important to ensure that your system meets minimum requirements, including Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 8 or above, PostgreSQL database server, and LibreOffice 6.2 or above. Additionally, it is recommended to install additional dependencies such as Imagemagick, Ghostscript, and libwpd-tools to ensure that you can take full advantage of Alfresco's features.

Once you have installed Alfresco Community Edition, you can customize it to meet your organization's specific needs by configuring workflows, setting permissions, and creating custom content types. You can also integrate Alfresco with other applications and systems using its API and web services.

Alfresco Community Edition also provides a user-friendly interface, making it easy for users to access and manage documents. interface is customizable, allowing users to personalize their experience by creating dashboards, modifying views, and adding widgets.

One of key advantages of using Alfresco Community Edition is its strong community support. There is a large community of developers and users who contribute to development of platform, create add-ons and extensions, and provide support and guidance to new users. This community support ensures that Alfresco Community Edition is constantly evolving, with new features and improvements being added regularly.

In addition to community support, Alfresco also provides a range of resources to help users get started with platform, including documentation, training materials, and forums. Alfresco website also features a marketplace where users can browse and download add-ons and extensions to further customize their installation.

Overall, Alfresco Community Edition is a robust and feature-rich document management system that provides organizations with a scalable, secure, and customizable platform for managing their documents and content. With its strong community support, user-friendly interface, and range of features, it is an excellent choice for organizations of all sizes and industries.

Another great feature of Alfresco Community Edition is its integration with other enterprise systems. It offers integration capabilities with enterprise applications like ERP systems, CRM systems, and enterprise search engines. This allows organizations to have a centralized repository for all their documents, making it easier to manage and collaborate on content across different departments.

Alfresco also offers advanced search capabilities, making it easy to find documents and content quickly. Users can search based on metadata, content type, and other parameters to find exactly what they are looking for. search feature is also customizable, allowing users to create their own search queries and filters.

Alfresco also provides extensive reporting capabilities, allowing users to generate reports on various aspects of their document management system. This includes reports on document activity, user activity, and system performance. This feature is especially useful for organizations that need to keep track of compliance and regulatory requirements.

Finally, Alfresco Community Edition is highly customizable, allowing organizations to tailor it to their specific needs. platform is built using open standards and has a flexible architecture, making it easy to extend and modify. Developers can create custom modules, workflows, and content types to meet their organization's unique requirements.

Conclusion

In this article, we have covered steps for installing Alfresco Community Edition on two popular Linux distributions - RHELCentOS 76 and Debian 8. With Alfresco, you can manage your organization's documents, collaborate with team members, and streamline your workflows.