Manual setup (without Docker)

If you wish to run Ente from source without using Docker, follow the steps described below:

Requirements

1. Go: Install Go on your system. This is needed for building Museum (Ente's server)

   sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
   sudo apt install golang-go

   Alternatively, you can also download the latest binaries from the official website.

2. PostgreSQL and libsodium: Install PostgreSQL (database) and libsodium (high level API for encryption) via package manager.

   sudo apt install postgresql
   sudo apt install libsodium23 libsodium-dev

   Start the database using systemd automatically when the system starts.

   sudo systemctl enable postgresql
   sudo systemctl start postgresql

   Ensure the database is running using

   sudo systemctl status postgresql

3. pkg-config: Install pkg-config for dependency handling.

   sudo apt install pkg-config

4. yarn, npm and Node.js: Needed for building the web application.

   Install npm and Node using your package manager.

   sudo apt install npm nodejs

   Install yarn by following the official documentation

5. Git: Needed for cloning the repository and pulling in latest changes

6. Caddy: Used for setting reverse proxy and file servers

7. Object Storage: Ensure you have an object storage configured for usage, needed for storing files. You can choose to run MinIO or Garage locally without Docker, however, an external bucket will be reliable and suited for long-term storage.

Step 1: Clone the repository

Start by cloning Ente's repository from GitHub to your local machine.

git clone https://github.com/ente-io/ente

Step 2: Configure Museum (Ente's server)

1. Install all the needed dependencies for the server.

   # Change into server directory, where the source code for Museum is
   # present inside the repo
   cd ente/server
   
   # Install the needed dependencies
   go mod tidy

2. Build the server. The server binary should be available as ./main relative to server directory

   go build cmd/museum/main.go

3. Create museum.yaml file inside server for configuring the needed variables. You can copy the templated configuration file for editing with ease.

   cp config/example.yaml ./museum.yaml

   TIP

   Make sure to enter the correct values for the database and object storage.

   You should consider generating values for JWT and encryption keys for emails if you intend to use for long-term needs.

   You can do by running the following command inside ente/server, assuming you cloned the repository to ente:

   # Change into the ente/server
   cd ente/server
   # Generate secrets
   go run tools/gen-random-keys/main.go

4. Run the server

   ./main

   Museum should be accessible at http://localhost:8080

Step 3: Configure Web Application

1. Install the dependencies for web application. Enable corepack if prompted.

   # Change into web directory, this is where all the applications
   # will be managed and built
   cd web
   
   # Install dependencies
   yarn install

2. Configure the environment variables in your corresponding shell's configuration file (.bashrc, .zshrc)

   # Replace this with actual endpoint for Museum
   export NEXT_PUBLIC_ENTE_ENDPOINT=http://localhost:8080
   # Replace this with actual endpoint for Albums
   export NEXT_PUBLIC_ENTE_ALBUMS_ENDPOINT=http://localhost:3002

3. Build the needed applications (Photos, Accounts, Auth, Cast, Public Locker, Embed) as per your needs:

   # These commands are executed inside web directory
   # Build photos. Build output to be served is present at apps/photos/out
   yarn build
   
   # Build accounts. Build output to be served is present at apps/accounts/out
   yarn build:accounts
   
   # Build auth. Build output to be served is present at apps/auth/out
   yarn build:auth
   
   # Build cast. Build output to be served is present at apps/cast/out
   yarn build:cast
   
   # Build public locker. Build output to be served is present at apps/share/out
   yarn build:share
   
   # Build embed. Build output to be served is present at apps/embed/out
   yarn build:embed

4. Copy the output files to /var/www/ente/apps for easier management.

   mkdir -p /var/www/ente/apps
   
   # Photos
   sudo cp -r apps/photos/out /var/www/ente/apps/photos
   # Accounts
   sudo cp -r apps/accounts/out /var/www/ente/apps/accounts
   # Auth
   sudo cp -r apps/auth/out /var/www/ente/apps/auth
   # Cast
   sudo cp -r apps/cast/out /var/www/ente/apps/cast
   # Public Locker
   sudo cp -r apps/share/out /var/www/ente/apps/share
   # Embed
   sudo cp -r apps/embed/out /var/www/ente/apps/embed

5. Set up file server using Caddy by editing Caddyfile, present at /etc/caddy/Caddyfile.

   # Replace the ports with domain names if you have subdomains configured and need HTTPS
   :3000 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/photos
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3001 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/accounts
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3002 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/photos
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3003 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/auth
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3004 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/cast
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3005 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/share
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }
   
   :3006 {
       root * /var/www/ente/apps/out/embed
       file_server
       try_files {path} {path}.html /index.html
   }

   Important for Share App

   The share web app (Public Locker) specifically requires all routes to be served through /index.html as it uses client-side routing with a single entry point. The try_files directive with /index.html as the fallback is essential for proper functionality. Without this configuration, direct links to shared albums and routes will result in 404 errors.

   The web application for Ente Photos should be accessible at http://localhost:3000, check out the default ports for more information.

TIP

Check out post-installations steps for further usage.