How to Install RocketChat on Ubuntu 20.04

Introduction

Before we begin talking about how to install RocketChat on Ubuntu 20.04 OS, let’s briefly understand – What is RocketChat?

RocketChat is a powerful and versatile open-source communication platform that enables teams to collaborate effectively. It offers features like real-time messaging, video conferencing, file sharing, and integrations with popular tools.

With its user-friendly interface and extensive customization options, RocketChat enhances productivity and facilitates seamless communication across organizations. Whether for remote teams, businesses, or communities, RocketChat serves as a secure and scalable solution for efficient collaboration.

In this tutorial, you will install the latest version of RocketChat. Also, we will address a few FAQs on how to install RocketChat on Ubuntu 20.04.

Advantages of RocketChat

1. Real-time communication: RocketChat enables instant messaging and live chat, ensuring quick and efficient collaboration.
2. Versatile features: With video conferencing, file sharing, and integrations, RocketChat offers a comprehensive suite of tools for productive teamwork.
3. Open-source flexibility: Being open-source, RocketChat allows customization and integration with existing systems, adapting to unique organizational needs.
4. Secure and private: RocketChat prioritizes data privacy and provides end-to-end encryption, ensuring confidential communication within teams.
5. Scalable solution: From small teams to large organizations, RocketChat accommodates growth and delivers a scalable platform for seamless collaboration.

Prerequisites to Install RocketChat on Ubuntu 20.04

• Ubuntu 20.04 (or) 22.04 64-bit operating system
• A user account with sudo privileges
• Command-line/terminal

Step 1 – Install Required Dependency Packages

1) First, install the official MongoDB packages with the following repository file by updating and configuring the package list and apt.

sudo apt-get -y update

Install essential packages:

sudo apt install gnupg2 gnupg git unzip build-essential curl software-properties-common graphicsmagick gcc g++ make net-tools -y

wget -qO - https://www.mongodb.org/static/pgp/server-5.0.asc | sudo apt-key add -

echo "deb [ arch=amd64,arm64 ] https://repo.mongodb.org/apt/ubuntu focal/mongodb-org/5.0 multiverse" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mongodb-org-5.0.list

2) After that, use the package manager to install Node.js.

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y curl && curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_14.x | sudo -E bash -

3) Now, it's time to install build tools, MongoDB, and Nodejs:

sudo apt-get install -y mongodb-org nodejs

*In case you got the following error while installing the MongoDB-org package:

Output
The following packages have unmet dependencies:
 mongodb-org-mongos : Depends: libssl1.1 (>= 1.1.1) but it is not installable
 mongodb-org-server : Depends: libssl1.1 (>= 1.1.1) but it is not installable
 mongodb-org-shell : Depends: libssl1.1 (>= 1.1.1) but it is not installable
E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

Fix that using the following commands.

echo "deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal-security main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/focal-security.list

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libssl1.1

After this, again run the MongoDB installation command.

sudo apt install mongodb-org -y

echo "mongodb-org-tools hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-mongos hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-shell hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-server hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org-database hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections
echo "mongodb-org hold" | sudo dpkg --set-selections

Start the MongoDB service

sudo systemctl enable --now mongod
sudo systemctl status mongod

4) Meanwhile, this step is only for Ubuntu 19.04 users.

sudo apt-get install -y npm

5) Finally, it's time to install inherits and n, and the node version required by RocketChat using npm.

sudo npm install -g inherits n && sudo n 14.18.3 && hash -r

Step 2 – Install Rocket Chat

1) Firstly, download the latest RocketChat version.

curl -L https://releases.rocket.chat/latest/download -o /tmp/rocket.chat.tgz

tar -xzf /tmp/rocket.chat.tgz -C /tmp

2) Now, it's time to install.

cd /tmp/bundle/programs/server && npm install

sudo mv /tmp/bundle /opt/Rocket.Chat

Step 3 – Configure RocketChat Service

1) Create the RocketChat service file after adding the RocketChat user and then give the correct permissions to the Rocket Chat folder.

1) Create a new RocketChat user and then give the necessary permissions to the RocketChat folder. Now, you need to create a service file for RocketChat.

sudo useradd -M rocketchat && sudo usermod -L rocketchat

sudo chown -R rocketchat:rocketchat /opt/Rocket.Chat

cat << EOF |sudo tee -a /lib/systemd/system/rocketchat.service
[Unit]
Description=The Rocket.Chat server
After=network.target remote-fs.target nss-lookup.target nginx.service mongod.service
[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/node /opt/Rocket.Chat/main.js
StandardOutput=syslog
StandardError=syslog
SyslogIdentifier=rocketchat
User=rocketchat
Environment=ROOT_URL=http://IP_SERVER-or_FQDN:3000
Environment=PORT=3000
Environment=MONGO_URL=mongodb://localhost:27017/rocketchat?replicaSet=rs01
Environment=MONGO_OPLOG_URL=mongodb://localhost:27017/local?replicaSet=rs01
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Change IP_SERVER-or_FQDN with your server IP or domain name.

2) Finally, activate and start RocketChat by setting up the storage engine and replication for MongoDB (mandatory for versions > 1).

sudo sed -i "s/^#  engine:/  engine: wiredTiger/"  /etc/mongod.conf

sudo sed -i "s/^#replication:/replication:\n  replSetName: rs01/" /etc/mongod.conf

sudo systemctl daemon-reload && sudo systemctl restart mongod

mongo --eval "printjson(rs.initiate())"

sudo systemctl enable rocketchat && sudo systemctl start rocketchat

Step 4 – Optional configurations

• Firewall configuration
• Configuring SSL Reverse Proxy

Step 5 – Configure your RocketChat server

After that, visit the configured URL http://your-host-name.com:3000. Then you need to create an admin account, and organization, and add the necessary server information.

FAQs to Install RocketChat on Ubuntu 20.04

Conclusion

We hope this detailed tutorial helped you understand how to install RocketChat on your Ubuntu machine. Click here to read more about RocketChat and its functionalities.

If you have any queries, please leave a comment below, and we’ll be happy to respond to them for sure.