Deploy a website with PHP, Nginx, and MariaDB using BeAdmin

This guide will help you install the necessary software for your website, upload files to the server, configure the Nginx web server, and connect to a MariaDB database. At the end, you’ll be able to verify that your website is accessible online.

💡 A website in one dialog

The "Websites & Domains" section is a convenient place to create a website: in a single "Create website" dialog, you choose the website type — for example, "PHP" — and the panel installs Nginx, PHP, and MariaDB if the server doesn't have them yet and creates the database. See Websites & Domains. Creating a website for the details. This article walks you through the installation wizard on the panel's main page.

Requirements before you start

• A server with BeAdmin installed (see Installation Guide)
• A website file archive
• A database dump file (if available)
• A domain name and an A record pointing to your server’s IP address

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Accessing the BeAdmin panel

After successfully installing BeAdmin, you can access the control panel at: https://your_server_ip:8080/ or https://your_domain:8080/ (if you specified a domain during installation).

Replace your_server_ip or your_domain with the actual address, open the link, and log in using the email set during installation (default: admin@local.host).

Step 1. Choose an installation wizard and install modules

To run a website, you need to install the required components: PHP, Nginx, and MariaDB.

To do this:

1. Go to the main page of the BeAdmin panel.
2. Select the appropriate installation wizard.
3. Start module installation.

By default, the latest versions are installed, but you can choose a different PHP version in the next steps if needed.

Nginx installation takes about 15 seconds, after which you can proceed—other modules will install automatically.

Step 2. Create a virtual host

To ensure your website functions correctly, you need to configure the Nginx web server to handle incoming requests. Each website uses a virtual host, which directs requests to the appropriate files.

Go to Nginx and create a new virtual host:

1. Enter your website’s domain name.
2. Select HTTPS or manually specify another port.
3. Add index.php to the beginning of the index files list.
4. Keep the default folder for website files or create/select your own.
5. Choose the required PHP version (if not installed, the system will prompt you to install it).

💡 Tip

If you do not want the website to be immediately accessible online, toggle off the Enable Host option.

6. After filling in all the parameters, click Create, then navigate to the newly created virtual host and select it in the installation wizard.

Step 3. Upload website files

Since no website files are currently on the server, the web server cannot process incoming requests. Follow the instructions below to upload files to the server.

How to upload files:

1. Go to the Files section.
2. Ensure the website folder is created (it usually matches your domain name).
3. Right-click on an empty area and select Upload.
4. Choose your website archive and upload it.

After uploading:

1. Double-click on the archive to extract files.
2. Open the folder and verify that all files are in place.
3. Right-click on the folder and assign it in the installation wizard.

⚠️ Warning

Typically, the archive extracts files into a folder named after your website. However, depending on how the archive was created, the files might end up in the root directory or a different folder. If needed, move them to the correct folder or rename the existing one.

Step 4. Configure the MariaDB connection

Most websites require a database connection to store data and handle queries.

Typically, you need to:

1. Create a database and a user that the site will use to connect.
2. Import the database dump into it.

To create a database and user, and then load the dump, follow these steps.

Creating a database and user:

1. Go to MariaDB and create a database for your site.
2. Create a user that will connect to this database.
3. Select the created database and user in the installation wizard.

💡 Tip

The database name and connection credentials are often specified in your site’s code. Check the configuration files, find the database parameters, username, and password, then create them in BeAdmin.

Importing the database dump file:

1. Go to Files.
2. Upload the .sql dump file (if it hasn’t been uploaded yet).
3. Right-click the file and select "Import into database".
4. In the "Import data" dialog, choose the database into which you want to load the data and click "Run".

After a successful import, the database will be ready for use.

⚠️ Warning

Some SQL scripts may contain CREATE DATABASE commands, which will cause an error if you already created the database manually. In this case, edit the dump file and remove those commands before importing.

Step 5. Verify website functionality

If all steps were completed correctly, the installation wizard will provide a link to check if your website is accessible. Open the link and ensure that the website loads properly.

If you disabled the Nginx host during setup, return to its settings and enable it to make the site accessible.

After opening the link, the installation wizard will close automatically. You can open your website later from the "Websites & Domains" section.

🎉 Done! Your website has been successfully deployed and is ready to use! 🚀