Redmine is an open-source project management and issue-tracking tool that is widely used in software development and IT environments. It is highly customizable and supports multiple projects, wikis, forums, time tracking, and more. Redmine is particularly beneficial for teams using Agile methodologies, as it integrates well with version control systems like Git and Subversion.

In this article, we will explore how to install and configure Redmine on a Linux server. The steps provided are tailored for a Debian-based distribution (like Ubuntu), but can be adapted for other distributions with minor adjustments.

Examples:

1. Install Dependencies

   First, update your package list and install the necessary dependencies:

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install -y build-essential libmysqlclient-dev libmagickwand-dev imagemagick libssl-dev libreadline-dev zlib1g-dev

2. Install Ruby

   Redmine is a Ruby on Rails application, so you need to install Ruby. You can use RVM (Ruby Version Manager) to manage Ruby versions:

   sudo apt install -y curl gpg
   curl -sSL https://get.rvm.io | bash -s stable
   source ~/.rvm/scripts/rvm
   rvm install 2.7.2
   rvm use 2.7.2 --default

3. Install Rails

   Install Rails using the gem package manager:

   gem install rails -v 6.0.3.4

4. Install and Configure MySQL

   Redmine uses a database to store its data. Install MySQL server and create a database for Redmine:

   sudo apt install -y mysql-server
   sudo mysql_secure_installation
   sudo mysql -u root -p

   Inside the MySQL shell, create a database and user for Redmine:

   CREATE DATABASE redmine CHARACTER SET utf8mb4;
   CREATE USER 'redmine'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'your_password';
   GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON redmine.* TO 'redmine'@'localhost';
   FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
   EXIT;

5. Download and Configure Redmine

   Download the latest stable version of Redmine:

   cd /opt
   sudo wget http://www.redmine.org/releases/redmine-4.1.1.tar.gz
   sudo tar -xzf redmine-4.1.1.tar.gz
   sudo mv redmine-4.1.1 redmine
   cd redmine

   Copy the example configuration files:

   sudo cp config/database.yml.example config/database.yml
   sudo cp config/configuration.yml.example config/configuration.yml

   Edit the config/database.yml file to include your MySQL database details:

   production:
    adapter: mysql2
    database: redmine
    host: localhost
    username: redmine
    password: "your_password"
    encoding: utf8mb4

6. Install Bundler and Required Gems

   Install Bundler and the required gems:

   gem install bundler
   bundle install --without development test

7. Generate Secret Token and Migrate Database

   Generate a secret token for session management and migrate the database:

   bundle exec rake generate_secret_token
   RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rake db:migrate
   RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rake redmine:load_default_data

8. Set Up File Permissions

   Ensure that the Redmine directory has the correct permissions:

   sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /opt/redmine
   sudo chmod -R 755 /opt/redmine

9. Configure Apache with Passenger

   Install Passenger and configure Apache to serve the Redmine application:

   sudo apt install -y libapache2-mod-passenger
   sudo a2enmod passenger

   Create a new virtual host configuration for Redmine:

   sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/redmine.conf

   Add the following content:

   <VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName your_domain_or_IP
    DocumentRoot /opt/redmine/public
    <Directory /opt/redmine/public>
      Require all granted
      Options -MultiViews
    </Directory>
   </VirtualHost>

   Enable the site and restart Apache:

   sudo a2ensite redmine.conf
   sudo systemctl restart apache2

10. Access Redmine

    Open your web browser and navigate to http://your_domain_or_IP. You should see the Redmine login page. The default login credentials are:

    • Username: admin
    • Password: admin

    Make sure to change the default password after logging in.