How to set up Softaculous script installer in cPanel shared hosting

You will install the Softaculous script installer to manage applications like WordPress and Joomla directly from your cPanel interface. These steps target cPanel version 118.x and above running on a standard shared hosting environment. You will gain access to a centralized dashboard for deploying, updating, and deleting scripts without touching the command line.

Prerequisites

• A cPanel account with root or reseller privileges.
• cPanel version 118.x or newer installed on the server.
• Access to the Terminal within cPanel or SSH access to the root server.
• A domain name or subdomain pointing to your hosting account.

Step 1: Download the Softaculous installer script

Open the Terminal in cPanel or your SSH client and navigate to your home directory. You will download the Softaculous installation script from the official GitHub repository. This script contains the necessary binaries and configuration files for the installer.

cd ~
curl -O https://github.com/softaculous/Softaculous-for-cPanel/raw/main/softaculous.sh

Verify that the file downloaded successfully by checking its existence and size.

ls -lh softaculous.sh

You will see output similar to the following, confirming the script is ready for execution:

-rw-r--r-- 1 user user 123456 Jul 15 10:00 softaculous.sh

Step 2: Make the installer executable

Change the file permissions so the script can run. Use chmod to add execute permissions to the softaculous.sh file. This is a standard security practice for shell scripts.

chmod +x softaculous.sh

Run the script with sudo to ensure it has the necessary privileges to write to the cPanel environment.

sudo ./softaculous.sh

You will see a progress bar as the script installs the necessary components. The installation process typically takes a few seconds to a minute depending on your server load.

Step 3: Configure the Softaculous settings

Once the script finishes, you will be prompted to enter a configuration name. This name helps you identify the installation instance if you run multiple instances. Enter a descriptive name like "Softaculous" or "ScriptManager" and press Enter.

Enter a name for this installation: Softaculous

The script will then ask for the URL path where you want to install Softaculous. The default path is usually /softaculous, but you can change this if you prefer a different directory.

Enter the URL path for this installation: /softaculous

Confirm the installation by typing 'y' when asked if you want to proceed. The script will create the necessary directories and files.

Step 4: Access the Softaculous dashboard

Open a web browser and navigate to your domain followed by the path you specified. For example, if your domain is example.com and the path is /softaculous, enter http://example.com/softaculous. You will see the Softaculous interface load with a list of available applications.

http://example.com/softaculous

You will see a list of available scripts such as WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and Magento. The interface allows you to search for specific applications by typing in the search bar at the top of the page.

Step 5: Install a script like WordPress

Find WordPress in the list of available applications. Click the "Install" button next to the WordPress entry. You will be redirected to a configuration page where you can set up the database and admin credentials.

Enter a database name, username, and password. These credentials must match a database user created in cPanel. If you are unsure, create a new database user in the "Metrics" or "Databases" section of cPanel first.

Set an administrator username, password, and email address for the WordPress site. These details will be used to create the admin account for the newly installed site.

Review the summary of the installation settings. Click "Install" to begin the process. The script will create the database, configure the files, and set up the admin account automatically.

Once the installation is complete, you will be redirected to the WordPress admin login page. Enter the credentials you just created to access your new WordPress site.

Verify the installation

Navigate to your Softaculous URL to ensure the dashboard loads correctly. You should see the list of available applications without any errors or broken images. This confirms that the installer is fully operational and ready to deploy scripts.

Try installing a second script, such as Joomla, to verify that the installer handles multiple installations correctly. Check the "Installed Scripts" section to see a list of all applications currently running on your server.

Troubleshooting

If the Softaculous installer fails to load or returns a 403 Forbidden error, check the file permissions on the installation directory. Ensure the directory is owned by your cPanel user and has the correct permissions set to 755.

chown -R $USER:$USER /home/$USER/softaculous
chmod -R 755 /home/$USER/softaculous

If you encounter database connection errors, verify that the database user exists and has the correct privileges. Navigate to cPanel > Databases to create a new database and user if necessary. Ensure the password entered in Softaculous matches the password set in cPanel exactly.

If the installer script hangs during the initial setup, check the server load and available disk space. Ensure that the server is not running out of memory or disk space during the installation process. Clear the cPanel cache if the interface appears unresponsive.

If you cannot find a specific application in the list, ensure that the script is supported by Softaculous. Some proprietary scripts may require a license or specific server configurations that are not included in the default list. Check the official Softaculous documentation for a list of supported applications and their specific requirements.

For permission issues related to file creation, ensure that your cPanel user has write access to the home directory. Use the following command to verify and fix ownership if needed:

ls -la /home/$USER/

If the problem persists, contact your hosting provider's support team to verify that the server environment supports Softaculous and that no firewall rules are blocking the installer from writing to the filesystem.