Installation Guide

Installation Guide

Pre-Installation Checklist

Installation Methods

Method 1: Web Installer (Recommended)

The web installer is the easiest way to install Flatboard 5.

Step 1: Download and Extract

Download the latest Flatboard 5 release from flatboard.org and extract it to your web server directory:

# Download and extract ZIP file
unzip flatboard-5-latest.zip

# Or using wget
wget https://flatboard.org/download/flatboard-5-latest.zip
unzip flatboard-5-latest.zip

Step 2: Set Permissions

Set the correct permissions for directories and files:

# Directories (readable and executable)
chmod 755 app/ themes/ plugins/ languages/ vendor/

# Storage and uploads (readable, writable, executable)
chmod 750 stockage/ uploads/

# Files (readable)
chmod 644 *.php
chmod 644 public/*.php

# Configuration file (readable and writable by owner only)
chmod 600 stockage/json/config.json 2>/dev/null || true

# CLI executable
chmod 755 app/Cli/console.php

Step 3: Access Installer

Open your browser and navigate to:

https://yourdomain.com

or

https://yourdomain.com/install.php

The installer will automatically detect if Flatboard 5 is not yet installed and redirect you to the installation wizard.

Step 4: Follow Installation Wizard

A pre-flight system check (PHP version, required extensions, directory permissions, and storage-type selection — JSON or SQLite for Pro) runs first. Then (since 5.7.1) the setup is a 4-step guided wizard with a numbered progress indicator, Back/Next navigation, and per-step client-side validation:

1. Site configuration

   • Site name
   • Site URL
   • Base URL (if installed in a subdirectory)
   • Default language
   • Timezone

2. Admin account

   • Username
   • Email address
   • Password (with a live strength meter)

3. SMTP (Optional)

   • Email server settings
   • Authentication credentials

4. Review & install

   • Recap of all entered values
   • Complete the installation and access the admin panel

The wizard degrades gracefully without JavaScript — all sections and the install button stay visible.

Method 2: Manual Installation

For advanced users who prefer manual setup:

Step 1: Extract Files

Extract the Flatboard 5 archive to your web root:

cd /var/www/html  # or your web root
unzip flatboard-5-latest.zip

Step 2: Create Configuration

Create the configuration directory and file:

mkdir -p stockage/json
touch stockage/json/config.json
chmod 600 stockage/json/config.json

Step 3: Set Permissions

chmod 755 app/ themes/ plugins/ languages/
chmod 750 stockage/ uploads/
chmod 644 *.php

Step 4: Configure Web Server

Apache Configuration:

Ensure mod_rewrite is enabled and create/update .htaccess:

<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
    RewriteEngine On
    RewriteBase /
    RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
    RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
    RewriteRule ^(.*)$ public/index.php [QSA,L]
</IfModule>

Nginx Configuration:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com;
    root /var/www/html/public;
    index index.php;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$query_string;
    }

    location ~ \.php$ {
        fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php8.1-fpm.sock;
        fastcgi_index index.php;
        include fastcgi_params;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
    }
}

Step 5: Run Installation

Access install.php in your browser to complete the setup.

Storage Type Selection

During installation, you'll choose a storage type:

JSON Storage (Default)

• Available in: Community and Pro editions
• Best for: Small to medium communities
• Pros: Simple, no database required, easy backups
• Cons: Slower for very large datasets

SQLite Storage (Pro Only)

• Available in: Pro edition only
• Best for: Medium to large communities
• Pros: Better performance, SQL queries, transactions
• Cons: Requires pdo_sqlite extension

Post-Installation

Verify Installation

1. Check Admin Panel Access

   • Navigate to /admin
   • Log in with your admin credentials

2. Test Forum Functionality

   • Create a test category
   • Create a test discussion
   • Verify file uploads work

3. Check File Permissions

   • Verify stockage/ is writable
   • Verify uploads/ is writable

Security Hardening

After installation, perform these security steps:

1. Remove Installer

   rm install.php

2. Protect Configuration

   chmod 600 stockage/json/config.json

3. Review .htaccess Files

   • Ensure stockage/ has .htaccess protection
   • Verify uploads/ has proper restrictions

4. Set Debug Mode to False

   • In admin panel: Settings > General > Debug Mode = Off

Troubleshooting Installation

Common Issues

Issue: "PHP version too old"

Solution: Upgrade to PHP 8.0 or higher.

# Check current version
php -v

# Update PHP (Ubuntu/Debian)
sudo apt update
sudo apt install php8.1 php8.1-cli php8.1-fpm

Issue: "Extension missing"

Solution: Install missing PHP extensions.

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install php8.1-json php8.1-mbstring php8.1-openssl php8.1-fileinfo

# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install php-json php-mbstring php-openssl php-fileinfo

Issue: "Permission denied"

Solution: Fix directory permissions.

# Set ownership (replace www-data with your web server user)
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/html
sudo chmod -R 750 /var/www/html/stockage
sudo chmod -R 750 /var/www/html/uploads

Issue: "Cannot write to stockage/"

Solution: Ensure the directory is writable.

chmod 750 stockage/
chmod 750 stockage/json/
touch stockage/json/.htaccess

Issue: "Installation wizard not loading"

Solution: Check web server configuration and file paths.

• Verify public/index.php exists
• Check Apache mod_rewrite is enabled
• Verify Nginx configuration is correct
• Check PHP error logs: tail -f /var/log/php-errors.log

Next Steps

After successful installation:

1. Configure Your Forum - Set up site settings
2. Explore Admin Panel - Learn the administration interface
3. Create Categories - Organize your forum
4. Install Plugins - Extend functionality
5. Customize Theme - Personalize appearance

Resources

• Getting Started - Prerequisites and overview
• Configuration Guide - Detailed configuration options
• Troubleshooting - Common problems and solutions
• Migration Guide - Migrate from previous versions

Last updated: February 23, 2026