WHMCS Installation Scripts for Debian 12

Enterprise-grade installation and configuration scripts for deploying WHMCS on Debian 12 (Bookworm). Automates the complete server setup process with security-first approach.

System Requirements

Component	Requirement
OS	Debian 12 (Bookworm)
CPU	2+ cores recommended
RAM	4GB minimum, 8GB recommended
Storage	20GB minimum
Network	Static IP address
Domain	Valid domain pointed to server
License	Valid WHMCS license

Table of Contents

• Quick Start
• Features
• Basic Configuration
• Installation Steps
• Post-Installation
• Advanced Configuration
  • SSL Configuration
  • Cloudflare Integration
  • Security Features
• Configuration Files Reference
  • Core Configuration Files
  • SSL Configuration Files
  • Security Configuration Files
  • Log Files
  • Backup Locations
• Maintenance
• Troubleshooting
• Support & Contributing

Quick Start

# 1. Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/chargeditsolutionsllc/whmcs_init.git
cd whmcs_init

# 2. Configure environment
cp .env.example .env
nano .env

# 3. Run installation
chmod +x scripts/*.sh
sudo ./scripts/install.sh

Features

Core Components

• PHP 8.1 with optimized configuration
• MariaDB 10.11 with security hardening
• Apache with HTTP/2 and SSL support
• ModSecurity WAF with OWASP ruleset

Security Focus

• Automated security hardening
• File permission management
• Cloudflare integration
• Security headers implementation
• Automatic updates

Best Practices

• Environment-based configuration
• Modular installation process
• Comprehensive logging
• Automated backups
• Service monitoring

Basic Configuration

1. Edit .env file with your settings:

# Domain Settings
DOMAIN=billing.yourdomain.com
EMAIL=admin@yourdomain.com

# Database Settings
MYSQL_USER=whmcs_user
MYSQL_DATABASE=whmcs

# Installation Path
WHMCS_PATH=/var/www/whmcs

2. Choose SSL Configuration:

# SSL Settings
ENABLE_SSL=true
SSL_TYPE=letsencrypt  # Options: letsencrypt, custom

See .env.example for all available options.

Installation Steps

The installer performs these steps automatically:

1. System Preparation

   • System updates
   • Required dependencies
   • Package mirror optimization

2. Component Installation

   • PHP 8.1 with extensions
   • MariaDB 10.11
   • Apache with mods
   • IonCube Loader

3. Security Configuration

   • UFW firewall setup
   • ModSecurity configuration
   • File permissions
   • Security headers

Post-Installation

1. Upload WHMCS Files

   # Upload to
   /var/www/whmcs/public_html/

2. Complete Setup

   • Visit https://your-domain.com/install/install.php
   • Follow installation wizard
   • Remove install directory

3. Verify Installation

   • Check PHP configuration
   • Test database connection
   • Verify SSL setup

Advanced Configuration

SSL Configuration

Let's Encrypt SSL

# Production
SSL_TYPE=letsencrypt
SSL_STAGING=false

# Testing
SSL_TYPE=letsencrypt
SSL_STAGING=true

Custom SSL

SSL_TYPE=custom
SSL_CERT_PATH=/path/to/cert.pem
SSL_KEY_PATH=/path/to/key.pem

Cloudflare Integration

# Enable Cloudflare
ENABLE_CLOUDFLARE=true
CLOUDFLARE_TRUSTED_IPS_ENABLE=true

SSL Modes

1. Full (strict) - Production certificates
2. Full - Testing/staging certificates
3. Flexible - Not recommended

Security Features

1. TLS Configuration

   • TLS 1.2/1.3 support
   • Strong cipher suites
   • OCSP stapling

2. Headers

   • HSTS
   • CSP
   • X-Frame-Options

3. File System

   • Restricted permissions
   • Regular integrity checks
   • Automated backups

Configuration Files Reference

Core Configuration Files

• /etc/apache2/apache2.conf - Main Apache configuration
• /etc/php/${PHP_VERSION}/apache2/php.ini - PHP configuration
• /etc/mysql/mariadb.conf.d/50-server.cnf - MariaDB configuration
• /var/www/whmcs/.env - WHMCS environment configuration

SSL Configuration Files

1. Apache SSL Configuration

   • /etc/apache2/conf-available/ssl-security.conf - SSL security settings
   • /etc/apache2/sites-available/[domain].conf - Virtual host configuration
   • /etc/letsencrypt/live/${DOMAIN}/ - Let's Encrypt certificates
   • /etc/ssl/whmcs/ - Custom SSL certificates directory

2. Let's Encrypt Files

   • /etc/letsencrypt/renewal/[domain].conf - Certificate renewal configuration
   • /etc/systemd/system/certbot.timer - Automatic renewal timer
   • /etc/systemd/system/certbot.service - Renewal service configuration

Security Configuration Files

1. Web Application Firewall

   • /etc/modsecurity/modsecurity.conf - ModSecurity base configuration
   • /etc/modsecurity/whmcs-rules.conf - WHMCS-specific rules
   • /etc/apache2/conf-available/security.conf - Apache security settings

2. Firewall Configuration

   • /etc/ufw/user.rules - UFW firewall rules
   • /etc/ufw/before.rules - Pre-processing rules
   • /etc/apache2/conf-available/cloudflare.conf - Cloudflare configuration

Log Files

1. Web Server Logs

   • /var/log/apache2/access.log - Apache access logs
   • /var/log/apache2/error.log - Apache error logs
   • /var/log/apache2/ssl_access.log - SSL-specific logs

2. Database Logs

   • /var/log/mysql/error.log - MariaDB error log
   • /var/log/mysql/slow-query.log - Slow query log

3. Security Logs

   • /var/log/modsec_audit.log - ModSecurity audit log
   • /var/log/ufw.log - Firewall logs
   • /var/log/letsencrypt/ - SSL certificate logs

Backup Locations

• /var/backups/whmcs/ - Automated backup directory
• /var/backups/whmcs/database/ - Database backups
• /var/backups/whmcs/files/ - File backups
• /var/backups/whmcs/config/ - Configuration backups

Maintenance

Regular Updates

# System updates
apt update && apt upgrade

# Check services
systemctl status apache2
systemctl status mariadb

Monitoring

# Check logs
tail -f /var/log/apache2/error.log
tail -f /var/log/mysql/error.log

# Database backup
mysqldump -u root -p whmcs > backup.sql

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Permission Errors

   # Fix permissions
   sudo scripts/install.sh --fix-permissions

2. SSL Problems

   # Check SSL
   sudo apache2ctl configtest
   sudo certbot certificates

3. Database Connection Issues

   # Verify MySQL
   sudo systemctl status mariadb
   mysql -u whmcs_user -p whmcs

Log Locations

• Apache: /var/log/apache2/
• MySQL: /var/log/mysql/
• PHP: /var/log/php/
• SSL: /var/log/letsencrypt/

Support & Contributing

Getting Help

• GitHub Issues: Bug reports and feature requests
• Security Reports: security@chargeditsolutions.com
• Documentation: README.md

Contributing

1. Fork repository
2. Create feature branch
3. Commit changes
4. Open pull request

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file.

Disclaimer

This is an unofficial installation script. WHMCS is a trademark of WHMCS Ltd.