How to install Superdesk with Docker: A quick-start guide to the free open-source version
In this video you’ll learn how to install a pre-configured instance of Superdesk so you can see for yourself why we think it’s the best open-source newsroom management software anywhere.
Installing Superdesk
Step 1
To get started, we need to configure Superdesk to work on our machine. Typically, a newsroom using Superdesk would requires large amounts of server space, but in this demo we will use our own computers to drive a scaled-down version of the CMS.
The first task is to create a plain text file saved in a new folder on our desktop. Do not create it in a cloud folder, like Dropbox or OneDrive; it must be saved locally. We’re going to be running Superdesk through a Docker image, which essentially means the server and client will be pulled from the internet via the Docker Hub and then run on your machine. The file we create supplies Docker with instructions to start running.
The name of the folder doesn’t matter, just as long as you can find it easily. To simplify things, we’ll call our folder “SD Docker.”
The file, however, must be called docker-compose.yml and saved in the newly-created folder with the .yml extension – and not .txt or .doc.
Step 2
Next, download and install the free Docker Desktop via the link in the video description. After the Docker download is complete, find the program and open it. If you are running on Linux, you may need to install Docker Server (https://docs.docker.com/engine/instal...) and Docker Compose (https://docs.docker.com/compose/install/) command line tools instead. Links to those solutions are also pasted below.
Step 3
Locate the folder and plain text file created in Step 1. Copy and paste the code available at this page (https://raw.githubusercontent.com/sup...) into the file. Again, it is essential that you save it as plain text with no formatting.
Step 4
Open a command line on your computer. To do this on a Mac, hold down “Command” + “Space” and type “terminal.” On a Windows machine, open the start menu and search for “command prompt”.
Step 5
We need to locate the correct directory where we stored the plain text file with the .yml extension. If you saved the folder on the desktop, as instructed above, type “cd desktop” to “change directory” to the “desktop.” Now, type “LS,” which will “list” the computer files in that directory. After hitting enter you should see a list of files and folders that are on your desktop, including the “SD Docker” folder created in Step 1.
Step 6
Type “cd sd docker” in the terminal command line. This will change the directory to the SD Docker folder. Typing “LS” should return a list of files including docker-compose.yml, which we created in Step 1. If this file does not end in .yml, type the following code into the command line to change the file extension (if the file extension is .txt, for instance): mv docker-compose.yml.txt docker-compose.yml
Step 7
Type docker-compose up in the command line. This will download Superdesk’s server, client, and dependencies, and run them. Give the configuration setup 2-3 minutes to complete. Important: You must have Docker installed and running (Step 2) for this command to work.
Step 8
To test that the installation was done correctly, open a new tab in your browser and go to http://localhost:8080. Hit enter. Important: Do not close your terminal window; it must remain open for the duration of your Superdesk session.
A quick note: Some browsers may return a “Can't provide secure connection" error. In that case, switch to incognito mode and reload the page.
Step 9
Open another terminal window and navigate to the “SD Docker” folder by following Steps 5 and 6. In some terminals, you’ll be able to do this by opening another tab; otherwise open another terminal and navigate to the folder again. Do not close the original terminal.
Step 10
In this new tab, you need to run two more commands to complete the Superdesk setup. First, you need to initialise some data for Superdesk to be userful. To do this, copy and past the following code: docker-compose run superdesk-server run python manage.py app:initialize_data and then hit return. Wait until you see the command line before proceeding.
Step 11
Next you need to create an administrator user for the installed Superdesk instance. To do this, copy and paste the following: docker-compose run superdesk-server run python manage.py users:create -u admin -p admin2020 -e admin@localhost –admin
The codes for Steps 11 and 12 are pasted in the video description below.
Step 12
Return to your browser and the Superdesk login page at localhost:8080. Enter the username (“admin”), all lowercase, and password (“Admin2020”).
One final note: This is not a production ready setup of Superdesk. When you stop and remove the Docker containers, or close your terminal, any data you create will be permanently deleted.
