Create a database and User. Replace the names of the database and the database user accordingly.

mysql -u root -p
create database redminedb;
grant all on redminedb.* to redmineuser@localhost identified by 'P@ssW0rD';

Reload privilege tables and exit the database.

flush privileges;
quit

Step 5: Download and Extract Redmine
Download the latest version of Redmine and extract it to the /opt/redmine directory using the following command:

curl -s https://www.redmine.org/releases/redmine-5.0.5.tar.gz | sudo -u redmine tar xz -C /opt/redmine/ --strip-components=1

Create Redmine configuration file by renaming the sample configuration files as shown below;

su - redmine
cp /opt/redmine/config/configuration.yml{.example,}
cp /opt/redmine/public/dispatch.fcgi{.example,}
cp /opt/redmine/config/database.yml{.example,}

The sample configuration files are provided by Redmine as a starting point for configuring your installation.

Step 6: Configure the Database
Modify the config/database.yml file and update database name, username, and password for the production environment:

nano /opt/redmine/config/database.yml
In the file, replace the default configuration with the following:

production:
  adapter: mysql2
  database: redminedb
  host: localhost
  username: redmineuser
  password: "P@ssW0rD"
  encoding: utf8mb4

Since the configuration file is an yaml, you need to use proper Indentation.

Save and close the file.

Step 7: Install Bundler and Redmine Dependencies
Install Bundler for managing gem dependencies and run the following commands:

sudo gem install bundler

Login as redmine user and execute below commands:

su - redmine
bundle config set --local without 'development test'
bundle install
bundle update
exit

Step 8: Configure File System Permissions
Ensure that the following directories are available in the Redmine directory (/opt/redmine):

tmp and tmp/pdf
public and public/plugin_assets
log
files

Create them if they don’t exist and ensure that they are owned by the user used to run Redmine:

for i in tmp tmp/pdf public/plugin_assets; do [ -d $i ] || mkdir -p $i; done
chown -R redmine:redmine files log tmp public/plugin_assets
chmod -R 755 /opt/redmine

Step 9: Configure Apache
Create a new Apache virtual host file for Redmine:
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/redmine.conf

Paste the following configuration into the file:

<VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName redmine.linuxwebhostingsupport.in
    DocumentRoot /opt/redmine/public
    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/redmine-error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/redmine-access.log combined
    <Directory /opt/redmine/public>
        Require all granted
        Options -MultiViews
        PassengerEnabled on
        PassengerAppEnv production
        PassengerRuby /usr/bin/ruby
    </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

Save the file and exit the text editor. Replace redmine.linuxwebhostingsupport.in with your domain name.

Enable the Redmine site by running the following command:

sudo a2ensite redmine.conf

Restart Apache to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Allow Apache through the Ubuntu UFW firewall:

sudo ufw allow 'Apache Full'

Install Certbot and the Apache plugin for Let’s Encrypt:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-apache

Adding Lets Encrypt SSL certificate

You need to make sure your domain is properly pointed to the server IP, otherwise, Let’s encrypt will fail.

Obtain an SSL certificate for your domain by running the following command:

sudo certbot --apache

Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

Restart Apache to apply the SSL configuration:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Open your web browser and go to https://redmine.linuxwebhostingsupport.in/. You should see the Redmine home screen.

Login to the admin area using your Redmine admin username and password. If this is your first login, you will need to reset your admin password.

https://redmine.linuxwebhostingsupport.in/login

Congratulations! You have successfully installed and configured Redmine on your Ubuntu server. In the previous steps, we have covered the installation and configuration of Redmine, including setting up the database, configuring Apache, and securing Redmine with Let’s Encrypt SSL.

However, one critical aspect of Redmine that you might want to configure is email delivery for notifications. This feature is essential for keeping team members informed about project updates, new issues, and changes to existing issues. In this section, we will show you how to configure email delivery in Redmine.

Configuring SMTP for Email Delivery in Redmine

Redmine supports email delivery for notifications, which you can set up using the following steps:

Step 1 – Open Configuration File

First, you need to open the configuration.yml file in a text editor:

sudo nano /opt/redmine/config/configuration.yml

Step 2 – Configure Email Settings

Next, scroll down to the production section of the file, uncomment the following lines by removing the # symbol at the beginning of each line, and replace the values with your SMTP server’s settings:

# specific configuration options for production environment
# that overrides the default ones
production:
  email_delivery:
    delivery_method: :smtp
    smtp_settings:
      address: "your.smtp.server.com"
      port: 587
      domain: "your.domain.com"
      authentication: :login
      user_name: "your_email@example.com"
      password: "your_email_password"
      enable_starttls_auto: true
# specific configuration options for development environment
# that overrides the default ones

Replace the values for address, port, domain, user_name, and password with your SMTP server’s settings:

address: The address of your SMTP server.
port: The port number to use for SMTP server (usually 587).
domain: The domain name of your organization or server.
user_name: The email address of the user account to use for sending emails.
password: The password for the user account to use for sending emails.
Save the configuration.yml file.

Since the configuration file is an yaml, you need to use proper Indentation.

Step 3 – Restart Apache

Finally, restart Apache to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart apache2
And that’s it! Redmine is now configured to deliver email notifications to your team members.

Conclusion

Redmine is a powerful project management tool that can help you manage your software development projects effectively. In this blog post, we have covered the installation and configuration of Redmine on Ubuntu, including setting up the database, configuring Apache, securing Redmine with Let’s Encrypt SSL, and configuring email delivery.

With these steps, you should now have a working Redmine installation that can help you track your projects, collaborate with your team, and stay on top of your development process. Good luck!