Installing on Microsoft Azure

Warning

ODK Aggregate is no longer being updated. Please use ODK Central instead.

Warning

To use this setup, you must able to link a domain name to the virtual machine's IP address. If you don’t own a domain, services such as FreeDNS offer free sub-domains under a range of domains.

Create a VPC

  1. Go to the Virtual machines dashboard.

  2. Click on Add.

  3. Ensure you have a Subscription and a Resource group. If no resource group exists, create one called Aggregate (or your desired name).

  4. In the Virtual machine name text box, enter Aggregate (or your desired name).

  5. Select the desired region.

    Choose a region that's close to the location where data is going to be collected.

  6. In Image, select Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.

  7. Select Size of VM you want to use.

    A minimum setup is a B1ms type (1 vcpu, 2 GB of memory), but you should review your requirements and choose a bigger VM according to your needs.

  1. Set a Authentication type to Password and enter a secure Username and Password.

    Alternatively, use a SSH public key if you know what that is and how to use it.

  2. Under Public inbound ports, select Allow selected ports.

  3. In Select inbound ports, select HTTP, HTTPS, and SSH.

  4. Click Next : Disks >.

  5. Click Create and attach a new disk.

  6. Select Disk type and Size of disk you want to use.

    A minimum setup is a Standard SSD disk type and 30 GiB size, but you should review your requirements and adjust appropriately.

  7. Click on the Advanced. It's in the tabs at the top of the screen.

  8. In the Cloud init text box, paste the contents of this Cloud-Config script.

  9. Click Next : Tags >.

  10. Add Name of aggregate.hostname and a Value of your domain (e.g., your.domain). This hostname will be used by the Cloud-Config script to configure your VM's HTTPS support.

  11. Expand the Next: Review + create, then Create.

Set up your domain

Tip

Azure VPCs use IP addresses which can change if you destroy the VPC. To ensure your Aggregate install will always be reachable using the same IP address, use a static IP by following these instructions.

  1. In Virtual machines dashboard, find your VM from the list. Click on it and find the value of the Public IP address field in the overview section.

  2. Take note of the IP address (e.g., 12.34.56.78) and set a DNS A record pointing to it.

    If you own a domain, check your domain registrar's instructions. If you don't own a domain, we recommend using FreeDNS to get a free sub-domain.

    Your domain's TTL setting will affect to how much time you will have to wait until you can proceed to the next step. If your provider gives you the option of setting a TTL, use the lowest value you can.

  3. Open a web browser, and periodically check the domain until you see the Aggregate website. You won't be able to continue the install until you see the website load.

Enable HTTPS

Warning

Azure VMs seem to be slower to install software than other cloud providers. If you are having trouble running the commands in this step, wait 15 minutes and try again.

  1. Connect to your VM via SSH.

  2. Once you are logged in, run sudo certbot run --nginx --non-interactive --agree-tos -m YOUR_EMAIL --redirect -d YOUR_DOMAIN.

    Be sure to replace YOUR_EMAIL and YOUR_DOMAIN with your email address and your domain.

    Lets Encrypt uses the email you provide to send notifications about expiration of certificates.

Log into Aggregate

  1. Go to https://your.domain and check that Aggregate is running.

  2. Click Sign in with Aggregate password to login with the default username and password.

    username: administrator
    password: aggregate
  3. Change the administrator account's password!

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