Deploying a Rails App on Apache using EC2 Instance

Introduction

Deploying a Rails application can seem daunting at first, but with the right tools and guidance, it becomes manageable. In this guide, I'll walk you through the steps to deploy a Rails application on an Apache server using an EC2 instance.

Prerequisites

Before we start, ensure you have the following:

1. An AWS account.
2. Basic knowledge of Rails.
3. An existing Rails application.
4. A domain name (optional but recommended).   ​

 

Step 1: Setting Up the EC2 Instance

 

1.1 Launch an EC2 Instance

 

1. Log in to your AWS Management Console.

2. Navigate to the EC2 Dashboard.

3. Click on "Launch Instance".

4. Choose an Amazon Machine Image (AMI). For this tutorial, we will use the Ubuntu Server 20.04 LTS(or latest).

5. Choose an instance type. The free tier eligible t2.micro instance is suitable for small applications.

6. Configure instance details (default settings are fine).

7. Add storage (default settings are fine).

8. Add tags (optional).

9. Configure the security group. Ensure you have rules to allow HTTP, HTTPS, and SSH traffic.

 

1.2 Configuring Security Inbound Rules

To allow traffic to your EC2 instance, you need to set up security inbound rules:

1. In the EC2 Dashboard, select "Security Groups" from the left-hand menu.

2. Find the security group associated with your instance and click on its ID.

3. Click on the "Inbound rules" tab and then "Edit inbound rules".

4. Add the following rules:

   • SSH (port 22): Allow your IP address to securely connect to your instance.
   • HTTP (port 80): Allow public access to your web application.
   • HTTPS (port 443): Allow public access to your secure web application.

5. Click "Save rules" to apply the changes.

 

Note: When you will launch the EC2 instance at that  time you will download a .pim file, we need that pim file for further process.

 

1.3 Connect to Your EC2 Instance

 

Once your instance is running, connect to it using SSH:
 

 ssh -i /path/to/your-key.pem ubuntu@your-ec2-public-dns

Step 2: Installing Dependencies

2.1 Update the Package List

 

sudo apt-get update

 2.2 Install Ruby and Rails

 

sudo apt-get install -y curl gnupg build-essential
curl -sL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_14.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
curl -sS https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/pubkey.gpg | sudo apt-key add -
echo "deb https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/yarn.list
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y yarn
gpg --keyserver hkp://keyserver.ubuntu.com:80 --recv-keys 409B6B1796C275462A1703113804BB82D39DC0E3
\curl -sSL https://get.rvm.io | bash -s stable
source /home/ubuntu/.rvm/scripts/rvm
rvm install 3.1.2
rvm use 3.1.2 --default
gem install rails -v 7.0.4

 

2.3 Install PostgreSQL 

 

sudo apt-get install -y postgresql postgresql-contrib libpq-dev
sudo -i -u postgres
createuser --interactive

 

Follow the prompts to create a new PostgreSQL user. 

createdb your_database_name
exit

 

Step 3: Setting Up the Rails Application 

3.1 Clone Your Rails Application

 

git clone https://github.com/your_username/your_rails_app.git
cd your_rails_app

 

3.2 Configure Database 

 

Edit the 'config/database.yml' file with your database settings:

 

default: &default
  adapter: postgresql
  encoding: unicode
  pool: 5
  username: your_postgres_user
  password: your_postgres_password
  host: localhost

development:
  <<: *default
  database: your_database_name_development

test:
  <<: *default
  database: your_database_name_test

production:
  <<: *default
  database: your_database_name_production
  username: your_production_user
  password: <%= ENV['YOUR_DATABASE_PASSWORD'] %>

3.3 Install Gems and Set Up the Database 

 

bundle install
rails db:create db:migrate

 

Step 4: Setting Up Apache and Passenger 

4.1 Install Apache and Passenger

sudo apt-get install -y apache2

4.2 Install Passenger

First, install the PGP key for the repository server:

 

sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 561F9B9CAC40B2F7

Create an APT source file:
 

sudo nano /etc/apt/sources.list.d/passenger.list

Insert the following line to add the Passenger repository to the file:

 

deb https://oss-binaries.phusionpassenger.com/apt/passenger trusty main

 

Press CTRL+X to exit, type Y to save the file, and then press ENTER to confirm the file location.

Change the owner and permissions for this file to restrict access to root:

sudo chown root: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/passenger.list
sudo chmod 600 /etc/apt/sources.list.d/passenger.list

Update the APT cache:

 

sudo apt-get update

Finally, install Passenger:

 

sudo apt-get install libapache2-mod-passenger

Make sure the Passenger Apache module; it maybe enabled already:

 

sudo a2enmod passenger

 

4.3 Configure Apache for Your Rails Application 

Create a new virtual host configuration file:

 

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/your_rails_app.conf

Add the following content to the file: 

<VirtualHost *:80>
  ServerName your_domain_or_ip
  DocumentRoot /home/ubuntu/your_rails_app/public

  <Directory /home/ubuntu/your_rails_app/public>
    AllowOverride all
    Options -MultiViews
    Require all granted
  </Directory>

  PassengerRuby /home/ubuntu/.rvm/gems/ruby-3.1.2/wrappers/ruby
</VirtualHost>

 

4.4 Enable the Virtual Host and Restart Apache 

 

sudo a2ensite your_rails_app.conf
sudo systemctl restart apache2

 

Step 5: Final Steps 

5.1 Precompile Assets (for Production)

 

RAILS_ENV=production bundle exec rake assets:precompile

 

5.2 Start Your Application

Ensure your application is started and running correctly. You can check the public IP address of EC2 instance on browser. AND HERE YOUR APP IS DEPLOYED!!