How to install Etomite 0.6.1.4
Etomite has been my CMS of choice for the past several projects. Currently I’m running Etomite on 5 different sites. One of its best features is that it can be themed to look however you want it to. A PHP-Nuke site, no matter how much you edit the theme, still looks like a PHP-Nuke site. Most WordPress sites look similar unless you’re willing to edit the theme. But Etomite makes it very easy for someone with a little bst of HTML knowledge to make a custom theme that is unique to their site.
The biggest problem that most people new to CMS packages come up against is the installation. While not difficult the installation does use some terms that you may not be familiar with. So we’re going to walk through the installation of the current version of Etomite, which as of 5/18/07 is 0.6.1.4, from start to finish.
Downloading
Of course before you can do anything with Etomite you will need to download it. So head on over to the Etomite download page and get the most recent version. There are 3 different file formats - zip, tar.gz, and tar.bz2. Unless you are running Linux you will probably want to go with the zip format.
So download the zip file to some place safe and unzip it.
Uploading to your site
Next you’ll need to copy the unzipped files to your web server. Personally I like FileZilla. It’s a really easy to use FTP program and the price is right - it’s free.
Creating the Database
Etomite uses a MySQL database to hold all of the pages and settings. Rather than rehash a tutorial that’s already here, I’m going to direct you to a post from yesterday explaining how to create a MySQL database.
Browse to where you installed Etomite
Next fire up your web browser and go to where you installed Etomite. I’m going to use www.example.com as the, well, example.
You will be greeted with a very simple page that looks like the following.
The next screen will prompt you to decide which type of installation you are doing, new or upgrade. Odds are that if you’re reading this you’re working on a new installation. So click that link. If you’re upgrading there is a set of instructions on the Etomite forums and I may write another post detailing the process of upgrading.
Directory Permissions
The next screen may be confusing if you’re not used to working on Linux servers. 
If your screen looks like the above you’re all set. If any of the lines do not have a green OK! next to them you’ll have a little more work to do.
Linux was written to work in a network environment and is very picky about who can read and write files. That’s a good thing, although it can be confusing to new users. If any of the files or folders don’t show OK! you’ll need to log in to your FTP client and change the permissions of each folder or file to either 777 or Read / Write / Execute for Owner / Group / All. 077 and RWE are two ways of saying the same thing, it’s just that some programs use the different terms. In FileZilla you right click on the folder and select File Properties. Most other programs should be similar.
Database Setup
If you have successfully set the permissions the next step will be to enter your database information. Enter the name of the database you created in the first field and the login name and password for the user you created in the 4th and 5th fields. The database host field usually can be left at localhost although some hosts, notably GoDaddy.com, will have another server name for this field. If in doubt, ask you host. They should be happy to help. If they’re not happy to help, find another host.
You will also notice 3 fields for you to enter your admin username, password, and a password confirmation. I would highly suggest changing the admin username from admin to something less generic and easy to guess. Be sure you use a good password as well since if somebody can guess your password they can edit your entire site.
Click on the button ‘Setup Etomite!’ to continue.
Agree to the license
Next you have to click the small checkbox on the bottom left of the page and click Proceed. Basically you’re agreeing to a GNU General Public License which is fairly standard for open source projects.
Done
If all went well you should see the following screen.
One thing to note is that you should change the file permissions on the file config.inc.php back to 644, or read / write for the owner and read-only for everybody else, so that it cannot be edited by anybody but the owner. That’s what the last line about CHMOD is suggesting.
Look for the login link just after “Installation was successful!” where it says “Etomite Manager”. Click that and you’ll be presented with a login screen where you’ll use the admin username and password you created to login and start editing your site.
What if something went wrong?
Something not go right with your installation? Feel free to post in the comments for help. I’ve installed Etomite about half a dozen times so I’ve gotten pretty good at working around the problems. Or you can head over to the Etomite support boards and look for help. Be sure to search for your problem before asking because while the admin and moderators on their support board are very friendly and willing to help you should look for the solution before asking for it.
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