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- 98 Posts
Hi MODX Evolution users!
I'm brand new to MODX Evolution. I seem to need some very basic installation help.
I have a new shared hosting server and have the nameservers pointing to it.
Server info:
Apache version 2.2.23
PHP version 5.3.17
MySQL version 5.5.27-cll
Architecture x86_64
Operating system linux
(This server has cPanel as well.)
I set up an FTP account and set up a mySQL database (for the Evolution.) Note that in cPanel, when you set up a database, the name gets prepended with an abbreviated form of the website URL and an underscore, so if my domain name was "MyNewDomain", the first 8 characters would be "mynewdom" and if I call my database "modxe", then cPanel shows
mynewdom_modxe
as the database name
So, what is the database name, really? Is it mynewdom_modxe or modxe ?
I am not sure if MODX wants "modxe" or "mynewdom_modxe" when it asks for the database name.
Usernames also get prepended: JohnDoe becomes mynewdom_johndoe
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I downloaded the latest Evolution zip file, unzipped it on my computer, and copied the files via FTP to what I thought was the root folder. (Instead, the files and folders got copied into the new folder that cPanel creates when you set up an FTP account. I may have something set up wrong.) So, I moved the files into the root folder which, if I have it correct, is public_html on the server
So, MODX install asks for this:
Database host: [ localhost ]
Database login name: [_________________]
Database password: [________________]
I note that it doesn't ask for the database name itself, but rather "host." Is "localhost" correct?
Is the correct login name the longer one, prepended?
Is there a beginners tutorial, or can someone help me step through these very basic steps?
Thanks!
Dennis
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- 384 Posts
Hi Dennis. Been a while sice I used Evo but the database names should be mynewdom_modxe
On Revo ( the most recent MODX) if I get an install or database connection error, I try the database name with and without the prefix and even localhost. Actually, one of the hosting companies ( Heart Internet) insist that the database name and database user are the same so you have to consult the hosts FAQs too.
Btw, as a new MODX user, have you tried Revo instead of Evo?
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- 98 Posts
Hi eladnova, and thanks for the reply.
I need to use Evo for a project that uses one of the Evo "Extras" that is not available for Revo.
The logic of using "localhost" on a shared server to identify the database host escapes me. It makes sense on a dedicated server, to me. If the site uses several mySQL databases, there has to be a way to distinguish them, particularly if more than one person sharing the server names a database the same name (such as "customer.") Perhaps that's why the prepending is used on the database login name - to distinguish the various databases at localhost.
I guess I can keep trying different combinations until I stumble onto the right one, but was hoping someone might know how a typical Evo install goes into a shared host with Linux, looking through the eyes of cPanel.
Dennis
Most shared hosting (and most dedicated servers, for that matter) use the same server (localhost to the MySQL server) for the database server; hence the "localhost" as the server. This is so the client (php, in our case) knows server to query for the database engine.
Your database name will be whatever the CPanel assigns; indeed it is usually some substring of your domain + the database name you chose.
So you would indeed use mynewdom_modxe. The CPanel database wizard or the phpMyAdmin it offers will show the proper database name to use. Your login name may also be prepended by CPanel.
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- 98 Posts
Thanks, Susan.
I tried:
localhost
mynewdom_modxe
mypassword
and the install fails. (obviously "mynewdom" and "mypassword" are not literal, and I did check several times for typos.)
The database exists, I can go to it (no tables yet, of course) using phpMyAdmin.
Dennis
When you create a new database using the Cpanel database wizard, it will give you all of that information. You should be able to check through the "MySQL databases" app.
My Bluehost is something like this:
Server: localhost
Username: sottwell_myname (the name I used)
Database name: sottwell_myname (the name I used)
So they prepended my domain name to the names I selected when creating the database.
It is possible that your hosting uses a different server for the database, but it should say so in the "MySQL Databases" page. In fact, it will give the server name to use in case you want to access the database from a desktop client (if your host allows that). This is what a Justhost CPanel says on that page:
When connecting to your database the hostname you will almost always use is localhost. The exception to this will be if the script or program you wish to connect to the database is running on a different system than the one hosted with Justhost, in which case the hostname will be justxx.justhost.com.
Databases can be tricky to deal with.
I got dragged kicking and screaming into database administration and programming back in the days of dBase and FoxPro (I wanted to program games), but now I'm grateful for the blood, sweat and tears expended on dealing with different data storage systems. Computer Associates (previously Borland) Jasmine was a beauty, an object database rather than a relational database; used ODQL rather than SQL. Having beta tested it while still in the US, I almost got a job with CA as a rep when I first came to Israel. The
/rdb flat-file data store that uses the UNIX shell commands (grep, sed, awk etc.) along with a handful of custom commands as a "query" language is interesting if one really wants blinding speed.
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