SocialEngine Installation Instructions

SERVER REQUIREMENTS

Installation of your SocialEngine system is easy. Your server must meet these basic requirements:

1. PHP version 4.3.0 or higher must be installed.
2. You must have access to an available MySQL database, version 4.1.0 or higher.
3. Your server must have PHP session support.

In order to use the image-code verification feature (which helps to prevent automated signups and comments), your server will need to have the GD Libraries 2.0 or higher installed and compiled with PHP. The GD Libraries are also necessary to enable SocialEngine's image thumbnailing feature, which resizes images uploaded by your users. If you are unsure whether or not you have the GD Libraries installed, we suggest that you ask your hosting provider.

In order to have subdirectory-style URLs (optional), you will need to have an Apache server with mod_rewrite installed. If you're not sure if you have an Apache server with mod_rewrite, ask your hosting provider. Subdirectory-style URLs look like this: "http://www.yoursite.com/username"

INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

1. Create a directory on your server where SocialEngine will be placed (e.g. "/socialnetwork"). Or, if you wish, you can simply use your existing HTTP root directory (e.g. "/httpdocs").
   
   
2. Upload all of the files and folders contained in the "/files" directory in this zip to your server. Do not upload install.html, license.html, upgrade.html, changelog.html, or the contents of the "/upgrade" directory.
   - Upload the "/images" and "/include" directories in BINARY mode.
   - Upload everything else in ASCII mode.
   
   
   Remember, a file named "index.php" is included with SocialEngine. If you already have a homepage with this name, you can choose to not upload this file. SocialEngine also comes with an example portal page, "home.php", which you can use if desired.
   
   
3. Upload the files install.php and installsql.php to your server. These files can be found in the "/install" directory in this zip.
   
   
4. Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/cache" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/include" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/language" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/language/indexes" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/uploads_user" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/uploads_admin" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/uploads_admin/ads" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/include/smarty/cache" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on the "/include/smarty/templates_c" directory
   Set full permissions (CHMOD 777) on every file inside the "/templates" directory
   
   
5. Point your browser to where you uploaded install.php, for example: http://www.yourdomain.com/socialnetwork/install.php
   
   
6. Follow the instructions and input your MySQL database information. Once this has completed successfully, a password will be randomly generated for you. Use this information to login to your admin panel. You can change your username/password on the "View Admins" page.
   
   
7. Remember to delete "install.php" and "installsql.php" after your installation has completed successfully. Leaving these files intact poses a serious security risk!
   
   
8. Important! SocialEngine 3.10+ uses PHP sessions to keep track of users' login info (which is more secure than cookies). However, the plugin upload pages clear out the session data. If the plugin has an upload page, and was released before 3.10, you must remove the following 3 lines from these files (if you have the corresponding plugins):
   user_album_upload.php (Albums <=3.04)
   user_blog_album_upload.php (Blogs <=3.03)
   user_event_upload.php (Events <=3.03)
   user_group_upload.php (Groups <=3.03)
   user_music_upload.php (Music <=3.03)
   user_video_upload.php (Videos <=3.01)
   
   Here are the lines that must be removed:
   session_start();
   $_SESSION = array();
   session_regenerate_id();
   
   Plugins released after 3.10 of the platform will not need this change.