# Multiple AIO instances It is possible to run multiple instances of AIO on one server. There are two ways to achieve this: The normal way is creating multiple VMs, installing AIO in [reverse proxy mode](./reverse-proxy.md) in each of them and having one reverse proxy in front of them that points to each VM (you also need to [use a different `TALK_PORT`](https://github.com/nextcloud/all-in-one#how-to-adjust-the-talk-port) for each of them). The second and more advanced way is creating multiple users on the server and using docker rootless for each of them in order to install multiple instances on the same server. ## Run multiple AIO instances on the same server with docker rootless 1. Create as many linux users as you need first. The easiest way is to use `sudo adduser` and follow the setup for that. Make sure to create a strong unique password for each of them and write it down! 1. Log in as each of the users by opening a new SSH connection as the user and install docker rootless for each of them by following step 0-1 and 3-4 of the [docker rootless documentation](./docker-rootless.md) (you can skip step 2 in this case). 1. Then install AIO in reverse proxy mode by using the command that is described in step 2 and 3 of the [reverse proxy documentation](./reverse-proxy.md) but use a different `APACHE_PORT` and [`TALK_PORT`](https://github.com/nextcloud/all-in-one#how-to-adjust-the-talk-port) for each instance as otherwise it will bug out. Also make sure to adjust the docker socket and `WATCHTOWER_DOCKER_SOCKET_PATH` correctly for each of them by following step 6 of the [docker rootless documentation](./docker-rootless.md). Additionally, modify `--publish 8080:8080` to a different port for each container, e.g. `8081:8080` as otherwise it will not work.
**⚠️ Please note:** If you want to adjust the `NEXTCLOUD_DATADIR`, make sure to apply the correct permissions to the chosen path as documented at the bottom of the [docker rootless documentation](./docker-rootless.md). Also for the built-in backup to work, the target path needs to have the correct permissions as documented there, too. 1. Now install your webserver of choice on the host system. It is recommended to use caddy for this as it is by far the easiest solution. You can do so by following https://caddyserver.com/docs/install#debian-ubuntu-raspbian or below. (It needs to be installed directly on the host or on a different server in the same network). 1. Next create your Caddyfile with multiple entries and domains for the different instances like described in step 1 of the [reverse proxy documentation](./reverse-proxy.md). Obviously each domain needs to point correctly to the chosen `APACHE_PORT` that you've configured before. Then start Caddy which should automatically get the needed certificates for you if your domains are configured correctly and ports 80 and 443 are forwarded to your server. 1. Now open each of the AIO interfaces by opening `https://ip.address.of.this.server:8080` or e.g. `https://ip.address.of.this.server:8081` or as chosen during step 3 of this documentation. 1. Finally type in the domain that you've configured for each of the instances during step 5 of this documentation and you are done. 1. Please also do not forget to open/forward each chosen `TALK_PORT` UDP and TCP in your firewall/router as otherwise Talk will not work correctly! Now everything should be set up correctly and you should have created multiple working instances of AIO on the same server! ## Run multiple AIO instances on the same server inside their own virtual machines This guide will walk you through creating and configuring two (or more) Debian-based VMs (with "reverse proxy mode" Nextcloud AIO installed in each VM), behind one Caddy reverse proxy, all running on one host physical machine (like a laptop or desktop PC). It's highly recommend to follow the steps in order. Steps 1 through 4 will need to be repeated. Steps 5 through 8 only need to be completed once. All commands are expected to be run as root.
PLEASE READ: A few expectations about your network This guide assumes that you have forwarded ports 443 and 8443 to your host physical machine via your router's configuration page, and either set up Dynamic DNS or obtained a static outbound IP address from your ISP. If this is not the case, or if you are brand-new to networking, you probably should not proceed with this guide, unless you are just using it for educational purposes. Proper network setup and security is critical when it comes to keeping your data safe. You may consider hosting using a VPS instead, or choosing one of Nextcloud's trusted providers.
A note for VPS users If you want to do this on a VPS, and your VPS is KVM-based and provides a static IP address, you can likely benefit from this guide too! Simply replace the words "host physical machine" with "VPS" and follow along.
**Before starting:** Make sure your host physical machine has enough resources. A host machine with 8GB RAM and 100GB storage is sufficient for running two fairly minimal VMs, with 2GB RAM and 32GB storage allocated to each VM. This guide assumes you have these resources at the minimum. This is fine for just testing the setup, but you will probably want to allocate more resources to your VMs if you plan to use this for day-to-day use. If your host machine has more than 8GB memory available, and you plan to enable any of the optional containers (Nextcloud Office, Talk, Imaginary, etc.) in any of your instances, then you should definitely allocate more memory to the VM hosting that instance. In other words, before turning on any extra features inside a particular AIO interface, make sure you've first allocated enough resources to the VM that the instance is running inside. If in doubt, the AIO interface itself gives great recommendations for extra CPU and RAM allocation. **Additional prerequisites:** Your host physical machine needs to have virtualization enabled in it's UEFI/BIOS. It also needs a few tools installed in order to create VMs. Assuming your host machine is a bare-bones Ubuntu or Debian Linux server without a desktop environment installed, the easiest way to create VMs is to install *QEMU*, *virsh*, *virt-install*, and a few extra packages to support UEFI booting and network config ([more info](https://wiki.debian.org/KVM)). You only need to do this once. To do this, run this command (**on the host physical machine**): ```shell # For host machines running Ubuntu Server or Debian: apt install --no-install-recommends qemu-system qemu-utils libvirt-clients libvirt-daemon-system virtinst ovmf bridge-utils dnsmasq-base ``` **Let's begin!** This guide assumes that you have two domains where you would like to host two individual AIO instances (one instance per domain). Let's call these domains `example1.com` and `example2.com`. Therefore, we'll create two VMs named `example1-com` and `example2-com` (These are the VM names we'll use below in step 1). **Once you're ready, follow steps 1-4 below to set up your VMs. You will configure them one at a time.** 1. Choose a name for your VM. A good choice is to name each VM the same as the domain name that will be used to access it. 2. Choose the distribution you'd like to install within the VM:
Ubuntu Server 22.04.4 LTS

Downloading the .ISO image

You must first download an .ISO image to your host machine, and then provide virt-install with the path to that image. 
# Skip this part if you've already downloaded this image
   curl -o /tmp/ubuntu-22.04.4-live-server-amd64.iso https://releases.ubuntu.com/jammy/ubuntu-22.04.4-live-server-amd64.iso
Note: You may choose a different place to store the .ISO file, but it needs to be somewhere accessible by QEMU. "/tmp" and "/home" work well, but choosing a location like "/root" will cause the next command to fail.

Creating the VM

Now create the Ubuntu Server VM (Don't forget to replace [VM_NAME]): 
virt-install \
   --name [VM_NAME] \
   --virt-type kvm \
   --location /tmp/ubuntu-22.04.4-live-server-amd64.iso,kernel=casper/vmlinuz,initrd=casper/initrd \
   --os-variant ubuntujammy \
   --disk size=32 \
   --memory 2048 \
   --graphics none \
   --console pty,target_type=serial \
   --extra-args "console=ttyS0" \
   --autostart \
   --boot uefi

Using a different version of Ubuntu Server

To use a different Ubuntu Server release, visit this page and find the version you want. You will need to adjust the filename and URL for the curl command, and the location and os-variant for the virt-install command, accordingly.
Debian 11

Creating the VM

Create the Debian VM (Don't forget to replace [VM_NAME]): 
virt-install \
   --name [VM_NAME] \
   --virt-type kvm \
   --location http://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/bullseye/main/installer-amd64/ \
   --os-variant debian11 \
   --disk size=32 \
   --memory 2048 \
   --graphics none \
   --console pty,target_type=serial \
   --extra-args "console=ttyS0" \
   --autostart \
   --boot uefi
Debian 12

Creating the VM

Create the Debian VM (Don't forget to replace [VM_NAME]): 
# If the os-variant "debian12" is unknown, try "debiantesting" instead
   virt-install \
   --name [VM_NAME] \
   --virt-type kvm \
   --location http://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/bookworm/main/installer-amd64/ \
   --os-variant debian12 \
   --disk size=32 \
   --memory 2048 \
   --graphics none \
   --console pty,target_type=serial \
   --extra-args "console=ttyS0" \
   --autostart \
   --boot uefi
3. Navigate through the text-based installer. Most options can remain as default, but here are some tips:
For the Ubuntu Server installer When asked about the "type of installation", you can leave the default "Ubuntu Server" without third-party drivers. You can leave the HTTP proxy information blank. In the "Profile Configuration" section, you can set "Your servers name" (hostname) to the same value as the name you gave to your VM (for example, "example1-com"). The installer will only let you create a non-root user. Note down the password you use here! You may skip enabling Ubuntu Pro. You can allow the partitioner to use the entire disk, this only uses the virtual disk that you defined above in step 2. You'll eventually be given the option to install additional software. Although "Nextcloud" is listed here, you almost certainly do not want to select this option, since you are setting up Nextcloud AIO. You'll be asked about installing "SSH server", this is entirely optional (This lets you easily SSH into the VM in the future in case you have to perform any maintenance, but even if you do not install an SSH server, you can still log in using the "virsh console" command). Finally, disregard the "[FAILED] Failed unmounting /cdrom." message, and press return.
For the Debian installer When asked, you can set the hostname to the same value as the name you gave to your VM (for example, "example1-com"). You can leave the domain name and HTTP proxy information blank. Allow the installer to create both a root and a non-root user. Note down the password(s) you use here! You can allow the partitioner to use the entire disk, this only uses the virtual disk that you defined above in step 2. When tasksel (Software selection) runs and asks if you want to install additional software, use spacebar and your arrow keys to un-check the "Debian desktop environment" and "GNOME" options. The "SSH server" option is entirely optional (This lets you easily SSH into the VM in the future in case you have to perform any maintenance, but even if you do not install an SSH server, you can still log in using the "virsh console" command). Make sure "standard system utilities" is also checked. Hit tab to select "Continue". Finally, disregard the warning about GRUB, allow it to install to your "primary drive" (again, it's only virtual, and this only applies to the VM- this will not affect the boot configuration of your host physical machine) and select "/dev/vda" for the bootable device.
4. Configure your new VM: After it has finished installing, the VM will have rebooted and presented you with a login prompt. For Debian, just use `root` as the username, and enter the password you chose during the installation process. Ubuntu restricts root account access, so you'll need to first login with your non-root user, and then run `sudo su -` to elevate your privileges. We will now run a few commands to install docker and AIO in reverse proxy mode! As with any other commands, carefully read and try your best to understand them before running them. **Each time you reach this step and run the `docker run` command below, you'll need to increment the `TALK_PORT` value. For example: 3478, 3479, etc... You may use other values as long as they don't conflict, and make sure they are [greater than 1024](https://github.com/nextcloud/all-in-one/discussions/2517). Be sure to note down the Talk port number you've assigned to this VM/AIO instance. You will need it later if you decide to enable Nextcloud Talk.** Run these commands (**on the VM**): ```shell apt install -y curl curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh # Make sure you increment the TALK_PORT value every time you run this! docker run \ --init \ --sig-proxy=false \ --name nextcloud-aio-mastercontainer \ --restart always \ --publish 8080:8080 \ --env APACHE_PORT=11000 \ --env APACHE_IP_BINDING=0.0.0.0 \ --env TALK_PORT=3478 \ --volume nextcloud_aio_mastercontainer:/mnt/docker-aio-config \ --volume /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro \ nextcloud/all-in-one:latest ``` The last command may take a few minutes. When it's finished, you should see a success message, saying "Initial startup of Nextcloud All-in-One complete!". Now exit the console session with `Ctrl + [c]`. This concludes the setup for this particular VM. --- 6. Go ahead and run through steps 1-4 again in order to set up your second VM. When you're finished, proceed down to step 6. *(Note: If you downloaded the Ubuntu .ISO image and no longer need it, you may delete it now.)* 7. Almost done! All that's left is configuring your reverse proxy. To do this, you first need to [install it](https://caddyserver.com/docs/install#debian-ubuntu-raspbian). Run (**on the host physical machine**): ```shell apt update -y apt install -y debian-keyring debian-archive-keyring apt-transport-https curl curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/gpg.key' | gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/caddy-stable-archive-keyring.gpg curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/debian.deb.txt' | tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/caddy-stable.list apt update -y apt install -y caddy ``` These commands will ensure that your system is up-to-date and install the latest stable version of Caddy via it's official binary source. 8. To configure Caddy, you need to know the IP address assigned to each VM. Run (**on the host physical machine**): ```shell virsh net-dhcp-leases default ``` This will show you the VMs you set up, and the IP address corresponding to each of them. Note down each IP and corresponding hostname. Finally, you will configure Caddy using this information. Open the default Caddyfile with a text editor: ```shell nano /etc/caddy/Caddyfile ``` Replace everything in this file with the following configuration. Don't forget to edit this sample configuration and substitute in your own domain names and IP addresses. `[DOMAIN_NAME_*]` should be a domain name like `example1.com`, and `[IP_ADDRESS_*]` should be a local IPv4 address like `192.168.122.225`. ```shell # Virtual machine #1 - "example1-com" https://[DOMAIN_NAME_1]:8443 { reverse_proxy https://[IP_ADDRESS_1]:8080 { transport http { tls_insecure_skip_verify } } } https://[DOMAIN_NAME_1]:443 { reverse_proxy [IP_ADDRESS_1]:11000 } # Virtual machine #2 - "example2-com" https://[DOMAIN_NAME_2]:8443 { reverse_proxy https://[IP_ADDRESS_2]:8080 { transport http { tls_insecure_skip_verify } } } https://[DOMAIN_NAME_2]:443 { reverse_proxy [IP_ADDRESS_2]:11000 } # (Add more configurations here if you set up more than two VMs!) ``` After making this change, you'll need to restart Caddy: ```shell systemctl restart caddy ``` 9. That's it! Now, all that's left is to set up your instances through the AIO interface as usual by visiting `https://example1.com:8443` and `https://example2.com:8443` in a browser. Once you're finished going through each setup, you can access your new instances simply through their domain names. You can host as many instances with as many domain names as you want this way, as long as you have enough system resources. Enjoy!
A few extra tips for managing this setup