Installation and Initial Setup

This section guides you through the installation and initial setup of InternalBooks.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following prerequisites:

  • A server or local machine (Should meet the system requirements for Docker).

  • An active local network connection.

  • An active internet connection (for first-time setup and activation).

Installation

To install InternalBooks, follow these steps:

  1. Install Docker

Ensure Docker is installed in your machine. For more information on how to install Docker, refer to the Docker installation guide.

  1. Download InternalBooks

You can download the latest version of InternalBooks with the InternalBooks Installer after accepting the EULA.

  1. Extract the downloaded files

Extract the contents of the downloaded archive to a directory of your choice.

  1. Edit the docker-compose.yml file

InternalBooks uses a docker-compose.yml file that is already configured for a basic setup. If you need to customize the configuration, you can edit the docker-compose.yml file located in the root directory of the InternalBooks project.

By default, InternalBooks runs on port 80. You can change this by editing the docker-compose.yml file.

  1. Open the docker-compose.yml file in a text editor.

  2. Locate the following line:

ports:
    - "80:80"

  1. Change the port number as needed. For example, to run InternalBooks on port 8080, change it to:

ports:
    - "8080:80"

Note

The first number is the port on the host machine, and the second number is the port inside the container.

Caution

Modifying the port inside the container (the second number) is not recommended, as it may cause issues with the application. Always change the first number to avoid conflicts with other services.

  1. Save the file.

  2. Restart the Docker container (if it’s already running) to apply the changes.

  1. Install InternalBooks using install.bat

You can install InternalBooks by running the install.bat script. This script will set up the necessary Docker containers and configurations.

Note

Docker must be running before you execute the install.bat script.

  • Navigate to the directory where you have downloaded InternalBooks.

  • Open a terminal or command prompt.

  • Run the following command:

./install.bat

Note

Or just double-click the install.bat file in Windows Explorer.

Successful execution of the script will display your IP address on which InternalBooks is running.

  1. Access InternalBooks

Once the installation is complete, you can access InternalBooks by opening a web browser and navigating to:

http://<your-ip-address>:<port>

Tip

If the port is left as default (80), you can simply use:

http://<your-ip-address>

Tip

Setting a static IP address for your server can help ensure that the IP address does not change, making it easier to access InternalBooks consistently. You can set a static IP address in your router’s DHCP settings.

Tip

Setting up a local DNS entry can make it easier to access InternalBooks. For example, you can set up an entry like internalbooks.local that points to your server’s IP address. This way, you can access InternalBooks using http://internalbooks.local:<port> instead of the IP address.

Initial Setup

Accessing InternalBooks will take you to a login page. The default credentials are:

  • Username: admin

  • Password: password

Important

Change the default password immediately after logging in for security reasons.

Attention

When starting InternalBooks for the first time, if it throws an Internal Server Error, you may need to restart the Docker container. Run the stop command first, then the start command.