In this blog post we will show you how to install ejabberd on Amazon Linux 2023. ejabberd is an open-source, distributed and fault-tolerant solution that enables you to create large-scale instant messaging applications. The ejabberd server is capable of reliably supporting thousands of simultaneous users on a single node without failure.
Some of the key features provided by ejabberd are:
- Cross-platform: ejabberd runs on Unix-derived systems such as Linux, FreeBSD, NetBSD and Windows systems.
- Fault-tolerant: Ejabberd can be deployed across a number of machines with replication to ensure there is high availability.
- Distributed Architecture: You can run ejabberd on a cluster of machines and all of them will serve the same XMPP domain(s). Additional nodes can be added on the fly.
- Administrator-friendly: The solution is ready to run out of the box without a need for external database or web server.
- Internationalized: It is translated to 25 languages and has support for IDNA.
- Open Standards: ejabberd is an open-source XMPP server that fully comply with the XMPP standard
- Modularity: Load only the modules you want and extend its functions with your own custom modules
- Authentication: Provides Internal authentication and well as integration to PAM, LDAP and ODBC.
When compiling ejabberd from source code you’ll need:
- GNU Make.
- GCC.
- Libexpat ≥ 1.95.
- Libyaml ≥ 0.1.4.
- Erlang/OTP ≥ 19.3.
- OpenSSL ≥ 1.0.0.
- Zlib ≥ 1.2.3, for Stream Compression support (XEP-0138). Optional.
- PAM library. Optional. For Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM).
- ImageMagick’s Convert program and Ghostscript fonts. Optional. For CAPTCHA challenges
Step 1: Update System
Ensure the packages in your system are updated. We love working on upgraded system.
sudo yum -y updateOnce updated perform a reboot.
sudo rebootStep 2: Download ejabberd RPM Package
Install Development tools on Amazon Linux 2023 server:
sudo yum groupinstall -y "Development Tools"Ejabberd package is provided from RPM based Linux operating systems. When installing from the package it will check dependencies and performs basic configuration tasks like creating the initial administrator account.
EJ_VERSION=25.04
wget https://static.process-one.net/ejabberd/downloads/${EJ_VERSION}/ejabberd-${EJ_VERSION}-1.x86_64.rpmStep 3: Install ejabberd on Amazon Linux 2023
Now that the package has been downloaded let’s install it using the following commands:
sudo yum localinstall ejabberd-${EJ_VERSION}-1.x86_64.rpmAccept installation prompt:
The init script is placed in /etc/init.d directory:
$ ls /etc/init.d/ejabberd
/etc/init.d/ejabberdEjabberd application directory is:
$ ls /opt/ejabberd
conf database logsStep 4: Start ejabberd systemd service
Copy systemd unit file of ejabberd to /etc/systemd/system directory:
sudo cp $(sudo find / -name ejabberd.service) /etc/systemd/systemReload systemd:
sudo systemctl daemon-reloadStart the service and enable it to start on boot:
sudo systemctl start ejabberd
sudo systemctl enable ejabberdCheck to confirm the service was started successfully.
Step 5: Add ejabberdctl command to your PATH
Locate ejabberdctl binary file:
$ sudo find / -name ejabberdctl
/usr/sbin/ejabberdctl
/opt/ejabberd-25.04/bin/ejabberdctlAdd the path of to your ~/.bashrc file.
sudo vim ~/.bashrcUpdate PATH:
export PATH=$PATH:/opt/ejabberd-25.04/bin/ejabberdctlSource your bashrc file to update settings.
source ~/.bashrcStep 6: Add an Admin user to Ejabberd
Once Ejabberd is installed and configured you’ll need to add an initial admin user for administrative purposes.
# ejabberdctl register myadmin "Amazon-Linux-2023.local" "StrongAdminPassword"Where:
- myadmin – Is the name of the admin user to be created
- StrongAdminPassword is the password for the myadmin user created.
- Amazon-Linux-2023.local is the hostname of the server, replace it with your own.
Expected command execution output:
You can now edit the ejabberd configuration file and give the user we just added administration rights to the XMPP account.
The user syntax is:
"username@servername"Get your machine hostname:
$ hostname
Amazon-Linux-2023.localEdit ejabberd configuration acl section:
sudo vi /opt/ejabberd/conf/ejabberd.yml
Restart the ejabberd service after making the changes:
sudo systemctl restart ejabberdStep 7: Access ejabberd Web Admin
Ejabberd admin console can be accessed on below URL:
http://[server_ip_address_or_hostname]:5280/admin/Login with the username and password as created earlier.
- Username: username@server_hostname
- Password: your_password
On successful authentication you’ll be presented with Ejabberd admin console.
Read through Ejabberd documentation to get detailed how-to guides which are fit for both newbies and experienced XMPP users.
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