Getting Started

Automad is a PHP application that runs on most standard web servers. The system requirements are intentionally minimal, and you can choose between several installation options depending on your setup. Alternatively you can also try out a live demo first.

System Requirements

Before installing Automad, make sure your environment meets the following requirements. Automad is designed to work smoothly even in simple setups, so these requirements are intentionally minimal while still allowing for flexible development and production environments.

Supported Web Servers

Even though Automad can operate with PHP’s built-in web server and does not strictly require a full production-ready server, one of the following web servers is recommended for production:

Installation

Automad can be installed in several ways, depending on your environment and intended use. Whether you are setting up a local development environment or deploying Automad in production, choose the installation method that best fits your needs.

Docker

Use Docker for a fast, self-contained setup that behaves the same across environments. This option is well suited for development, testing, and reproducible deployments as well as production. The official Docker images ship with a fully configured web server as well as PHP out of the box.

Running a Container

The following command makes your site available on port 80 and mounts a local ./app directory for data persistence. A new user account for the Automad dashboard is created automatically.

docker run -dp 80:80 \
  -v ./app:/app \ 
  -e UID=$(id -u) \
  --name mysite \
  automad/automad

The account credentials are written to the container logs, which you can view using the following command:

docker logs mysite

Docker Compose

As an alternative to the docker run command, the following docker-compose.yml file can be used to achieve the same configuration.

services:
  app:
    container_name: automad
    image: automad/automad:latest
    environment:
      UID: 1000 # your host UID
    ports:
      - 80:80
    volumes:
      - ./app:/app

Use docker compose up -d to start the app. As with the docker run method, a user account for the Automad dashboard is created automatically, and the account credentials can be viewed in the container logs. 

The source code for the official Docker images can be found here:

Composer

If your environment already includes a web server or you want to use PHP's built-in server, deploying Automad via Composer is likely the fastest option. The following command will installed the latest version inside the current working directory.

composer create-project automad/automad . v2.x-dev

The first user account is created automatically, and the credentials are displayed in the terminal during installation. To ensure Automad functions correctly, make sure PHP has write permissions for the installation directory and all its subdirectories.

Once permissions are set, you can navigate to the /dashboard route and log in using the credentials shown during installation.

Manual

If you don’t have access to Docker or Composer, you can still set up Automad manually by following the steps outlined here. The manual installation requires a working web server or alternatively the usage of PHP's built-in server.

Post-Install Configuration

After installation is complete, sign in to the dashboard at /dashboard using the credentials that were created during the installation process. Once logged in, follow the setup wizard to complete your system configuration. This includes setting up email for transactional messages and configuring your preferred AI provider. These steps ensure that Automad is fully configured and ready for use.

Nginx

Automad comes with a pre-configured .htaccess file for Apache and LiteSpeed servers that handles URL rewriting automatically. If you’re using Nginx, simply edit your nginx.conf file and add a server block based on the following example to the http section in order to enable URL rewriting:

server {
  root   /path/to/automad;
  index  index.php index.html;
  
  location / {
    try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php$is_args$args;
  }
  
  location ~ \.php$ {
    fastcgi_pass   127.0.0.1:9000;
    fastcgi_index  index.php;
    fastcgi_param  SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
    include        fastcgi_params;
  }
}

PHP Web Server

You can also run Automad without installing a full production web server by using PHP’s built-in web server instead. Run the following command from the Automad root directory:

php -S localhost:8000

Coming from Version 1

Version 2 is a major release that introduces breaking changes to page content. To upgrade your existing site, please follow the steps outlined here to migrate your content to Automad 2. The migration process will attempt to automatically convert your Version 1 site into a fresh Version 2 installation, including pages, files, shared settings, and other data.

The new block editor in Version 2 introduces changes in block formatting and image handling. As a result, not every detail of your blocks can be converted automatically. After migration, some manual adjustments will likely be necessary to ensure all blocks display correctly.

Next Steps

After installation, you may want to continue with the following steps: