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diff --git a/_posts/2021-02-02-self-hosting-fathom.md b/_posts/2021-02-02-self-hosting-fathom.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d434ab6 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2021-02-02-self-hosting-fathom.md @@ -0,0 +1,107 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Self-Hosting Fathom Analytics with DigitalOcean" +date: 2021-02-02 +--- + + +Since my previous post walked through the process of setting up <a href="/fathom-analytics-netlify">Fathom PRO on Netlify</a>, I figured it made sense to create a similar tutorial for the "Lite" variation, self-hosted on DigitalOcean. + +Please note that while I think the PRO version of <a target="_blank" href="https://usefathom.com/ref/DKHJVX">Fathom Analytics</a> is truly great, for my small, niche blog it seemed overkill compared to self-hosting. Switching over from $14/mo to $5/mo while retaining most of the same functionality was a no-brainer. Choose the option that best suits your needs (or in the case - budget & bandwidth). + +With that cleared up - let's get into it! + +## Prerequisites + +1. One or more website(s) where you would like to include analytics +2. <a target="_blank" href="https://m.do.co/c/74b3fd11c07a">DigitalOcean account</a> (**this link will give you a $100 credit!**) +3. Positive attitude and passion for privacy-respecting analytics! + +## Create a Droplet + +Once your DigitalOcean account is setup, navigate to the <a target="_blank" href="https://marketplace.digitalocean.com">Marketplace</a> and search for `Fathom Analytics`. Then click the `Create Fathom Analytics Droplet`. + +From here you'll be brought to a page that allows you to customize the specifications of your new droplet. If you're a smaller traffic site (personal blog, etc) selecting the **$5/month** Basic Shared CPU option is your best bet. + +<figure> + <img src="/public/images/fathom-create-droplet-details.webp" alt="Fathom Droplet Details"> + <figcaption>Creating the new droplet (<a href="/public/images/fathom-create-droplet-details.webp">direct link to image</a>)</figcaption> +</figure> + +Select the data-center region based on where most of your traffic originates from. I would suggest enabling `IPv6` and setting up your authentication via SSH instead of a regular password system. Adding backups is entirely at your own discretion. + +Once you're ready, click **Create Droplet**. + +## Enter the Matrix (not really) + +Once DigitalOcean finishes spinning up your new droplet, open a terminal and connect to it by entering: + + + ssh root@YOUR_DROPLET_IP + + +If you setup your login via SSH everything should work as-is. If you went the password route, you'll given a prompt to enter it. + +Now that you're connected, Fathom will guide you through a simple configuration setup. It's fairly straightforward and painless. Once complete, move to the next step. + +## Domains + +You'll most likely want to host this instance on your own domain or subdomain - instead of connecting directly via the droplet's `IP`. Head over to your **Networking** page in the sidebar of DigitalOcean and add your custom domain. + +Then, click on that newly added domain - we need to add some new records. You're going to add two new `A` records to this domain: + +<table> + <thead> + <tr> + <th>Type</th> + <th>Hostname</th> + <th>Value</th> + </tr> + </thead> + <tbody> + <tr> + <td>A</td> + <td>@</td> + <td>YOUR_DROPLET_IP</td> + </tr> + <tr> + <td>A</td> + <td>www</td> + <td>YOUR_DROPLET_IP</td> + </tr> + </tbody> +</table> + +The last thing you need to do is set your nameservers to point to DigitalOcean: + + + ns1.digitalocean.com + ns2.digitalocean.com + ns3.digitalocean.com + + +Give it some time to propagate and you'll be in business! + +## SSL FTW + +There is hardly a good reason not to practice security on the web, so setting up your new analytics to be served over `HTTPS` is just the smart thing to do. Did I mention that this is completely free as well? See - no excuses. + +In order to get a free SSL certificate setup, you'll need to install `certbot`. While connected to your droplet, enter the following: + + + sudo apt-get install python-certbot-nginx + + +Once installed, enter the following to setup SSL (remember to swap out the domain with your own): + + + certbot --nginx -d your-cool-domain.com + + +Follow the steps (it's very quick and easy) and you'll have `HTTPS` setup in a jiffy! + +## The Final Lap + +The last thing to do is login to your newly self-hosted Fathom instance, add your site you wish to track, grab the generated tracking code and then slap that badboy on whatever pages you need to track! + +Congrats! You're now officially running your own set of analytics tools. You should be happy about what you've accomplished and proud for respecting your users' privacy! |