How to Install and Configure EmDash CMS on Ubuntu 24.04

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EmDash is a modern, serverless CMS introduced by Cloudflare as a secure alternative to WordPress. It is built using Astro and runs plugins in sandboxed environments, improving security and performance.

Prerequisites

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• A VPS running Ubuntu 24.04
• Root or sudo access
• Minimum 2GB RAM recommended
• Basic knowledge of Linux commands
• Node.js v22+ required

Update the System

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sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Install Required Packages

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sudo apt install git curl -y

Install Node.js 22 (Required)

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curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_22.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install nodejs -y

Verify installation:

node -v
npm -v

Output:

v22.22.2
10.9.7

Install pnpm (Package Manager)

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npm install -g pnpm

Verify:

pnpm -v

Output:

10.33.0

Clone EmDash Repository

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git clone https://github.com/emdash-cms/emdash.git
cd emdash

Output:

Cloning into 'emdash'...
remote: Enumerating objects: 3041, done.
remote: Counting objects: 100% (324/324), done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (87/87), done.
remote: Total 3041 (delta 251), reused 237 (delta 237), pack-reused 2717 (from 1)
Receiving objects: 100% (3041/3041), 10.02 MiB | 41.53 MiB/s, done.
Resolving deltas: 100% (1106/1106), done.

Install Dependencies

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pnpm install

Output:

devDependencies:
+ @axe-core/playwright 4.11.1
+ @changesets/changelog-github 0.5.2
+ @changesets/cli 2.29.8
+ @e18e/eslint-plugin 0.2.0
+ @playwright/test 1.58.0
+ @types/node 24.10.13
+ @typescript/native-preview 7.0.0-dev.20260213.1
+ emdash 0.1.0 <- packages/core
+ knip 5.84.1
+ oxfmt 0.34.0
+ oxlint 1.49.0
+ oxlint-tsgolint 0.15.0
+ prettier 3.8.1
+ prettier-plugin-astro 0.14.1
+ typescript 6.0.0-beta

╭ Warning ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│                                                                              │
│   Ignored build scripts: @parcel/watcher@2.5.4, sharp@0.34.5.                │
│   Run "pnpm approve-builds" to pick which dependencies should be allowed     │
│   to run scripts.                                                            │
│                                                                              │
╰──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯
Done in 27.7s using pnpm v10.28.0

If prompted for build approvals:

pnpm approve-builds

Press:

a

Then press:

Enter

(This selects all required packages like sharp and @parcel/watcher)

Build the Project (Important)

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pnpm build

Configure Allowed Host (VERY IMPORTANT)

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Edit Astro config:

nano ~/emdash/demos/playground/astro.config.mjs

Replace or ensure the config contains:

import cloudflare from "@astrojs/cloudflare";
import react from "@astrojs/react";
import { playgroundDatabase } from "@emdash-cms/cloudflare";
import { defineConfig } from "astro/config";
import emdash from "emdash/astro";

export default defineConfig({
        output: "server",
        adapter: cloudflare(),

        server: {
                host: true,
                allowedHosts: ["emdash.domain.com"]
        },

        image: {
                layout: "constrained",
                responsiveStyles: true,
        },

        integrations: [
                react(),
                emdash({
                        database: playgroundDatabase({ binding: "PLAYGROUND_DB" }),
                        playground: {
                                middlewareEntrypoint: "@emdash-cms/cloudflare/db/playground-middleware",
                        },
                }),
        ],

        devToolbar: { enabled: false },
});

👉 This fixes:

Blocked request. This host is not allowed

Run EmDash Playground

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cd demos/playground
pnpm dev --host

Access EmDash

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Open in your browser:

Main App:

http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:4321/playground

Admin Panel:

http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:4321/_emdash/admin

Setup Nginx Reverse Proxy (Domain Access)

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Install Nginx:

sudo apt install nginx -y

Create a new config file:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/emdash

Add the following configuration:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name emdash.domain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:4321;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;

        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }
}

Enable the site:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/emdash /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Test configuration:

sudo nginx -t

Output:

nginx: the configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf syntax is ok
nginx: configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf test is successful

Restart Nginx:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Update DNS

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Create an A record:

Host: emdash
Type: A
Value:YOUR_SERVER_IP

Wait for DNS propagation.

Access via Domain

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Now open:

http://emdash.domain.com

Admin Panel:

http://emdash.domain.com/_emdash/admin

You should see the service listening on port 4321

Notes

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• EmDash runs on Astro framework
• Default port: 4321
• Uses Cloudflare adapter
• The main repo is a monorepo — use demos/playground
• This is currently beta software

Troubleshooting

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Node version error

node -v

Ensure version is 22+

Port not accessible

pnpm dev --host

Reinstall dependencies

rm -rf node_modules
pnpm install

Build issues

pnpm build

Conclusion

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EmDash can be successfully installed on Ubuntu 24.04 using Node.js 22 and pnpm.
Due to its monorepo structure, additional build steps are required before running the demo environment.