Installation guide

Requirements

PHP 8.2 or newer
MySQL 5.7+ / MariaDB 10.3+ or SQLite 3
Apache with mod_rewrite (cPanel, XAMPP) or Nginx
PHP extensions: pdo, curl, openssl, mbstring, fileinfo, xml, gd, zip
Outgoing HTTPS (license check and reading link details)

Composer and SSH are not needed — the zip includes every library.

Install on cPanel / shared hosting

In cPanel › MySQL Databases, create a database and a user, then add the user to the database with All privileges.
Download the latest zip from your client area.
In File Manager, upload the zip to public_html (or a sub-folder such as public_html/groups) and extract it. You do not need to change the document root.
Open the address in your browser. The installer checks the requirements, asks for the database, your site name, admin account, the extensions you want and whether to add sample links, and installs everything.

Install on XAMPP / WAMP / Laragon

Copy the extracted folder into htdocs, start Apache and MySQL and open http://localhost/wagroups/. XAMPP's database defaults are host 127.0.0.1, user root and an empty password. The license works on localhost for testing.

Activate the license

The installer's last step asks for your license code and your name. Find the code under My licenses or in the email sent after payment. The license is checked online once and re-checked every 7 days; if the license server cannot be reached, WAGroups keeps working and tries again the next day. Admin › License shows the status at any time.

Cron job (optional)

WAGroups works without cron. To keep link health up to date (expired invites hidden, member counts refreshed), add one hourly cron job (cPanel › Cron Jobs):

0 * * * * php /home/USER/public_html/artisan links:check --limit=50 >> /dev/null 2>&1

Without cron, press Check next batch under Admin › Link health from time to time.

First steps after installing

Notification settings › Email setup — enter SMTP details and send a test email (email goes to the log file until you do).
Directory settings › Submissions — accepted link types, guests or members only, auto-approve, daily limits and blocked words.
Categories — edit the starter categories or add your own, with icons, page text and SEO titles.
Homepage sections — reorder the search banner, link types, featured, categories and trending sections.
Extension manager — switch on reviews, featured listings, ads, the public API and the rest.
Links — remove the sample links with one click and approve your first real submissions.

Updating to a new version

Back up your files and database.
Download the new zip and upload every file over the old ones, except .env and the storage and public/uploads folders.
If the changelog mentions database changes, run php artisan migrate --force (cPanel › Terminal), then php artisan license:reseal.
Open the admin panel and check Admin › License — press Verify now if it asks.

See the changelog for what changed in each version.

Moving to another domain

Open the license under My licenses and use Move to another domain, or reset the old installation. Then install on the new domain with the same code.

Troubleshooting

Blank page or error 500: Select PHP 8.2+ for the domain and make storage and bootstrap/cache writable. Details are in storage/logs/laravel.log.
Pages other than the home page show 404: Turn on mod_rewrite and make sure the hidden .htaccess files were uploaded.
"License cannot be verified": Allow outgoing HTTPS and enable curl. Check that you entered the code exactly, and reset the old installation if you moved domains.
Names and pictures are not fetched: Allow outgoing HTTPS and enable curl. If a platform changes its preview page, submitters can still type the name themselves.

Still stuck? Open a support ticket — Monday to Saturday, 10:00 – 19:00 IST.