To install Codiad on Nginx, deploy a pinned copy of the archived application, point Nginx at the directory containing index.php, and set fastcgi_pass to the exact listener used by your PHP-FPM pool. Most failures come from a wrong PHP-FPM socket, an incorrect document root, or write permissions missing from Codiad’s configuration, data, or workspace directories.
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What you are installing—and the security decision you must make first
Codiad is a browser-based cloud IDE that stores settings and project data on the server. Its upstream GitHub repository was archived on September 8, 2023 and says the project is no longer under active maintenance by core contributors. The repository identifies October 26, 2013 as the latest stable release. A captured page showed about 2.8k stars and 690 forks on October 15, 2026; those counters change and are not a measure of current support or security.
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That status does not prevent a controlled installation, but it changes the way you should deploy it. Pin the exact release or reviewed repository snapshot, inspect the source before exposing it, restrict who can reach the site, use HTTPS, and maintain backups of both the application configuration and workspace. Do not put an unreviewed copy on an internet-facing server simply because the installer is short.
The historical Ubuntu instructions use PHP 5 package names and a socket called /var/run/php5-fpm.sock. Those names are obsolete on many supported distributions. Use the PHP version supplied by your operating system and read the active PHP-FPM pool configuration instead of copying an old socket path.
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Prerequisites
- A Linux host where you can install and manage Nginx and PHP-FPM. A local server is suitable for a private development network; a Linux VPS is useful when the IDE must be reachable remotely.
- Nginx, a supported PHP-FPM package, and every PHP extension required by the Codiad revision you selected. Historical recipes also installed MySQL and a PHP MySQL extension, but requirements depend on the revision and distribution.
- Shell access with privileges to install packages, create
/var/wwwdirectories, manage services, and edit Nginx site configuration. - A DNS name or test hostname if you will use HTTPS or a virtual host. Restrict access with a firewall or an upstream authentication layer while you evaluate the old codebase.
- A backup destination for the Codiad directory, configuration files, data, and workspace. Codiad’s historical documentation describes data as JSON-formatted PHP files and the workspace as the location for project files, so losing those paths can mean losing the projects themselves.
Choose how the site will be exposed
Make this decision before writing the server block. Codiad behaves most predictably when it is the document root of its own virtual host.
| Choice | Advantages | Risks and checks |
|---|---|---|
| Dedicated web root | Simple URLs, fewer rewrite surprises, and a direct mapping between the Nginx root and Codiad’s index.php. |
Every request to that hostname reaches Codiad, so protect the hostname and enable HTTPS. |
Subdirectory such as /codiad |
Allows another application to use the same hostname. | Older paths and asset URLs may assume the application is at /. Test login, JavaScript, CSS, and project creation after every change. |
| Unix-socket PHP-FPM transport | Efficient for Nginx and PHP-FPM on the same host; the socket is not exposed on a network port. | The path and permissions must exactly match the pool’s listen setting. |
| TCP PHP-FPM transport | Useful when Nginx and PHP-FPM are separated or when your distribution already provides a TCP listener. | Both sides must use the same address and port, and the listener must be protected from unintended network access. |
| Pinned archived release | Reproducible deployment with a known source tree. | You inherit old dependencies and unfixed vulnerabilities; review and isolate the application. |
| Reviewed fork or snapshot | May contain compatibility or security fixes. | Confirm exactly which changes are present and keep the commit identifier in your deployment notes. |
Install Nginx, PHP-FPM, and required extensions
Use your distribution’s supported package names. The following is a process rather than a universal package list:
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →- Refresh the package index and install Nginx, PHP-FPM, and the extensions required by the Codiad revision. On one historical Ubuntu recipe the packages were Nginx, MySQL,
php5-fpm, andphp5-mysql; do not install those obsolete PHP 5 packages on a current system merely because they appear in an old tutorial. - Start PHP-FPM and Nginx, and configure them to start at boot. Service names commonly include the PHP version, so use the name your package manager installed.
- Record the PHP-FPM pool file and its
listenvalue. You will use that value verbatim in Nginx. - Check the PHP command-line version and the loaded modules. A command-line PHP binary and PHP-FPM can use different configuration files, so treat the FPM pool and its logs as authoritative for web requests.
For example, after installation you might inspect services with systemctl status nginx and the version-specific PHP-FPM service, then list pool listeners under /etc/php/*/fpm/pool.d/. The exact directory differs by distribution.
Download and pin the Codiad source
- Select a release or repository commit that you have reviewed. Save the version or commit identifier in your deployment notes.
- Download the archive through your normal trusted package or source process and verify its checksum when one is available.
- Unpack it into a dedicated directory such as
/var/www/codiad. The historical installation used Codiad v2.7.4 at that path. - Confirm that the directory contains Codiad’s
index.php. Ifindex.phpis nested one level deeper, either move the contents or set Nginx’srootto the nested directory; a root that points above it will produce missing files and fallback loops.
Do not continuously track an unreviewed branch on an archived project. If you later change the source, record the new identifier and repeat your compatibility and security review.
Set ownership and the writable paths
PHP-FPM must be able to read the application and write the paths Codiad uses for configuration, data, and the workspace. The historical Ubuntu instructions created config.php and assigned ownership recursively to www-data. Other distributions run Nginx and PHP-FPM as nginx, www-data, or another account, so discover the actual pool user before changing ownership.
- Read the PHP-FPM pool’s
userandgroupdirectives, or inspect the running worker process, to identify the service account. - Create the application directory and copy the pinned source into it.
- Create
config.phpif the selected revision expects that file. Follow the revision’s sample configuration rather than inventing database or path values. - Give the PHP-FPM account read access to the application and write access only to the configuration, data, and workspace paths that Codiad actually changes.
- Use the historical recursive ownership approach only as an initial compatibility measure. Once the installer works, reduce write access on code and static assets so a compromised request cannot modify the whole application tree.
A baseline command on a system that uses www-data would look like sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/codiad. Replace the account and path with the values on your host; copying that command blindly is a common cause of permission failures on distributions that use another user.
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The PHP-FPM pool’s listen directive is the source of truth. It may be a Unix socket such as /run/php/php8.3-fpm.sock, an older versioned path, or a TCP address such as 127.0.0.1:9000.
- Open the active pool file and locate the uncommented
listen = ...line. - If it names a Unix socket, verify that the socket exists after PHP-FPM starts and note its owner, group, and mode.
- If it names a TCP address, confirm that PHP-FPM is listening on that address and port and that a firewall does not expose it beyond the intended host.
- Use exactly the same value in Nginx. For a Unix socket, prepend
unix:infastcgi_pass; do not add that prefix to a TCP address.
Nginx and PHP-FPM do not negotiate a socket path. A one-character mismatch sends Nginx to a nonexistent listener and normally results in 502 Bad Gateway.
Create the Nginx server block
Use a dedicated virtual host. This pattern follows the normal PHP front-controller arrangement: existing files and directories are served directly, while other requests fall back to Codiad’s index.php.
server {
listen 80;
server_name codiad.example.com;
root /var/www/codiad;
index index.php index.html;
location / {
try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php$is_args$args;
}
location ~ [.]php$ {
include fastcgi_params;
fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php/php8.3-fpm.sock;
}
}Replace the hostname, root, PHP version, and listener with your values. If the pool uses TCP, the last line would instead resemble fastcgi_pass 127.0.0.1:9000;. The important rule is not the example version; it is that Nginx’s value must equal the pool’s listen value.
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Keep the PHP location enabled and retain the FastCGI parameter include. Without the PHP location, Nginx may serve PHP source as text or offer it as a download. Without SCRIPT_FILENAME, PHP-FPM may receive an incorrect filesystem path. Ensure the global Nginx configuration includes the standard MIME types so CSS and JavaScript receive appropriate content types.
Do not add broad rewrite rules or extra nested PHP locations until the basic site works. Custom location ordering can intercept static files or send asset requests into an unintended handler.
Enable, validate, and reload the site
- Place the server block in the site directory used by your distribution and enable it using that distribution’s normal symlink or include mechanism.
- Run
sudo nginx -t. Fix every syntax or include error before reloading. - Reload Nginx after a successful test. Restart PHP-FPM only when you changed its pool, PHP configuration, or listener; otherwise a reload is usually sufficient.
- Open the hostname in a browser and watch the Nginx error log and PHP-FPM log in separate terminals while testing.
- Complete Codiad’s initial setup by choosing the administrator username and password and creating the first project. Use a unique password and do not reuse an administrative credential from another service.
Once the HTTP path works, place the site behind HTTPS and test again. A hostname or scheme mismatch can make sessions appear to fail even when PHP itself is functioning.
Permissions that work without making the whole server writable
Codiad needs write access, but giving the web account unrestricted ownership forever increases the impact of a vulnerable plugin or request. Start by identifying the exact files and directories the selected revision writes. Configuration, JSON data, and workspace files commonly need write access; source code, libraries, and static assets normally need only read access after installation.
- Keep the application outside unrelated web roots and avoid sharing its writable workspace with another virtual host.
- Use the PHP-FPM service account, not an assumed account name, when setting owner and group.
- Test each writable path by creating a project and changing a setting in the browser, then remove unnecessary write permission from code directories.
- Do not respond to an error with a blanket
chmod -R 777. That hides the real path or account problem and makes a compromise easier. - Back up the configuration, data, and workspace with permissions preserved, and test restoring a small project before relying on the backup.
Fixing common installation errors
502 Bad Gateway
A 502 means Nginx could not obtain a valid response from PHP-FPM. The most frequent cause is a listener mismatch, and official Nginx guidance describes that mismatch as a direct cause of 502 errors.
- Check the PHP-FPM service status and confirm it is running.
- Open the active pool file and copy its uncommented
listen = ...value. - Compare it character by character with Nginx’s
fastcgi_pass. Addunix:only when the listener is a Unix socket. - For a Unix socket, check that the socket exists and that the Nginx worker can connect to it. Correct the socket owner, group, or mode in the PHP-FPM pool configuration if necessary.
- For TCP, verify that PHP-FPM is listening on the specified address and port and that Nginx is connecting to the same host.
- Run
nginx -t, restart or reload PHP-FPM after changing its pool, and reload Nginx. - Read both error logs if the 502 remains. A missing socket, a refused TCP connection, and a PHP-FPM crash produce different messages and require different fixes.
Do not “fix” a 502 by changing the socket to a guessed version. Find the active pool’s listener first.
PHP source is downloaded or displayed as text
This means the request is not reaching PHP-FPM. Confirm that the PHP location block is enabled for the server you are visiting, that it contains include fastcgi_params, that SCRIPT_FILENAME is set, and that fastcgi_pass points to a live listener. Test the configuration with nginx -t before reloading. Also check that another earlier server block is not answering the hostname.
JavaScript or CSS returns 404 and the interface is broken
First confirm that the requested file exists beneath the configured root. If it does, inspect location-block ordering and MIME configuration. A custom regex location can intercept static assets, while an incorrect root or a subdirectory deployment can generate URLs that do not map to the files on disk.
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- Request that URL directly and compare it with the path beneath
/var/www/codiad(or your chosen root). - Remove experimental rewrites and keep the simple
try_filesfallback until assets load. - Ensure the Nginx configuration includes its standard MIME types so CSS and JavaScript are served with the expected content types.
- Reload Nginx after each configuration change and clear a stale browser cache only after confirming the server response.
Permission denied, a blank setup page, or failed writes
Identify the exact path in the Nginx or PHP-FPM log, then check that path’s owner, group, and mode. The account running PHP-FPM must be able to traverse every parent directory, read the application, and write the configuration, data, and workspace paths required by the revision. A directory can be writable while one parent directory blocks traversal.
Confirm that you created config.php when the selected revision expects it. If a recursive ownership change made the installer work, narrow the writable area afterward instead of leaving the entire source tree writable. A blank page can also indicate a PHP fatal error; inspect the PHP-FPM log and the configured PHP error log rather than guessing at permissions.
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Wrong document root or a redirect/fallback loop
The Nginx root must be the directory that actually contains Codiad’s index.php. If it points one level too high, static files return 404 and the fallback may repeatedly route to a nonexistent script. Verify the filesystem path, then use try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php$is_args$args; only in the intended Codiad server block. Remove duplicate server blocks for the same hostname while testing so you know which root is answering.
Login, cookie, or session problems
Check that the browser reaches the intended hostname and scheme, especially after adding HTTPS or a reverse proxy. Inspect Nginx and PHP-FPM logs, and verify that PHP’s session storage is writable by the PHP-FPM account. Do not broaden permissions recursively as a first response; identify the session directory and service account involved. Testing in a private browser window can distinguish a stale cookie from a server-side failure.
Nginx reload fails after an edit
Run nginx -t and read the reported file and line number. Common causes are a missing semicolon, a brace copied incorrectly, an invalid socket path containing an unescaped character, or an include file that does not exist on your distribution. Fix the syntax, test again, and only then reload. The previous configuration remains active when a reload is rejected, so confirm which version is serving requests before continuing.
Unix socket versus TCP: which should you use?
Both transports work when Nginx and PHP-FPM are configured consistently. For a single host, a Unix socket is usually the simplest restricted path; TCP is appropriate when the architecture requires it.
| Factor | Unix socket | TCP listener |
|---|---|---|
| Nginx value | fastcgi_pass unix:/path/to/pool.sock; |
fastcgi_pass 127.0.0.1:port; or the configured address |
| Main failure mode | Socket absent or inaccessible, commonly producing 502 | Wrong address or port, refused connection, or unintended network exposure |
| Best fit | Nginx and PHP-FPM on the same server | Separate hosts, containers, or an existing managed listener |
| Security check | Socket owner, group, and mode permit Nginx to connect | Bind to the required interface and firewall the port |
Web root, subdirectory, local server, or VPS?
Dedicated hostname versus subdirectory
A dedicated hostname keeps the root, asset URLs, and fallback rules straightforward. A subdirectory can coexist with another application, but older Codiad code may generate root-relative links. If you choose a subdirectory, test the login page, editor scripts, stylesheets, project creation, and every navigation link rather than assuming a rewrite alone is sufficient.
Local server versus VPS
A local server limits exposure and is the safer place to evaluate an archived application. A VPS provides remote access but requires firewall rules, regular operating-system updates, HTTPS, log monitoring, and a backup plan. A hosting provider does not remove the need to review Codiad’s source or restrict its administrative interface.
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- Keep Codiad behind HTTPS and restrict the administrative hostname or source IPs where possible.
- Pin the deployed source and keep a copy of the exact archive or commit used.
- Review plugins and extensions before enabling them; an archived core does not guarantee that third-party code is safe.
- Update the operating system, Nginx, PHP, and PHP-FPM through supported repositories even though Codiad itself is old.
- Monitor Nginx and PHP-FPM logs for repeated authentication failures, unexpected PHP errors, and requests for files outside the application.
- Back up configuration, JSON data, and workspace files separately from the operating-system image, and periodically perform a restore test.
- When you no longer need the service, disable the Nginx site and remove its writable credentials and backups from publicly reachable locations.
Final verification checklist
- The pinned Codiad source is in the directory named by Nginx’s
root, and that directory containsindex.php. - The expected
config.php, data, and workspace paths exist. - The PHP-FPM account can read the application and write only the paths Codiad requires.
- The active pool’s
listenvalue exactly matches Nginx’sfastcgi_pass. sudo nginx -tsucceeds before every reload.- The browser can load CSS and JavaScript without 404 responses.
- The administrator can log in, create a project, edit a file, and save it.
- HTTPS, access restrictions, logging, and tested backups are in place before public exposure.
With those checks complete, the installation is technically sound, but it remains a deployment of unmaintained software. Treat the pinned source, narrow permissions, restricted access, and tested backups as part of the installation—not optional follow-up work.
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