How to deploy multiple AnQiCMS instances on the same server?

As an experienced website operations expert, I know that efficiently and flexibly managing multiple website instances is one of the keys to the success of enterprises or individual webmasters in an increasingly complex network environment.AnQiCMS, with its efficient architecture based on the Go language and powerful multi-site management capabilities, provides an excellent solution to this requirement.When we need to deploy multiple AnQiCMS instances on the same server, we actually have several different strategies to choose from, each with its own focus to adapt to different business scenarios.

Efficiently deploy multiple AnQiCMS instances on the same server

In the practice of website operation, we often encounter such needs: it may be necessary to build independent websites for different brands, different product lines, or even different customers, while hoping that these websites can run efficiently and stably on the same physical server.AnQiCMS as a CMS designed for multi-site management offers very flexible and powerful deployment options.This is not just simple copy and paste, but also involves multiple dimensions such as resource optimization, management efficiency, and system stability.

We will explore the two main strategies for deploying multiple AnQiCMS instances on the same server, and analyze the applicable scenarios and specific implementation ideas.

Strategy one: Utilizing the built-in multi-site management feature of AnQiCMS

One of AnQiCMS's core strengths is its 'multi-site management' feature.This means you do not need to deploy multiple independent AnQiCMS applications on the server, but you can create and manage multiple completely independent websites within a single AnQiCMS system.This is tailored for businesses with multiple brands, sub-sites, or content branches.

Implementation approach:

First, you need to deploy an AnQiCMS main instance on the server.This main instance will serve as the unified management entry for all child sites.The deployment process can be referred to the official installation tutorial of AnQiCMS, whether it is installed in the Baota panel, the 1Panel Docker environment, or through the command line, the ultimate goal is to ensure that an AnQiCMS application runs normally and listens to a specific port (default is 8001).

The key is how to direct different domain names to this single AnQiCMS instance and let AnQiCMS identify which site it is.This is usually achieved through the reverse proxy feature of web servers (such as Nginx or Apache).

1. Deploy the AnQiCMS main instance:Follow the official guidelines to complete the installation and initialization of the first AnQiCMS. For example, deploy it on the server's port 8001.
2. Configure reverse proxy:For each website domain you plan to deploy (for examplesite1.com/site2.comConfigure an independent virtual host (Virtual Host) in Nginx or Apache. These virtual hosts will all reverse proxy traffic to the port that the AnQiCMS main instance is listening on (for example,https://en.anqicms.comThis is the benefit as, for external visitors, they access an independent domain, while internally, all requests are processed by that AnQiCMS instance running on port 8001.
3. Add a new site in the AnQiCMS backend:Log in to the admin interface of your AnQiCMS main instance, find the 'Multi-site Management' feature. Here, you can add new sites, specify for each site:
   • Site name: Used to distinguish in the background management.
   • Site root directoryAnQiCMS will create an independent directory for each sub-site to store its cache, uploaded files, and other data. For example,/app/site1_com.
   • website address: The actual access domain of the child site.
   • independent database: Although they share the AnQiCMS application, each sub-site is best to have an independent database to achieve data isolation and management. When adding a new site, you can choose to reuse the default database account information, but the database name needs to be independently set for the new site (such assite1_db)
   • Select a template: Select an appropriate template for the new site.

In this way, all websites run on the same AnQiCMS application.This means that their program code, libraries, and core configuration are shared.This strategy greatly simplifies system maintenance (only one AnQiCMS application needs to be upgraded), and optimizes the use of server resources.It is particularly suitable for scenarios where multiple closely related, functionally similar websites need to be managed, such as product series websites, brand stations in different regions, and so on.

Strategy two: Deploy an independent AnQiCMS instance

In some cases, you may need a real 'independent' instance.This is usually for the purpose of stricter isolation, personalized customization, or the need to run different versions or configurations of AnQiCMS.For example, you may need to test the functionality of a new AnQiCMS version or provide a completely independent CMS environment for a specific customer, which is not affected by other websites.

Implementation approach:

Deploy an independent