Canasta

Canasta Quick links

Communication

@todo Combine this page, and Jeffrey's post into documentation on the wiki / Canasta project

Repos

There are four main code repositories for the Canasta Project as a whole.

Canasta - this is the Dockerfile for MediaWiki alone. Based on Debian, it sets up the basic Linux environment by adding things like Apache, Composer, Msmtp and tools (git, vim, mc); downloads the proper version of MediaWiki, extension and skins based on the Release plus a specific SHA for each package (reproducible builds - no accidental drift). Installs everything and configures everything like Apache, PHP, Varnish cache, and copies composer.canasta.json as composer.local.json. This repo also patches core so that the MediaWiki Installer installs the Bootstrap skin if the user has Chameleon selected as a skin (default). Bootstrap is a requirement of Chameleon, and the user would receive an error the dependency were not met. The Dockerfile alters all the Composer autoload files to use 'canasta-extensions' rather than 'extensions'. That is because the included extensions and skins get included with the image, while user-added extensions and skins get volumed in to the running container in the standard 'extensions' and 'skins' directories. The standard MediaWiki 'images' and 'cache' directories are moved from the image to the volume mount $MW_ORIGIN_FILES. All git artifacts are removed from the image. It creates a sort of manifest list of installed extensions and skins, with commented lines that can later be enabled simply by removing the comment. (Vector gets enabled by default). In the final build phase, the _sources/configs get copied into /etc/ or $WWW_ROOT to setup email (msmtp), apache, php; scripts got into / or ./maintenance; .htaccess, favicon, robots.txt into $WWW_ROOT. Canasta places 3 settings files into $MW_HOME:
1. CanastaUtils.php - where deprecated cfLoadExtension() and cfLoadSkin() are defined/intercepted; and a handy sitenotice is displayed, only for Special Pages where email is used, and only if email is not setup.
2. LocalSettings.php - which provides the familiar / canonical MediaWiki settings file and just does a
```
require_once "$IP/CanastaDefaultSettings.php";
```
3. CanastaDefaultSettings.php - a customized LocalSettings.php, not a replacement of MediaWiki's DefaultSettings.php
if
```
getenv( 'MW_VOLUME' ) . '/config/LocalSettings.php'
```
doesn't exist, then all variables are unset and we mimic wfWebStartNoLocalSettings()
getMediawikiSettings.php is a maintenance class script used in web installer setup.
Note: Canasta currently uses the Apache Multi-Processing Module (MPM) Prefork (not worker) a non-threaded, pre-forking web server. Each server process may answer incoming requests, and a parent process manages the size of the server pool. It is appropriate for sites that need to avoid threading for compatibility with non-thread-safe libraries.
Canasta's DefaultSettings.php also sets the proxy services for Docker networks, and lastly includes all files in MW_VOLUME . '/config/settings/*.php'
The Apache site configuration is named mediawiki.conf
Canasta-DockerCompose - uses the image created from #1 as the basis for a full working setup, with services for web, db, elasticsearch, caddy, and varnish. Although Caddy is a web server, it is used as a reverse proxy, and is incredibly lightweight. The web service (MediaWiki) relies on Apache.
Canasta-CLI - Canasta has a CLI, written in Go, that allows you to manipulate and administer all your Canasta installations.
Canasta-Documentation - because good code deserves good documentation. And good documentation inspires users, and attracts developers. Read the fine manual at the main website: https://canasta.wiki/documentation/

There is also the Taqasta fork used by WikiTeq to contribute upstream while running their own derivative requirements.

Getting Started on Windows

logo key -> winver Check your version of Windows. You must have a Windows 10 64-bit computer Build 18917 or later^[1] (I'm using Windows 11)
logo key 'Windows features' make sure WSL is enabled (Yes)
Not even listed? = Install WSL Windows Subsystem for Linux and check again.
Virtualization should be enabled, and should be WSL not Hyper-V
Right-click the Taskbar -> 'Task Manager' -> Performance (see that virtualization is enabled)
Install Docker Desktop This YouTube video covers Setting up Docker on Windows with some references to working with the development framework Laravel. In your mind, substitute 'Canasta' for 'Laravel'.
@todo Create a similar video for Canasta
Open PowerShell as Administrator
List distributions wsl -l -v
Install Ubuntu wsl --install -d Ubuntu (You can hit logo key and find it as an "app" in the Windows Play Store) Once installed, I pinned it to the taskbar for easy access

Tips

explorer.exe .: will open Windows Explorer for the folder in your Ubuntu container
code .: will open VSCode for the folder in your Ubuntu container

pin to quick access can put your Ubuntu filesystem in your Windows Explorer quick access

Creating a wiki

There are two basic approaches:

Use the Canasta CLI. The Canasta CLI is a command-line tool written in Go that offers simple commands to create, delete and manage your Canasta installations
Use the Canasta "stack repo" directly. The Stack Repo is the Docker-based setup that the CLI interfaces with. If you would rather just work with Docker directly, you can use the stack repo.

Canasta CLI

A CLI tool to create, import, start, stop and backup multiple Canasta installations

Usage:
  canasta [command]

Available Commands:
  create      Create a Canasta installation
  delete      Delete a Canasta installation
  extension   Manage Canasta extensions
  extension   Manage Canasta extensions
  help        Help about any command
  import      Import a wiki installation
  list        List all Canasta installations
  maintenance Run maintenance update jobs
  restart     Restart the Canasta installation
  restic      Use restic to backup and restore Canasta
  skin        Manage Canasta skins
  start       Start the Canasta installation
  stop        Shuts down the Canasta installation
  version     Show the Canasta version

Flags:
  -h, --help      help for canasta
  -v, --verbose   Verbose output

Use "canasta [command] --help" for more information about a command.

References

↑ Windows Subsystem for Linux

[1] Windows Subsystem for Linux

[1]