> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kb.hosting.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Configuring a Ruby on Rails application on a shared hosting account

> Learn how to use the Setup Ruby App feature in cPanel to configure and run a Ruby on Rails application in a shared hosting environment.

This article describes how to use the **Setup Ruby App** feature in cPanel to configure and run a Ruby on Rails application in a shared hosting environment.

## Step 1: Create the application in cPanel

First, you must create the application in cPanel using the **Setup Ruby App** feature. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Log in to cPanel.
   > 📘 Note
   >
   > If you do not know how to log in to your cPanel account, please see [this article](/docs/accessing-cpanel).

2. On the **Tools** page, in the **Software** section, click **Setup Ruby App**:\
   ![cPanel - Software - Setup Ruby App icon](https://static.hosting.com/kb/kb-cpanel-jupiter-software-setup-ruby-app-icon.png)

3. On the **Setup Ruby App** page, under **Setup New Application**, do the following:

   * In the **Ruby version** list box, select **2.5**.
     > 🚧 Important
     >
     > Ruby **2.6** introduces dependency conflicts and currently does not work with Rails on a shared hosting account. You must use Ruby version **2.5** instead.

   * In the **App Directory** text box, type the name of the directory where you want to store the application files. For example, type `railsapp`.

   * In the **App Domain/URI** list box, select the domain you want to use, and then type the URI in the text box.

4. Click **Setup**. cPanel creates the application.

5. Under **Existing applications**, locate the application (for example, *railsapp* ).

6. In the **modules** row, click **show**.

7. In the text box next to **Add**, type `rails` and then click **Add**.

8. At the bottom of the application section, click **Update**. cPanel installs the Rails module.

9. Next to **Command for entering to virtual environment**, copy the entire command that begins with **source**. You will use this command in the next procedure.

## Step 2: Configure the application from the command line

At this point you have created the Ruby on Rails environment in cPanel. Now you are ready to create and configure the Rails application itself. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your account [using SSH](/docs/using-ssh-secure-shell).

2. At the command prompt, paste the command you copied in step 9 of the previous procedure. This command activates the Ruby virtual environment.
   > 👍 Tip
   >
   > To confirm the virtual environment is active after you run the *source* command, check that the Bash prompt starts with the application name and Ruby version number. For example:
   >
   > ```bash theme={null}
   > (railsapp:2.5)example@mi3-ss21 [~]#
   > ```

3. Type the following command:

   ```bash theme={null}
   unset XDG_RUNTIME_DIR
   ```

   > 🚧 Important
   >
   > You must run this command every time after you activate the virtual environment. Alternatively, you can combine this command with the command above to activate the virtual environment. For example:
   >
   > ```bash theme={null}
   > source /home/username/rubyvenv/railsapp/2.5/bin/activate && unset XDG_RUNTIME_DIR
   > ```

4. To back up the *config.ru* file, type the following commands. Replace ***railsapp*** with the name of your own application directory:

   ```bash theme={null}
   cd ~/railsapp
   mv config.ru config.ru.bak
   ```

5. To create the Rails application, type the following command. Replace ***railsapp*** with the name of your own application directory:

   ```bash theme={null}
   rails new ~/railsapp
   ```

6. To add a default route, open the *config/routes.rb* file in your preferred text editor. Add the following line after the **Rails.application.routes.draw do** line:

   ```
   root 'rails/welcome#index'
   ```

7. Save your changes to the *config/routes.rb* file.

8. In cPanel, restart the application. On the **Setup Ruby App** page, under **Existing applications**, locate the application, and then click **Restart**.

9. Open the application URI in a web browser, and you should see the **Yay! You're on Rails** page. You can now add controllers and other components to your Rails application.

## Troubleshooting

If the Ruby on Rails application does not work correctly, you can check the application log files for errors. The application log files are located in the *log* directory (for example, *\~/railsapp/log* ). There are separate log files for each environment:

* *production.log* for the production environment.

* *development.log* for the development environment.

If you need further assistance, please open a support ticket at [https://my.hosting.com](https://my.hosting.com).

## More information

* To view the official Rails getting started guide, please visit [https://guides.rubyonrails.org/getting\_started.html](https://guides.rubyonrails.org/getting_started.html).

* To view the official Rails API documentation, please visit [https://api.rubyonrails.org](https://api.rubyonrails.org).

## Related articles

* [Do you support Ruby on Rails?](/docs/do-you-support-ruby-on-rails)

* [Using the Interactive Ruby Shell to troubleshoot gems](/docs/using-the-interactive-ruby-shell-to-troubleshoot-gems)

* [Setting up multiple versions of Ruby](/docs/setting-up-multiple-versions-of-ruby)

* [Ruby gems](/docs/ruby-gems)