How to Manually Install Hugo Static Website Generator on Ubuntu 24.04
Application: Hugo Extended
Operating System: Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
Installation Type: Manual Terminal Installation
Overview
Hugo is a fast static website generator written in Go. It allows you to create and host modern websites, documentation websites, and blogs.
This guide explains how to manually install Hugo Extended on an Ubuntu 24.04 server. The steps below perform the same actions as our automated Ansible deployment.
Requirements
- Ubuntu 24.04 LTS server
- SSH access to the server
- Sudo privileges
- Internet connection
Step 1 - Connect to Your Ubuntu Server
Connect to your server using SSH:
ssh username@server-ip-address
Example:
ssh cjmzeahj@102.202.47.171
Step 2 - Update Ubuntu Packages
First update the package list:
sudo apt update
Upgrade installed packages:
sudo apt upgrade -y
Step 3 - Install Required Packages
Install the required tools needed by Hugo:
sudo apt install -y git curl wget tar
Step 4 - Download Hugo Extended
Download the latest Hugo Extended Linux version:
cd /tmp wget https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo/releases/latest/download/hugo_extended_linux-amd64.tar.gz
Step 5 - Extract Hugo Files
tar -xzf hugo_extended_linux-amd64.tar.gz
Confirm the Hugo binary exists:
ls -la hugo
Step 6 - Install Hugo System Wide
Copy Hugo into the system binary directory:
sudo cp hugo /usr/local/bin/
Set executable permissions:
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/hugo
Step 7 - Verify Hugo Installation
Check that Hugo installed correctly:
hugo version
Example output:
hugo v0.148.2+extended linux/amd64
Step 8 - Create Website Directory
Create the directory where the Hugo website will live:
sudo mkdir -p /var/www/hugo-site
Change ownership to the web user:
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/hugo-site
Step 9 - Create a New Hugo Website
Create a new Hugo website:
sudo -u www-data hugo new site /var/www/hugo-site
Step 10 - Create Website Content
Create the homepage content file:
sudo nano /var/www/hugo-site/content/_index.md
Add the following:
--- title: "Welcome" --- # Hello from Hugo This website was deployed manually on Ubuntu 24.04.
Save the file:
- CTRL + O
- ENTER
- CTRL + X
Step 11 - Create Hugo Homepage Template
Create the layout directory:
sudo mkdir -p /var/www/hugo-site/layouts
Create the homepage template:
sudo nano /var/www/hugo-site/layouts/index.html
Paste:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>{{ .Site.Title }}</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>{{ .Title }}</h1>
{{ .Content }}
</body>
</html>
Step 12 - Build Hugo Website
Generate the website files:
cd /var/www/hugo-site sudo -u www-data hugo
The generated website will be created inside:
/var/www/hugo-site/public
Step 13 - Create Hugo System Service
Create a systemd service file:
sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/hugo-server.service
Add:
[Unit] Description=Hugo Website Server After=network.target [Service] Type=simple User=www-data Group=www-data WorkingDirectory=/var/www/hugo-site ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/hugo server \ --bind=0.0.0.0 \ --port=8080 \ --disableFastRender Restart=always [Install] WantedBy=multi-user.target
Step 14 - Enable Hugo Service
Reload systemd:
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
Enable Hugo on startup:
sudo systemctl enable hugo-server
Start Hugo:
sudo systemctl start hugo-server
Step 15 - Check Hugo Status
sudo systemctl status hugo-server
You should see:
Active: active (running)
Step 16 - Allow Hugo Through Firewall
If UFW firewall is enabled:
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
Check firewall:
sudo ufw status
Step 17 - Access Hugo Website
Open your browser:
http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:8080
Example:
http://102.202.47.171:8080
Troubleshooting
Check Hugo Service Logs
sudo journalctl -u hugo-server -f
Restart Hugo
sudo systemctl restart hugo-server
Check Port 8080
sudo ss -tulpn | grep 8080
Conclusion
Hugo is now installed and running on Ubuntu 24.04. The server will automatically start Hugo after reboot.
This manual installation follows the same deployment steps used in our Ansible Hugo automation playbook.
