Quick start
Canasta is a fully featured MediaWiki distribution that bundles MediaWiki with over 170 extensions and skins, a database server, a web server, and a caching layer into a single containerized package supporting both Docker Compose and Kubernetes. It is designed to make it easy to set up, manage, and maintain enterprise-grade wikis without needing deep knowledge of MediaWiki's internals.
Supported platforms
| Platform | Architectures |
|---|---|
| Linux | AMD64/x86-64, ARM64/AArch64 |
| macOS | Intel (AMD64), Apple Silicon (ARM64) |
| Windows | Use WSL with Linux version |
Canasta CLI
To set up Canasta, use the Canasta CLI (command-line interface). It lets you install and use Canasta without having to know anything about the underlying container technology. Once installed, the CLI can be used to:
- Create new Canasta instances (single wikis or wiki farms)
- Manage extensions and skins
- Back up and restore with Restic
- Import and export wiki data
- Upgrade existing instances
Quick start
1. Install the CLI
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/CanastaWiki/Canasta-CLI/main/install.sh | sudo bash
See the Installation guide for platform-specific details. Linux users should add their user to the docker group and the web server group for their distribution (e.g. www-data on Debian/Ubuntu) before proceeding.
2. Create a wiki
canasta create -i myinstance -w wiki1 -n example.com
| Flag | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
-i |
Instance ID — a name for this Canasta instance | myinstance
|
-w |
Wiki ID — used as the database name and in file paths | wiki1
|
-n |
Domain name the wiki will be served on | example.com
|
This pulls the Canasta Docker images, creates the instance directory, starts the containers, initializes the database, and runs update.php. It may take a few minutes on first run.
3. Access your wiki
Once creation completes:
- URL: Open
https://example.comin a browser (orhttps://localhostif testing locally) - Admin login: Username is
WikiSysop; the generated password is saved toconfig/admin-password_wiki1inside the instance directory - Instance directory: The CLI prints the path —
cdinto it to run further commands
4. Next steps
- Enable extensions:
canasta extension enable VisualEditor,Cite— see Extensions and skins - Configure settings: Add PHP or YAML files to
config/settings/— see Settings - Set up a logo: See Configuring logos
- Add more wikis:
canasta add -w docs -u example.com/docs— see Wiki farms - Back up:
canasta backup create— see Backup and restore - Import an existing wiki: Pass a database dump with
-d— see Importing an existing wiki
For the full CLI command reference, see CLI reference.
