How to Create a Calendar Server With Baikal

Baikal is a simple calendar software that allows you to sync CardDAV and CalDAV files online. Unlike Google Calendar, it seamlessly syncs calendar files between different clients and devices. The app also supports multi-user instances, which means it’s possible to use Baikal with other people and share calendar events like you do in Google Calendar. For example, you can host a personal Baikal server for your friends and family and colleagues.

Also read:10 Calendar Apps That Are Great Google Calendar Alternatives

requirements

Before installing Baikal, have the following resources ready:

• A machine that can be accessed from outside your home network: This can either be a home server with ports open or a dedicated VPS that you are currently renting.
• A domain name that points to your computer: I will use the name “yetanotherbaikalserver.xyz” for this tutorial.
• Root access to your computer: This will install the utilities and programs necessary for Baikal to work.

Keeping these factors in mind, this tutorial will only focus on installing Baikal on a DigitalOcean Debian 11 VPS.

Install Baikal dependencies

First, create a separate user account on your computer to ensure that errors and errors during the process do not affect the entire system:

sudo useradd -s /bin/bash -d /home/baikal -m -G sudo baikal
sudo passwd baikal

When you’re done, switch to that new user by running it su baikal. From here you can now install Baikal’s dependencies by running the following command:

sudo apt install php php7.4-fpm php7.4-xml php-sqlite3 sqlite3 nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx iptables iptables-persistent ufw net-tools unzip

Also read:How to sync CalDAV and CardDAV with Android

Configure the server’s firewall

Configuring your computer’s firewall is necessary to ensure that your server blocks all unnecessary requests to it. To set this up, run the following commands:

sudo ufw allow 80
sudo ufw allow 443

The above commands only open ports 80 and 443 for external connection and close all network ports in the device.

Setting up Nginx for Lake Baikal

While it’s possible to use a variety of web servers for Baikal, this section focuses on setting it up alongside Nginx.

First, create a site configuration file under /etc/nginx/sites-available:

sudo nano/etc/nginx/sites-available/baikal

From there, write a server{} block within this new configuration file. The following is a basic setup that should work right away:

server {
  listen       80;
  server_name  yetanotherbaikalserver.xyz;
 
  root  /var/www/baikal/html;
  index index.php;
 
  rewrite ^/.well-known/caldav /dav.php redirect;
  rewrite ^/.well-known/carddav /dav.php redirect;
 
  charset utf-8;
 
  location ~ /(\.ht|Core|Specific|config) {
    deny all;
    return 404;
  }
 
  location ~ ^(.+\.php)(.*)$ {
    try_files $fastcgi_script_name =404;
    include        /etc/nginx/fastcgi_params;
    fastcgi_split_path_info  ^(.+\.php)(.*)$;
    fastcgi_pass   unix:/var/run/php/php-fpm.sock;
    fastcgi_param  SCRIPT_FILENAME  $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
    fastcgi_param  PATH_INFO        $fastcgi_path_info;
  }
}

The way it works is that Nginx listens for connections on port 80 for the hostname “yetanotherbaikalserver.xyz”. Once a client connects, the web server redirects that connection to Baikal’s root directory, where Nginx then opens a UNIX socket for all .php files, allowing them to run as a web application.

Also read:How to show moon/lunar phases in Google Calendar

Sourcing and unpacking Lake Baikal

To download and install Baikal on your computer, first create the root web directory and go to it:

sudo mkdir -p /var/www/ && cd /var/www/

Then use wget to pull the latest binary from Baikal:

sudo wget https://github.com/sabre-io/Baikal/releases/download/0.9.2/baikal-0.9.2.zip

From here, install the web application by unpacking its binary archive with the following command:

sudo unzip ./baikal-0.9.2.zip

Finally, make sure Nginx can read and write the Baikal root directory by running it chown on the “baikal” folder:

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data ./baikal

Restart Nginx and install SSL

You can now enable your Nginx configuration file by creating a symbolic link to “/etc/nginx/sites-enabled”. After that, you also need to reload Nginx to apply the new settings. Run the following commands to perform these two actions:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/baikal /etc/nginx/sites-enabled
sudo systemctl restart nginx

Now enable SSL for your server, either using Let’s Encrypt or installing one manually via OpenSSL. In this case, I’m using Let’s Encrypt’s certbot utility.

Run the following command to install a Let’s Encrypt certificate:

certbot --nginx yetanotherbaikalserver.xyz

Also read:How to create a search engine with SearxNG

Completion of the Baikal setup

To complete the setup process, open your web browser and access the website using your domain name. In my case I go to “yetanotherbaikalserver.xyz”.

Once you get there, Baikal will redirect you to its admin installation page where you will be asked for a number of server-specific options to set for your instance.

First enter the time zone of your computer. If you are using a VPS, provide the time zone for that VPS.

Since my VPS is located in Singapore, I choose “Asia/Singapore”.

Next, select the features you want for your instance. Check both CalDAV and CardDAV if you want to enable both calendar and address book support for your server.

You also have the option to provide an email address for your instance. For this to work, your server must be able to send SMTP messages over TLS. I leave this field blank to disable sending emails.

Next, choose the authentication format for your instance. In most cases, the digest format should work out of the box. You must also provide a password for the administrator account. After that you can click on “Save Changes”.

Finally, Baikal will ask you for your instance’s database settings. In most cases you don’t need to change any settings on this page. Press “Save Changes” again to complete the installation.

Also read:How to share locations and invite people to events with Google Calendar

Adding the first Baikal user

With Baikal running, you can now create your first user by going back to the admin panel and selecting “Users and Resources”.

On the next screen, select “Add User” to bring up a simple create page where you can enter the details for the new user. For example, I can create a new user for myself.

Also read:How to install your own federated Twitter with Pleroma

Connect Thunderbird to Baikal

Now that you have a Baikal user account, you can associate it with any scheduler that supports CalDAV and CardDAV, such as B.Thunderbird.

To use Baikal with Thunderbird, click the “Calendar” option on the email client home page.

This will open a small window where the client will ask you for the location of your calendar file. Select “On the network” and click “Next” to continue.

If Thunderbird asks for your Baikal account username and URL, enter those details and click Find Calendar. Enter the address of your server followed by “/dav.php” as the URL.

Once the client gets all the calendar files for your Baikal account, it will list them and ask you for their “Calendar Type”. Select CalDAV and click Subscribe.

Your Baikal server is now ready to use.

Also read:9 Best Email Clients for Linux

frequently asked Questions

Photo credit: Unsplash and Saber All changes and screenshots from Ramces Red

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