SonarQube Installation on Ubuntu

Overview

This guide provides comprehensive instructions for installing and configuring SonarQube on Ubuntu systems. SonarQube is an open-source platform for continuous inspection of code quality, performing automatic reviews with static analysis to detect bugs, code smells, and security vulnerabilities.

Architecture Overview

This deployment includes:

• Cloud Platform: Google Cloud Platform (GCP) compute instance
• Database: PostgreSQL for SonarQube data persistence
• Web Server: Nginx as reverse proxy
• DNS Management: CloudFlare for DNS configuration
• Security: VPN pool for firewall configurations on GCP

Prerequisites

Before starting the installation, ensure you have:

• Ubuntu 16.04 LTS or newer server instance
• Root or sudo access to the server
• Minimum 2GB RAM (4GB recommended)
• Minimum 2 CPU cores
• At least 10GB free disk space
• Active internet connection
• Valid domain name for DNS configuration

Installation Steps

Step 1: System Update

First, update the package cache and upgrade existing packages to ensure your system has the latest security patches and updates.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get -y upgrade

Step 2: Install Java Development Kit

SonarQube requires Java to run. Install Oracle Java 8 JDK using the following commands:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/java
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install oracle-java8-installer

Verify Java Installation:

java -version

Step 3: Install PostgreSQL Database

SonarQube requires a database backend. This guide uses PostgreSQL, which is the recommended database for production environments.

sudo sh -c 'echo "deb http://apt.postgresql.org/pub/repos/apt/ `lsb_release -cs`-pgdg main" >> /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pgdg.list'
wget -q https://www.postgresql.org/media/keys/ACCC4CF8.asc -O - | sudo apt-key add -
sudo apt-get -y install postgresql postgresql-contrib
sudo systemctl start postgresql
sudo systemctl enable postgresql

Verify PostgreSQL Status:

sudo systemctl status postgresql

Step 4: Configure PostgreSQL User

Set a secure password for the default PostgreSQL system user:

sudo passwd postgres

Step 5: Create SonarQube Database User

Create a dedicated database user for SonarQube with appropriate permissions:

su - postgres
createuser sonar

Switch to the PostgreSQL prompt and configure the user:

psql

Execute the following SQL commands:

ALTER USER sonar WITH ENCRYPTED password 'StrongPassword';
CREATE DATABASE sonar OWNER sonar;
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE sonar TO sonar;
\q

Exit the postgres user session:

exit

Step 6: Download and Install SonarQube

Download SonarQube and extract it to the appropriate directory:

cd /tmp
wget https://sonarsource.bintray.com/Distribution/sonarqube/sonarqube-7.6.zip
sudo apt install unzip
sudo unzip sonarqube-7.6.zip -d /opt
sudo mv /opt/sonarqube-7.6 /opt/sonarqube

Configure SonarQube Database Connection:

Edit the SonarQube configuration file:

sudo nano /opt/sonarqube/conf/sonar.properties

Add or uncomment the following lines:

sonar.jdbc.username=sonar
sonar.jdbc.password=StrongPassword
sonar.jdbc.url=jdbc:postgresql://localhost/sonar

Step 7: Create SonarQube System Service

Create a systemd service file to manage SonarQube as a system service:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/sonar.service

Add the following configuration:

[Unit]
Description=SonarQube service
After=syslog.target network.target

[Service]
Type=forking

ExecStart=/opt/sonarqube/bin/linux-x86-64/sonar.sh start
ExecStop=/opt/sonarqube/bin/linux-x86-64/sonar.sh stop

User=root
Group=root
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Reload systemd daemon:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

Step 8: Start SonarQube Service

Enable and start the SonarQube service:

sudo systemctl start sonar
sudo systemctl enable sonar
sudo systemctl status sonar

Monitor SonarQube Startup:

tail -f /opt/sonarqube/logs/sonar.log

Step 9: Configure Nginx Reverse Proxy

Install and configure Nginx as a reverse proxy to access SonarQube via a domain name:

sudo apt install nginx
sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/sonarqube

Add the following Nginx configuration:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name sonarqube.domain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:9000/;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Enable the site and restart Nginx:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/sonarqube /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl restart nginx
sudo systemctl enable nginx

Step 10: Access SonarQube Web Interface

Once the installation is complete, access SonarQube through your web browser:

http://sonarqube.domain.com

Default Credentials:

• Username: admin
• Password: admin

Post-Installation Configuration

Initial Setup Tasks

1. Change Admin Password: Navigate to Administration → Security → Users
2. Configure Email: Set up SMTP settings for email notifications
3. Install Language Plugins: Install analyzers for your programming languages
4. Create Projects: Set up your first project for code analysis
5. Configure Quality Gates: Define quality standards for your projects
6. Set Up Authentication: Configure LDAP, SAML, or OAuth if needed

Firewall Configuration

If you're using UFW firewall, allow necessary ports:

sudo ufw allow 80/tcp
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp
sudo ufw allow 9000/tcp  # Only if direct access needed
sudo ufw reload

System Tuning

For optimal performance, adjust system limits:

sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf

Add the following lines:

vm.max_map_count=262144
fs.file-max=65536

Apply changes:

sudo sysctl -p

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

sudo systemctl status postgresql
psql -U sonar -d sonar -h localhost

Maintenance

Regular Maintenance Tasks

Update SonarQube:

# Backup before update
sudo systemctl stop sonar
sudo cp -r /opt/sonarqube /opt/sonarqube.backup
# Download and extract new version
# Copy configuration and data

Database Backup:

sudo -u postgres pg_dump sonar > sonar_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

Log Rotation:

Configure log rotation to prevent disk space issues:

sudo nano /etc/logrotate.d/sonarqube

Additional Resources

• Official SonarQube Documentation
• SonarQube Community Forum
• PostgreSQL Documentation
• Nginx Configuration Guide

Conclusion

You now have a working SonarQube installation on Ubuntu. Remember to regularly update your installation, monitor system resources, and follow security best practices to maintain a healthy code quality platform.

Document Information:

• Last Updated: October 2025
• SonarQube Version: 7.6 (Update as needed)
• Ubuntu Version: 16.04 LTS (Compatible with 18.04, 20.04, 22.04)
• Original Creation Date: October 31, 2017