Introduction

Rancher is a powerful open-source platform that simplifies your Kubernetes management, making it ideal for developers and IT operations teams looking to manage clusters efficiently. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the installation process of Rancher, enhancing your container orchestration capabilities.

Prerequisites

• A Linux server (Ubuntu 20.04 LTS recommended)
• Minimum 4GB RAM and 2 CPUs
• Docker installed (Get Docker Official Site)
• Basic knowledge of Linux command line

Steps to Install Rancher

Step 1: Update Your System

Before installing Rancher, ensure your system is updated. Open your terminal and execute:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Docker

If Docker isn’t installed, add Docker’s official GPG key and set up the stable repository as follows:

sudo apt install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl software-properties-common
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | sudo apt-key add -
sudo add-apt-repository "deb [arch=amd64] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu $(lsb_release -cs) stable"
sudo apt update
sudo apt install docker-ce -y

Verify the Docker installation:

docker --version

Step 3: Install Rancher

You’ll run Rancher on Docker using the following command:

sudo docker run -d --restart=unless-stopped \
  -p 80:80 -p 443:443 \
  --name rancher \
  rancher/rancher

Step 4: Access the Rancher Web UI

Once the container runs, access the Rancher UI in your browser using https://. Accept the self-signed certificate and create a new password to secure your Rancher environment.

Troubleshooting

• If Docker fails to start, ensure it’s enabled: sudo systemctl enable docker && sudo systemctl start docker
• For network issues, confirm that ports 80 and 443 are open in your firewall settings.

Summary Checklist

• Ensure server prerequisites are met
• Install Docker and verify it’s running
• Run the Rancher container
• Access the Rancher web UI and secure the environment

Rancher simplifies Kubernetes cluster management and offers extensive capabilities for enterprise-grade container orchestration. For more information on managing containers, check out our guide on managing containers with Portainer.