Setup & infrastructure

What a Matomo setup includes

• Choosing and sizing the environment (VM, container, cloud)
• Installing Matomo, PHP, web server and database
• Archiving via cron job instead of in the browser
• Configuring websites, goals, users and permissions
• Optional: single sign-on and connection to your identity management

System requirements

Matomo does not need an exotic environment:

• PHP a current, supported version with PHP-FPM and OPcache
• Database MySQL or MariaDB in a current version
• Web server Apache or nginx
• Archiving a cron job that pre-processes reports regularly
• Optional Redis if tracking should run through a queue
• Location data a local GeoIP database, so no IP addresses go to external services

How large server and database need to be depends on traffic, the number of websites and how long raw data is kept. I plan this with your IT before installing anything.

Variants

• Classic on a VM web server, PHP and database on one or more servers
• Containers Matomo in Docker or Kubernetes, with separate services for tracking and archiving
• Managed servers for example under Plesk, if your IT already works with it
• Cloud with a provider of your choice, optionally with a data centre in the EU

Connecting your CMS, shop and intranet

Matomo measures where your content is created: in TYPO3, WordPress or Drupal, in shops on Shopware, Shopify or custom software, and in intranets on SharePoint or Adobe Experience Manager (AEM). Depending on the system via plugin, Matomo Tag Manager or custom code, with e-commerce tracking and connection to your consent tool.

Several websites and tenants

For companies, public bodies and agencies with many websites, I set Matomo up so it stays clear: with well-named websites, roles and permissions per team and, if you like, login via single sign-on.

After the setup

Your own IT team takes over day-to-day operations. To make that work, I document the instance: configuration, archiving, update path and access. For managed hosting or operations with contractually guaranteed response times, I recommend our sister brand feinwerk.io.