Documentation | 2025.1

# Install and upgrade Swarm

This chapter covers the initial installation and configuration of Swarm as well as upgrading an existing Swarm installation.

## Important restrictions

Do not prefix group names, project names, user names, or client-names with "swarm-", this is a reserved term used by Swarm. Prefixing a name with "swarm-" will result in unexpected and unwanted behavior in Swarm.

For example:

Prefixing a group name with "swarm-project-" will result in, but is not limited to, the following issues:

- Swarm notifications will not be processed correctly for the group.
- The group will not be visible in Swarm.

## Review the runtime dependencies

First, review the runtime dependencies before you install Swarm, see Runtime dependencies.

## Swarm and Helix Core Server installation considerations

Before installing Swarm and Helix Core Server you should consider the following:

- To ensure that all characters, including Unicode characters, are displayed and handled correctly by Swarm, configure your Helix Core Server in Unicode mode. For information on configuring your Helix Core Server in Unicode mode, see Set up and manage Unicode installations in the Helix Core Server Administration Documentation.

- For a small system, you can run Swarm and Helix Core Server on the same machine.

- For larger systems, we recommend that Swarm and Helix Core Server are run on separate machines. The machines should be close to each other to maximize network performance.

Swarm needs to know about a number of Helix Core Server events to operate correctly. To enable this to happen, Helix Core Server Extensions (recommended) or Helix Core Server Triggers are installed on the Helix Core Server machine and they need to talk to Swarm. In either case, performance can be negatively affected if network lag between Swarm and the Helix Core Server is high.

- The Swarm and Helix Core Server machines do not need to have the same operating system. For example, Helix Core Server could be on a Windows server and Swarm could be on a RHEL server.

You cannot install Swarm on a Windows machine.

## Choose the installation process

Once you have reviewed the Runtime dependencies and know that you can satisfy them, there are a number of ways to install Swarm.

We recommend the package installation method to install Swarm whenever possible, see Install and configure Swarm from a package (recommended). Package installs ensure that all of the Swarm dependencies are installed and this is the easiest way to install Swarm. For a list of recommended operating systems for Swarm, see Recommended operating systems.

Choose one of the following installation methods (we recommend the package installation method whenever possible):

- Swarm RPM or Debian packages (recommended):

  1. Follow the steps provided in Install and configure Swarm from a package (recommended).
  2. If you installed Helix Core Server Extensions in the previous step, skip this step and go to step 3:

     Configure Helix Core Server for Swarm, see Installing Triggers.

  3. Review the post-install configuration options to customize your Swarm installation, see Post-install configuration options.
  4. Validate that Swarm is working correctly before using it in production, see Validate your Swarm installation.

  You are all set to start using Swarm. Enjoy!

  To get started with Swarm, see the Quickstart chapter.

- Swarm Docker container:

  1. Follow the steps provided in Run Swarm using a Docker container.
  2. If you installed Helix Core Server Extensions in the previous step, skip this step and go to step 3:

     Configure Helix Core Server for Swarm, see Installing Triggers.

  3. Review the post-install configuration options to customize your Swarm installation, see Post-install configuration options.
  4. Validate that Swarm is working correctly before using it in production, see Validate your Swarm installation.

  You are all set to start using Swarm. Enjoy!

  To get started with Swarm, see the Quickstart chapter.

- Swarm.tgz (Tarball):

  1. Follow steps provided in the Install and configure Swarm manually from a Tarball.
  2. Configure Redis, see Redis configuration.
  3. Configure Apache, see Apache configuration.
  4. Configure PHP, see PHP configuration.
  5. Configure Swarm, see Swarm configuration.

  6. Configure the Helix Core Server to notify Swarm about Helix Core Server events, see Configuring Helix Core Server event notification.

  7. Set up a recurring task to spawn workers, see Set up a recurring task to spawn workers.
  8. Review the post-install configuration options to customize your Swarm installation, see Post-install configuration options.
  9. Validate that Swarm is working correctly before using it in production, see Validate your Swarm installation.

  You are all set to start using Swarm. Enjoy!

  To get started with Swarm, see the Quickstart chapter.

## Upgrade Swarm

If you already have a working Swarm installation and you want to upgrade Swarm to a newer release, see Upgrading Swarm.

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