Jitsi Meet: A Complete Checklist for Self-Hosting Success

Jitsi Meet is an open-source video conferencing platform that allows you to host secure, scalable online meetings without relying on third-party services. Designed for self-hosting, it offers complete data control, customization options, and advanced features like APIs for seamless integration. This guide will walk you through deploying Jitsi Meet, setting up a reverse proxy, enabling logging, configuring backups, upgrading, and leveraging its unique features.

Installing Jitsi Meet

📦 Docker/Docker Compose Setup

Docker Compose is a straightforward way to deploy Jitsi Meet in a self-contained environment. Here's how to get started:

1. Create a new directory for the deployment and navigate to it:

mkdir jitsi-meet && cd jitsi-meet

2. Create a docker-compose.yml file with the following content:

version: '3'

services:

web:

image: jitsi/web

restart: always

ports:

- '80:80'

- '443:443'

volumes:

- ./config/web:/config

- ./web/letsencrypt:/etc/letsencrypt

- ./web/transcripts:/usr/share/jitsi-meet/transcripts

environment:

- ENABLE_HTTP_REDIRECT=1

- VIRTUAL_HOST=your.jitsi-domain.com

- LETSENCRYPT_HOST=your.jitsi-domain.com

- [email protected]

prosody:

image: jitsi/prosody

restart: always

ports:

- '5222:5222'

- '5280:5280'

volumes:

- ./config/prosody:/config

jicofo:

image: jitsi/jicofo

restart: always

volumes:

- ./config/jicofo:/config

jvb:

image: jitsi/jvb

restart: always

ports:

- '10000:10000/udp'

- '4443:4443'

volumes:

- ./config/jvb:/config

3. Deploy the stack:

docker-compose up -d

This starts the Jitsi Meet services (web, Prosody, Jicofo, and JVB) in detached mode.

🚀 Manual Installation

For more precise control, you can install Jitsi Meet manually on a Linux server:

1. Update the system and install required dependencies:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

sudo apt install -y gnupg2 curl software-properties-common

2. Add the Jitsi Meet repository:

curl https://download.jitsi.org/jitsi-key.gpg.key | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/jitsi-keyring.gpg

echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/jitsi-keyring.gpg] https://download.jitsi.org stable/" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jitsi.list

3. Install Jitsi Meet:

sudo apt update

sudo apt install jitsi-meet -y

4. Configure SSL using Let's Encrypt:

sudo /usr/share/jitsi-meet/scripts/install-letsencrypt-cert.sh

Configuring Nginx as a Reverse Proxy

🌐 Nginx Configuration

To serve Jitsi Meet through Nginx, create a server block:

1. Install Nginx:

sudo apt install nginx -y

2. Create a configuration file for your domain:

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

3. Add the following content:

server {

server_name your.jitsi-domain.com;

location / {

proxy_pass http://localhost:8000;

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;

}

}

4. Enable the configuration and restart Nginx:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/jitsi /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

sudo nginx -t

sudo systemctl restart nginx

🔒 SSL/TLS Setup

Use Let's Encrypt to secure your domain:

1. Install Certbot:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx -y

2. Obtain and configure an SSL certificate:

sudo certbot --nginx -d your.jitsi-domain.com

3. Automate certificate renewal:

sudo crontab -e

Add the following line:

0 0 * * * certbot renew --quiet

Logging and Debugging Jitsi Meet

🗃️ Enabling Debug Logs

Enable debug logging to troubleshoot issues:

1. Edit the logging configuration:

sudo nano /etc/jitsi/jicofo/logging.properties

2. Set the logging level:

.level=ALL

3. Restart the Jitsi Meet service:

sudo systemctl restart jicofo

📄 Viewing Logs

Access logs to identify issues:

• Docker users can run:

docker logs jitsi-web

• For manual installations:

tail -f /var/log/jitsi/jicofo.log

Backup and Restore

🗂️ File-Based Backups

Back up the Jitsi configuration files:

tar -czvf jitsi-backup.tar.gz /etc/jitsi /var/lib/jitsi

🔄 Database Backups

If using a database, export it:

mysqldump -u root -p jitsi_database > db_backup.sql

Restore it with:

mysql -u root -p jitsi_database < db_backup.sql

📅 Automated Backup Scripts

Automate backups via cron:

echo "0 2 * * * tar -czvf /backups/jitsi-$(date +\%F).tar.gz /etc/jitsi" | sudo tee -a /var/spool/cron/crontabs/root

Updating and Upgrading Jitsi Meet

⬆️ Updating Docker Images

For Docker setups:

docker-compose pull

docker-compose up -d

🛠️ Manual Updates

For manual installations:

sudo apt update

sudo apt upgrade jitsi-meet -y

Leveraging Jitsi Meet’s Unique Features

🔧 Enabling APIs

Enable Jitsi Meet’s REST API by editing the Prosody configuration:

sudo nano /etc/prosody/conf.d/your.jitsi-domain.cfg.lua

Add or update:

modules_enabled = {

"bosh";

"pubsub";

"muc";

"muc_size";

}

Restart Prosody:

sudo systemctl restart prosody

🌟 Advanced Configurations

Customize the interface by editing /usr/share/jitsi-meet/interface_config.js:

TOOLBAR_BUTTONS: ['microphone', 'camera', 'desktop', 'chat']

Wrapping Up

Self-hosting Jitsi Meet provides unmatched control, customization, and privacy for video conferencing. By following this guide, you’ve installed, configured, and secured Jitsi Meet, while enabling features like APIs and backups. Begin exploring its capabilities to tailor an ideal video conferencing solution for your needs.