EC2 Laravel Storage Writable

### **1. Check Ownership & Permissions**
Run the following commands to set the correct ownership and permissions for your Laravel `storage` and `bootstrap/cache` folders.

cd /var/www/share  # Navigate to your Laravel project directory

# Set ownership to the web server user
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data storage bootstrap/cache

# Set proper permissions
sudo chmod -R 775 storage bootstrap/cache

### **2. Check Your Web Server User**
Verify which user is running Apache:

ps aux | grep apache

or

ps aux | grep httpd

If Apache is running under a different user (e.g., `ubuntu`), update the ownership:

sudo chown -R ubuntu:www-data storage bootstrap/cache

### **3. Verify SELinux (If Enabled)**
If your instance has SELinux enabled, update the security context:

sudo chcon -R -t httpd_sys_rw_content_t storage bootstrap/cache

### **4. Restart Apache**
After making the changes, restart Apache to apply them:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

### **5. Verify Writable Status**
Run the following command to test if the `storage` folder is writable:

sudo -u www-data touch storage/testfile

If no errors appear, it means the issue is resolved. Remove the test file after verification:

rm storage/testfile

### **6. Double-Check Laravel Configuration**
Ensure that your Laravel application recognizes the storage changes:

php artisan cache:clear
php artisan config:clear
php artisan storage:link

Now your `storage` folder should be writable. If the issue persists, let me know the specific error message you are getting. 🚀

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## **1. Understanding Why It Happens**
– When you upload files via **SFTP/FTP** or **SSH**, the user performing the upload (e.g., `ubuntu`) becomes the file owner.
– Some deployment scripts may override permissions.
– If you've used `chmod -R 777`, it's **insecure**, and you should reset permissions properly.

—

## **2. Reset Correct Ownership & Permissions**
After transferring files, run the following to **reset ownership and permissions**:

### **A. Reset Ownership to Apache (www-data)**

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

### **B. Secure Folder Permissions**

sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

This ensures:
– **775**: Read & execute for the group, full access for the owner.
– **No 777**, making it more secure.

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## **3. Automate Fix After File Transfer**
If file permissions keep resetting after file transfer, you can create an **automatic fix** using a script.

### **A. Create a Reset Script**
Create a script to **fix permissions after file transfer**:
“`

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## **1. Change Permissions for File Transfer**
Before transferring files, you temporarily change the permissions to allow full access:

sudo chmod -R 777 /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

This ensures that the file transfer process does not run into permission issues.

—

## **2. Revert Permissions After Transfer**
Once the transfer is complete, revert the permissions to a secure state.

### **A. Reset Ownership to `www-data` (Apache)**

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

### **B. Restore Secure Folder Permissions**

sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

This will:
– Ensure Laravel can write to `storage` and `bootstrap/cache`.
– Keep it secure without `777` access.

—

## **3. Automate Reverting Permissions After Transfer**
To make this process easier, you can create a script.

### **A. Create a Shell Script**
Create a file named **`reset_permissions.sh`**:

sudo nano /var/www/share/reset_permissions.sh

Add the following content:

#!/bin/bash
# Revert permissions after file transfer

echo "Reverting file permissions..."

# Set correct ownership
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

# Set secure permissions
sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/share/storage /var/www/share/bootstrap/cache

echo "Permissions successfully reverted!"

Save the file (`CTRL + X`, then `Y`, then `Enter`).

—

### **B. Make the Script Executable**
Run the following command:

sudo chmod +x /var/www/share/reset_permissions.sh

—

### **C. Run the Script After File Transfer**
After transferring files, execute:

sudo /var/www/share/reset_permissions.sh

—

## **4. Automate Using Cron Job (Optional)**
If you frequently transfer files, you can **automate the permission reset** using a cron job.

Open the crontab editor:

crontab -e

Add this line at the end:

*/30 * * * * /bin/bash /var/www/share/reset_permissions.sh

This will automatically **reset permissions every 30 minutes**.

—

## **Conclusion**
– Use `chmod 777` **only for file transfer**.
– Run the script manually **after each transfer** or set up **cron job automation**.
– This ensures your Laravel storage remains writable but not **overexposed (777)**.

Let me know if you need modifications! 🚀