• .NET 11.0 Runtime (ASP.NET Core Runtime)
• One of the supported databases: Microsoft SQL Server (2012 or later), MySQL / MariaDB, PostgreSQL or SQLite
• An SMTP server for registration mails, password resets and notifications

Download the install package for your database from the releases page and unzip it into the folder the forum will run from.

Skip this step if you don't use IIS.

1. Create a new website, or an application below an existing website, that points to the folder from step 1. See Host ASP.NET Core on Windows with IIS.
2. Set the .NET CLR version of the application pool to No Managed Code.
3. Give the application pool identity write access to the wwwroot/uploads and wwwroot/images folders (and to the database file when you use SQLite).

Create an empty database and a database user with permission to create tables. With SQLite the database file is created automatically.

When the forum starts for the first time, it detects the empty database and the installation wizard creates the tables.

1. ConnectionStrings:DefaultConnection: the connection string to your database. The appsettings.json contains an example for each database.
2. BoardConfiguration:ConnectionProviderName: the provider for your database, see BoardConfiguration Settings.
3. MailConfiguration: your SMTP server (Host, Port and, if the server needs authentication, UserName and Password).
4. (Optional) VapidConfiguration: a public and a private key to turn on browser push notifications. You can generate a key pair at yetanotherforum.net/Vapid-Keys. Push notifications are turned off while the keys are empty. See Push notifications.
5. (Optional) BoardConfiguration: all other settings are described on the BoardConfiguration Settings page.

{
  "ConnectionStrings": {
    "DefaultConnection": "data source=(local);initial catalog=yafnet;Integrated Security=True;TrustServerCertificate=True;"
  },
  "MailConfiguration": {
    "UserName": "",
    "Password": "",
    "Host": "localhost",
    "Port": 25
  },
  "VapidConfiguration": {
    "PublicKey": "",
    "PrivateKey": ""
  },
  "BoardConfiguration": {
    "ConnectionProviderName": "Microsoft.Data.SqlClient",
    ...
  }
}

Open the forum in your browser, e.g. https://localhost/. You are redirected to the installation wizard (/Install/Install), which:

1. checks the database connection,
2. creates the database tables,
3. creates the board and the admin account.

If something goes wrong, see Troubleshooting.