Install Parse Server on CentOS 7: Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Parse Server stands as the open-source substitute for the Parse backend service, which has been discontinued. If you're fond of the original platform, you can continue enjoying its features by hosting Parse Server on your own server.

This guide explains the steps required to set up Parse Server on a CentOS 7 system.

Prerequisites

• A CentOS 7 x64 server environment
• A user account with sudo privileges

Step 1: Update Your CentOS System

Start by accessing your server through SSH using a sudo user account. Then update the operating system using the following commands:

sudo yum install epel-release -y
sudo yum update -y
sudo shutdown -r now

Once the reboot completes, log in again with the same sudo account to continue.

Step 2: Install Node.js

Proceed to install Node.js version 6.x, specifically version 6.9.4 at the time of this writing:

cd
curl --silent --location https://rpm.nodesource.com/setup_6.x | sudo bash -
sudo yum install -y nodejs

Step 3: Set Up MongoDB

Create the YUM repository for MongoDB 3.4 by running this block of code in your terminal:

cat <<EOF | sudo tee -a /etc/yum.repos.d/mongodb-org-3.4.repo
[mongodb-org-3.4]
name=MongoDB Repository
baseurl=https://repo.mongodb.org/yum/redhat/7/mongodb-org/3.4/x86_64/
gpgcheck=1
enabled=1
gpgkey=https://www.mongodb.org/static/pgp/server-3.4.asc
EOF

Install and enable the MongoDB service with the commands below:

sudo yum install -y mongodb-org
sudo systemctl start mongod.service
sudo systemctl enable mongod.service

Step 4: Install Parse Server

Use the following commands to install Parse Server version 2.3.2, which was the current release when this guide was prepared:

sudo yum install git -y
cd /opt
sudo git clone https://github.com/ParsePlatform/parse-server.git
cd parse-server
sudo npm install -g parse-server mongodb-runner

Step 5: Launch Parse Server

Before launching Parse Server, define the following credentials:

• appId: 462s45ze2vn6x2vrfyfenqmksngx5xbs
• masterKey: kcr454f9xgq3bpdbhwuy4umamekk3n7f

Then, start the Parse Server using the commands below:

mongodb-runner start
parse-server --appId 462s45ze2vn6x2vrfyfenqmksngx5xbs --masterKey kcr454f9xgq3bpdbhwuy4umamekk3n7f --databaseURI mongodb://localhost/test

The terminal output should look like this:

appId: 462s45ze2vn6x2vrfyfenqmksngx5xbs
masterKey: ***REDACTED***
port: 1337
host: 0.0.0.0
databaseURI: mongodb://localhost/test
mountPath: /parse
maxUploadSize: 20mb
userSensitiveFields: email
serverURL: http://localhost:1337/parse

[13831] parse-server running on http://localhost:1337/parse

Congratulations! Parse Server is now running independently on your machine.

Step 6: Verify Parse Server Functionality

Open another SSH terminal window to run the following tests, while keeping the original Parse Server session active.

First, post some test data to your MongoDB instance:

curl -X POST \
-H "X-Parse-Application-Id: 462s45ze2vn6x2vrfyfenqmksngx5xbs" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"score":1337,"InventoryName":"Desktops","cheatMode":false}' \
http://localhost:1337/parse/classes/Inventory

You should receive a reply similar to:

{"objectId":"meNcfQ6JJJ","createdAt":"2017-01-20T02:19:57.436Z"}

To fetch the stored data, run the following:

curl -X GET \
-H "X-Parse-Application-Id: 462s45ze2vn6x2vrfyfenqmksngx5xbs" \
http://localhost:1337/parse/classes/Inventory/meNcfQ6JJJ

The expected response should include the submitted object data, as shown below:

{"objectId":"meNcfQ6JJJ","score":1337,"InventoryName":"Desktops","cheatMode":false,"createdAt":"2017-01-20T02:19:57.436Z","updatedAt":"2017-01-20T02:19:57.436Z"}

Conclusion

Installing Parse Server on a CentOS 7 system is a practical and efficient way to regain control over your app backend now that the official Parse service is no longer available. By following the steps above, you can fully replicate the Parse experience on your own infrastructure and begin developing or migrating your applications with confidence.