How to Install Apache Cassandra on Ubuntu 20.04

Apache Cassandra is a high-performance opensource NoSQL database engine that provides fault tolerance, linear scalability, and consistency across multiple nodes. Give its distributed architecture, Apache Cassandra handles huge volumes of data with dynamo-style replication. This is where replicas are stored on several nodes in a cluster thus providing high availability and zero points of failure.

Apache Cassandra is ideal in IoT applications where massive data is collected. It also comes in handy in social media analytics, messaging services, and retail applications.

Among the companies that make use of Apache Cassandra include Netflix, Facebook, Cisco, Hulu, Twitter, and many more.

In this article, you will learn how to install and configure Apache Cassandra on Ubuntu 20.04 and Ubuntu 18.04.

Step 1: Installing Java on Ubuntu

Installation of Apache Cassandra begins with checking whether Java is installed. To be more specific, OpenJDK is what is required to work seamlessly with Apache Cassandra. Installing a different version is more likely to give you errors during configuration.

To check whether Java is installed, run the command:

$ java -version

If Java is not yet installed, you will find the output printed as shown on your terminal.

Check Java Installation on Ubuntu
Check Java Installation on Ubuntu

To install OpenJDK, execute the following apt command.

$ sudo apt install openjdk-8-jdk

Once again, confirm that Java is installed by running the command.

$ java -version
Check Java Version in Ubuntu
Check Java Version in Ubuntu

Step 2: Install Apache Cassandra in Ubuntu

With Java installed, we will proceed to install Apache Cassandra. First, install the apt-transport-https package to allow access of repositories via the https protocol.

$ sudo apt install apt-transport-https

Next, Import the GPG key using following wget command as shown.

$ wget -q -O - https://www.apache.org/dist/cassandra/KEYS | sudo apt-key add -

Then add Apache Cassandra’s repository to the system’s sources list file as shown.

$ sudo sh -c 'echo "deb http://www.apache.org/dist/cassandra/debian 311x main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/cassandra.list'

Before installing Apache Cassandra, you need to update the package list first.

$ sudo apt update

Then install the NoSQL database using the command:

$ sudo apt install cassandra
Install Apache Cassandra in Ubuntu
Install Apache Cassandra in Ubuntu

Usually, Apache Cassandra starts automatically. To confirm its status, run the following command:

$ sudo systemctl status cassandra

The output below confirms that Cassandra is up and running as expected.

Check Apache Cassandra Status
Check Apache Cassandra Status

Additionally, you can verify the stats of your node by running the command.

$ sudo nodetool status
Check Node Tool Status
Check Node Tool Status

To log in to Cassandra on the terminal, invoke the command.

$ cqlsh
Start Cassandra cqlsh Shell
Start Cassandra cqlsh Shell

Step 3: Configuring Apache Cassandra in Ubuntu

Apache Cassandra configuration files are stacked in the /etc/cassandra directory whilst data is stored in /var/lib/cassandra directory. Start-up options can be tweaked in the /etc/default/cassandra file.

Cassandra’s default cluster name is ‘Test Cluster’. To change this to a more meaningful name, log in to Cassandra.

$ cqlsh

To set the Cluster name to your own preference, run the command shown below. In this case, we are setting the cluster name to ‘Tecmint Cluster

UPDATE system.local SET cluster_name = 'Tecmint Cluster' WHERE KEY = 'local';

Exit the prompt by typing:

EXIT;

Thereafter, head out to the cassandra.yaml file as shown:

$ sudo vim /etc/cassandra/cassandra.yaml

Search for the cluster_name directive and edit the cluster name accordingly as shown below.

Set Cassandra Cluster Name
Set Cassandra Cluster Name

Save and exit the configuration file and restart the Cassandra service. You can log in again to confirm the cluster name as shown.

Confirm Cassandra Cluster Name
Confirm Cassandra Cluster Name

And that concludes the topic on the installation of Apache Cassandra on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS.

Hey TecMint readers,

Exciting news! Every month, our top blog commenters will have the chance to win fantastic rewards, like free Linux eBooks such as RHCE, RHCSA, LFCS, Learn Linux, and Awk, each worth $20!

Learn more about the contest and stand a chance to win by sharing your thoughts below!

James Kiarie
This is James, a certified Linux administrator and a tech enthusiast who loves keeping in touch with emerging trends in the tech world. When I'm not running commands on the terminal, I'm taking listening to some cool music. taking a casual stroll or watching a nice movie.

Each tutorial at TecMint is created by a team of experienced Linux system administrators so that it meets our high-quality standards.

Join the TecMint Weekly Newsletter (More Than 156,129 Linux Enthusiasts Have Subscribed)
Was this article helpful? Please add a comment or buy me a coffee to show your appreciation.

Got Something to Say? Join the Discussion...

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. We appreciate your decision to leave a comment and value your contribution to the discussion. It's important to note that we moderate all comments in accordance with our comment policy to ensure a respectful and constructive conversation.

Rest assured that your email address will remain private and will not be published or shared with anyone. We prioritize the privacy and security of our users.