SonarQube – A Complete Guide to Code Quality Management

Step 2: Switch to Root User

Most installation steps require root privileges:

sudo su -

Step 3: Fix Time Synchronization (Avoid GPG Errors)

Incorrect system time can cause package signature and repository errors. Enable NTP and sync the clock:

Ensure NTP synchronization is active.

Step 4: Install Java 17 (Amazon Corretto)

SonarQube 9.6.1 requires Java 11 or 17. Java 17 is recommended.

rpm --import https://yum.corretto.aws/corretto.key
curl -Lo /etc/yum.repos.d/corretto.repo https://yum.corretto.aws/corretto.repo
yum install -y java-17-amazon-corretto-devel --nogpgcheck

Step 5: Set Java 17 as Default

If multiple Java versions are installed, configure Java 17 as the default:

alternatives --config java

Select:

/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-amazon-corretto/bin/java

Step 6: Configure Kernel Parameters

SonarQube uses Elasticsearch internally, which requires higher virtual memory limits.

sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144
echo 'vm.max_map_count=262144' >> /etc/sysctl.conf

This setting is mandatory; SonarQube will not start without it.

Step 7: Install Required Packages

Install utilities needed for downloading and extracting SonarQube:

yum install wget unzip -y

Step 8: Download and Extract SonarQube

Navigate to /opt and download SonarQube 9.6.1:

cd /opt
wget https://binaries.sonarsource.com/Distribution/sonarqube/sonarqube-9.6.1.59531.zip
unzip sonarqube-9.6.1.59531.zip
mv sonarqube-9.6.1.59531 sonarqube

Step 9: Create a Dedicated SonarQube User

For security reasons, SonarQube must not run as root.

Step 10: Configure Java Environment for sonar User

Switch to the sonar user  su - sonar

Add Java environment variables to .bashrc:

echo 'export JAVA_HOME=/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-amazon-corretto' >> ~/.bashrc
echo 'export PATH=$JAVA_HOME/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Verify Java version:

java -version

Expected output:

openjdk version "17"

Step 11: Start SonarQube

Navigate to the SonarQube startup script and start the service:

cd /opt/sonarqube/bin/linux-x86-64/
sh sonar.sh start
sh sonar.sh status

If started successfully, SonarQube will run in the background.

Step 12: Access SonarQube Web Interface

Open your browser and navigate to:

http://<your-ec2-public-ip>:9000

Default Login Credentials

• Username: admin

• Password: admin

You will be prompted to change the password on first login.

Optional: Troubleshooting SonarQube Startup Issues

If SonarQube fails to start, check the logs:

tail -n 100 /opt/sonarqube/logs/sonar.log
tail -n 100 /opt/sonarqube/logs/es.log

Common Issues

• Insufficient memory

• Incorrect Java version (Java 21 is not supported)

• vm.max_map_count not configured

• Running SonarQube as root

Important Notes

• ❌ Do not run SonarQube as root

• ✅ Java 17 is recommended for SonarQube 9.6.1

• ⚠️ H2 database is for evaluation only (not production)

• 🛑 SonarQube will fail if system memory is insufficient.

Conclusion

By following this guide, you have successfully installed SonarQube 9.6.1 on RHEL 10 running on an AWS EC2 t2.medium instance. This setup is ideal for learning, demos, and small-scale projects. Integrating SonarQube with CI/CD pipelines will further enhance your code quality and security practices.

*** Shell Script ***

#!/bin/bash

set -e

echo “========== SonarQube 9.6.1 Installation Started ==========”

# —————————–
# Variables
# —————————–
SONAR_VERSION=”9.6.1.59531″
SONAR_USER=”sonar”
SONAR_HOME=”/opt/sonarqube”
JAVA_HOME_PATH=”/usr/lib/jvm/java-17-amazon-corretto”

# —————————–
# 1. Time Synchronization
# —————————–
echo “Configuring time synchronization…”
timedatectl set-ntp true
timedatectl set-timezone UTC
systemctl restart chronyd || systemctl restart systemd-timesyncd

# —————————–
# 2. Install Java 17 (Amazon Corretto)
# —————————–
echo “Installing Java 17 (Amazon Corretto)…”
rpm –import https://yum.corretto.aws/corretto.key
curl -Lo /etc/yum.repos.d/corretto.repo https://yum.corretto.aws/corretto.repo
yum install -y java-17-amazon-corretto-devel –nogpgcheck

# —————————–
# 3. Set Java 17 as Default
# —————————–
echo “Setting Java 17 as default…”
alternatives –set java ${JAVA_HOME_PATH}/bin/java

# —————————–
# 4. Kernel Parameters
# —————————–
echo “Setting vm.max_map_count…”
sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144
grep -q “vm.max_map_count” /etc/sysctl.conf || echo “vm.max_map_count=262144” >> /etc/sysctl.conf

# —————————–
# 5. Install Required Packages
# —————————–
echo “Installing required packages…”
yum install -y wget unzip

# —————————–
# 6. Download and Extract SonarQube
# —————————–
echo “Downloading SonarQube ${SONAR_VERSION}…”
cd /opt
wget -q https://binaries.sonarsource.com/Distribution/sonarqube/sonarqube-${SONAR_VERSION}.zip
unzip -q sonarqube-${SONAR_VERSION}.zip
mv sonarqube-${SONAR_VERSION} sonarqube

# —————————–
# 7. Create Sonar User
# —————————–
echo “Creating sonar user…”
id ${SONAR_USER} &>/dev/null || useradd ${SONAR_USER}
echo “${SONAR_USER} ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: ALL” >> /etc/sudoers

chown -R ${SONAR_USER}:${SONAR_USER} ${SONAR_HOME}
chmod -R 775 ${SONAR_HOME}

# —————————–
# 8. Configure Java for Sonar User
# —————————–
echo “Configuring JAVA_HOME for sonar user…”
su – ${SONAR_USER} <<EOF
grep -q JAVA_HOME ~/.bashrc || echo “export JAVA_HOME=${JAVA_HOME_PATH}” >> ~/.bashrc
grep -q PATH ~/.bashrc || echo “export PATH=\\\$JAVA_HOME/bin:\\\$PATH” >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc
java -version
EOF

# —————————–
# 9. Start SonarQube
# —————————–
echo “Starting SonarQube…”
su – ${SONAR_USER} <<EOF
cd ${SONAR_HOME}/bin/linux-x86-64
sh sonar.sh start
sh sonar.sh status
EOF

# —————————–
# Completion Message
# —————————–
echo “====================================================”
echo ” SonarQube 9.6.1 installation completed successfully “
echo ” Access URL: http://<EC2-PUBLIC-IP>:9000 “
echo ” Default Login -> admin / admin “
echo “====================================================”

How to Use the Script