Introduction

Apache is a popular web server that can host multiple websites on a single server. This can be achieved using Apache Virtual Hosts, where each domain can have its own document root and configuration.

For this example, we will configure two domains:

  • domain1.tld
  • domain2.tld

Each domain will point to a separate document root.

Prerequisites

Before proceeding, make sure you have:

  1. An Ubuntu server
  2. Apache Web Server installed
  3. Root or sudo access
  4. Two domains pointing to the server IP address
  5. Basic knowledge of Linux commands

If Apache is not installed, refer to:

Install Apache on Ubuntu

Install Apache with php-fpm on Ubuntu 16
How To Install the Apache Web Server on Ubuntu 18.04
How to install/compile Apache with PHP via source installation

Implementation

Step 1: Create Document Root Directories

Create separate directories for both domains:

mkdir-p /var/www/domain1.tldmkdir-p /var/www/domain2.tld

Change the ownership to the Apache web server user:

chown-R www-data:www-data /var/www/domain1.tldchown-R www-data:www-data /var/www/domain2.tld

You can then upload the respective website files into each directory.

Step 2: Create Virtual Host Configuration

Create a separate Apache Virtual Host configuration for each domain.

cp /etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf \/etc/apache2/sites-available/domain1.tld.confcp /etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf \/etc/apache2/sites-available/domain2.tld.conf

Step 3: Configure Domain 1

Open the configuration file:

vi /etc/apache2/sites-available/domain1.tld.conf

Configure the Virtual Host as follows:

<VirtualHost *:80>    
ServerAdmin admin@domain1.tld    
ServerName domain1.tld    
ServerAlias www.domain1.tld    
DocumentRoot /var/www/domain1.tld
</VirtualHost>

Here:

  • ServerName specifies the primary domain.
  • ServerAlias allows additional names such as www.domain1.tld.
  • DocumentRoot specifies where the website files are stored.

Step 4: Configure Domain 2

Open the second configuration file:

vi /etc/apache2/sites-available/domain2.tld.conf

Add:

<VirtualHost *:80>    
ServerAdmin admin@domain2.tld    
ServerName domain2.tld    
ServerAlias www.domain2.tld    
DocumentRoot /var/www/domain2.tld
</VirtualHost>

Now each domain has its own Virtual Host and document root.

Step 5: Enable the Virtual Hosts

Enable both websites using a2ensite:

a2ensite domain1.tld.confa2ensite domain2.tld.conf

You can disable the default Apache site if it is not required:

a2dissite 000-default.conf

Step 6: Check Apache Configuration

Before restarting Apache, always check the configuration for syntax errors:

apachectl -t

If everything is correct, you should see:

Syntax OK

Step 7: Restart Apache

Restart Apache to apply the configuration:

systemctl restart apache2

Alternatively:

service apache2 restart

Step 8: Test the Domains

If the DNS records are already configured, access the domains from your browser:

http://domain1.tldhttp://domain2.tld

Apache will identify the requested domain and serve the corresponding website.

The traffic flow will look like:

                Internet
                     |
              Apache Server
                     |
          +----------+----------+
          |                     |
    domain1.tld            domain2.tld
          |                     |
 /var/www/domain1.tld   /var/www/domain2.tld

Testing Before DNS Configuration

If the domains are not yet pointing to the server, you can test the Virtual Host configuration using the local /etc/hosts file.

On a Linux or macOS system, open:

sudovi /etc/hosts

Add:

xx.xx.xx.xx domain1.tldxx.xx.xx.xx domain2.tld

Replace xx.xx.xx.xx with the IP address of your Apache server.

You can then access the domains from your browser and verify that each domain displays its respective website.

Verification

You can also check the Virtual Hosts recognized by Apache:

apachectl -S

This command displays the configured Virtual Hosts and helps identify which domain is associated with which configuration file.

For example:

*:80    
domain1.tld (/etc/apache2/sites-enabled/domain1.tld.conf:1)    
domain2.tld (/etc/apache2/sites-enabled/domain2.tld.conf:1)

This is particularly useful when troubleshooting multiple Virtual Host configurations.

Common Issues

Domain Shows the Wrong Website

Check the following:

  • ServerName
  • ServerAlias
  • DocumentRoot
  • DNS records
  • Enabled Virtual Host configurations

You can use:

apachectl -S

to identify which Virtual Host Apache is using.

Apache Configuration Error

Run:

apachectl -t

Check the reported configuration file and line number, correct the issue, and test again.

Domain Is Not Reachable

Verify that the domain’s DNS record points to the correct server IP:

domain1.tld  →  Server IPdomain2.tld  →  Server IP

Also make sure HTTP port 80 is allowed through the server firewall or cloud security rules.

Conclusion

Apache Virtual Hosts make it possible to host multiple domains on a single Ubuntu server while keeping each website’s files and configuration separate.

The basic process is:

  1. Create a document root for each domain.
  2. Create a Virtual Host configuration for each domain.
  3. Configure ServerName, ServerAlias, and DocumentRoot.
  4. Enable the Virtual Hosts.
  5. Test the Apache configuration.
  6. Restart Apache.
  7. Verify the domains.
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