This collection of chef recipes should help you get bootstrap a VPS to run (https://github.com/discourse/discourse). Start with a blank Ubuntu 12.04 VPS.

Gets you a working server ready to cap deploy discourse.

Clone this repo:

git clone https://github.com/sud0n1m/discourse-chef

1. Get librarian chef and the packages installed

On your local machine:

cd discourse-chef
gem install librarian
librarian-chef install

2. Bootstrap your server

SERVER="yourdomain.com"

# Install Instructions

# enter your password once and never again
ssh-copy-id root@$SERVER

# Copy the bootstrap file and run it
rsync -r . root@$SERVER:/var/chef && ssh root@$SERVER "sh /var/chef/bootstrap.sh"

# Install chef services
librarian-chef install && rsync -r . root@$SERVER:/var/chef && ssh root@$SERVER "chef-solo -c /var/chef/solo.rb"

# Copy the deploy user to the server
ssh-copy-id deploy@$SERVER

# From the discourse directory, run capistrano
# Here's an example.
# https://gist.github.com/sud0n1m/4953154

cap deploy 

# If hstore doesn't work

ssh deploy@$SERVER
sudo su postgres
psql -d discourse
CREATE EXTENSION hstore;
\q
exit

# Migrate the database to set it up
cd /web/discourse/current
bundle exec rake db:migrate

# Log in and create your first user!
# Then go and make them an admin

ssh deploy@$SERVER1
cd /web/discourse/current
bundle exec rails c

u = User.first
u.admin = true
u.save

exit