Top Tips and Tricks for Power Users of XOWA

How to Install and Use XOWA for Local Wiki Access

XOWA is an open-source application that lets you download and run a full copy of Wikipedia (and other Wikimedia projects) locally on your computer. It’s useful for offline research, classrooms with limited internet, or anyone who wants fast access to wiki content without relying on a remote server. This guide walks through installing XOWA, downloading a wiki, and using it for local access.

Requirements

• A modern desktop OS: Windows, macOS, or Linux.
• Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 11+ installed.
• Sufficient disk space: a full English Wikipedia XML + images dump requires hundreds of gigabytes; smaller language wikis or text-only dumps need far less.
• Stable internet connection for initial download (unless you copy dumps from another source).

1. Install Java

1. Download and install a JRE (OpenJDK or Oracle) version 11 or later:
   • Windows/macOS: use the platform installer from AdoptOpenJDK/Adoptium or your vendor of choice.
   • Linux: install via your package manager (e.g., apt, dnf) or download a tarball.
2. Verify installation:

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   java -version 

   You should see Java 11+ reported.

2. Download XOWA

1. Visit the XOWA releases page and download the platform bundle for your OS (the download is a ZIP or tar.gz containing the XOWA application).
2. Extract the archive to a folder where you want XOWA to live (no admin install required).

3. Start XOWA

1. Open a terminal (or Command Prompt) and navigate to the XOWA folder.
2. Run the launcher:
   • Windows:

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     run.bat 

   • macOS / Linux:

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     ./run.sh 

3. XOWA will start a local web server and open your default browser to the XOWA home page (typically at http://localhost:8080).

4. Download a Wiki (two common methods)

A. Use XOWA’s built-in download manager

1. In the XOWA web interface, go to the “XOWA -> Wiki Hosting” or the “Download” section (labels may vary by version).
2. Choose a wiki (e.g., English Wikipedia) and select the dump type:
   • Articles only (text) — smallest, no images.
   • Articles + Images — much larger but includes media.
3. Start the download. XOWA will fetch and import content automatically. Monitor progress in the interface.

B. Use Wikimedia dumps manually

1. Download page and image dump files from the Wikimedia dumps site (choose the desired date and language). Typical files:
   • pages-articles.xml.bz2 (content)
   • image files archive(s) (for images)
2. Place dump files in XOWA’s import folder (see XOWA documentation for the path).
3. Use XOWA’s import option (via the web interface or command line) to import the dumps.

5. Configure Storage & Performance

• Change XOWA’s storage path to a drive with enough space if importing large wikis.
• For large imports, ensure Java has enough heap memory by editing the run script to add JVM options, e.g.:

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  java -Xmx8G -jar xowa.jar 

  Adjust -Xmx to available RAM.

6. Using XOWA Locally

• Browse: Use the local web UI to search and navigate articles just like online Wikipedia.
• Search: XOWA supports full-text search; indexing may take time after import.
• Export: You can export pages or subsets for sharing or backup.
• Add-ons: XOWA supports extensions like offline multimedia viewers and can serve the content to other devices on your local network by adjusting server settings.

7. Tips & Troubleshooting

• If the browser doesn’t open, point your browser to http://localhost:8080 manually.
• If imports fail, check available disk space and Java heap settings.
• Use text-only dumps if you only need articles and want faster setup.
• Keep XOWA and Java updated for best compatibility.
• For classroom use, run XOWA on a server and let students connect over the LAN.

8. Uninstalling or Moving

• To remove XOWA, stop the run process and delete the XOWA folder and any imported wiki data.
• To move to another machine, copy the XOWA folder (including data) and run the start script on the new machine.

Summary

XOWA provides a flexible way to host Wikipedia and other wikis locally. Install Java, download XOWA, import a dump (text-only for a quicker setup),