PHP is a widely-used scripting language that is especially suited for web development and can be embedded into HTML. PHP 7 is the latest major release of PHP, which improves upon previous versions with better performance and reduced memory consumption. In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through the process of installing PHP 7 on Ubuntu, which is a popular Linux distribution known for its stability and ease of use.
Prerequisites
Before we begin the installation process, make sure you have root access to your Ubuntu server. Additionally, IT‘s recommended to have a basic understanding of the command line and package management with apt.
Step 1: Add PHP Repository
The default Ubuntu repositories may not have the latest version of PHP available. To ensure we get PHP 7, we need to add a repository that contains the latest PHP packages. To add the repository, run the following commands in your terminal:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install software-properties-common
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
sudo apt update
After adding the repository, you have access to the latest PHP 7 packages.
Step 2: Install PHP 7
Now that we have added the repository, we can proceed with the installation of PHP 7. Run the following command to install PHP 7 and some commonly used extensions:
sudo apt install php7.4
sudo apt install php7.4-cli php7.4-common php7.4-json php7.4-opcache php7.4-mysql php7.4-mbstring php7.4-zip php7.4-fpm
This command installs PHP 7.4 and some essential extensions for web development. You can also install additional extensions based on your requirements.
Step 3: Configure PHP
After installing PHP 7, it’s important to configure it based on your needs. PHP configuration files are located in the /etc/php/7.4 directory. The main configuration file is php.ini. You can edit this file to adjust various settings such as memory_limit, max_execution_time, and error_reporting.
If you are using PHP for web development, you may also need to configure PHP-FPM, which is a FastCGI Process Manager for PHP. The configuration files for PHP-FPM are located in the /etc/php/7.4/fpm directory.
Step 4: Test PHP
To ensure that PHP 7 is installed and configured correctly, create a test PHP file in your web server’s document root. For example, you can create a file named info.php with the following content:
phpinfo();
?>
Save the file and access it through your web browser (e.g., http://your_domain/info.php). You should see a page displaying detailed information about the PHP installation and configuration.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You have successfully installed PHP 7 on your Ubuntu server. You can now take advantage of the improved performance and features offered by PHP 7 for your web development projects. Remember to keep PHP and its extensions updated to benefit from the latest improvements and security patches.
FAQs
Q: Can I install PHP 7 alongside other PHP versions?
A: Yes, you can install multiple versions of PHP on the same server. This can be useful if you have different applications that require different PHP versions.
Q: How do I switch between different PHP versions?
A: You can use a tool like phpbrew to switch between different PHP versions on the command line. Alternatively, you can configure your web server to use a specific PHP version for different virtual hosts.
Q: Is it necessary to remove older versions of PHP before installing PHP 7?
A: It’s not necessary to remove older versions of PHP before installing PHP 7. However, it’s a good practice to clean up unused packages and dependencies to free up disk space.
Q: How can I update PHP and its extensions?
A: You can update PHP and its extensions using the package manager (apt) on Ubuntu. Simply run the command sudo apt update followed by sudo apt upgrade to update all installed packages, including PHP and its extensions.
Thanks for reading our comprehensive guide on installing PHP 7 on Ubuntu. We hope you found it helpful and informative. If you have any further questions or feedback, feel free to reach out to us.
