Apache Cookbook, 2nd Edition

1.2. Installing Apache on Windows

Problem

You want to install the Apache Web server software on a Windows platform.

Tip

If you already have Apache installed on your Windows system, remove it before installing a new version. Failure to do this results in unpredictable behavior. See Recipe 1.7.

Solution

Primarily, Windows is a graphically oriented environment, so the Apache install for Windows is correspondingly graphical in nature.

The simplest way to install Apache is to download and execute the Microsoft Software Installer (MSI) package from the Apache Web site at http://httpd.apache.org/download. The following screenshots come from an actual installation made using this method.

Each step of the installation procedure is distinct in the process and you can revise earlier decisions, until the files are installed. The first screen (Figure 1-1) simply confirms what you’re about to do and the version of the package you’re installing.

Figure 1-1. First screen of Apache MSI install

The second screen (Figure 1-2) presents the Apache license. Its basic tenets boil down to the following: do what you want with the software, don’t use the Apache marks (trademarks like the feather or the name Apache) without permission, and provide proper attribution for anything you build based on Apache software. (This only applies if you plan to distribute your package; if you use it strictly on an internal network, ...