Apache Cookbook, 2nd Edition

2.5. Installing mod_php on a Unixish System

Problem

You want to add the mod_php scripting module to your existing Apache Web server.

Solution

Download the mod_php package source from the Web site at http://php.net (follow the links for downloading) and unpack it. Then:

% cd php-5.2.3
% ./configure \
>     --with-apxs2=/usr/local/apache/bin/apxs
% make
#make install

Restart the server.

Discussion

To test that your installation was successful, create a file named info.php in your server’s DocumentRoot; the file should contain the single line:

<?php phpinfo(); ?>

Add the following lines to your server’s httpd.conf file:

<IfModule mod_php4.c>
    AddHandler application/x-httpd-php .php
</IfModule>

After restarting your server, try fetching the document info.php using a browser. You should see a detailed description of the PHP options that are active. If you do, indicating a successful installation, remove the info.php file.

There are numerous additional options and extensions available for PHP; the recipe given here is only for the most basic installation.

See Also

• Recipe 8.16

• Recipe 8.17

• http://php.net