How to configure PHP with IIS or Apache on Windows

Installing Apache on Windows
These instructions assume that you have never installed Apache on your computer before. The
most recent series, Apache 2.2, is not compatible with Windows versions of PHP earlier than
PHP 5.2.0. If you plan to use an earlier version of PHP, install Apache 2.0. The screenshots in
this section are based on Apache 2.0, but the installation procedure is identical for both Apache
2.2 and 2.0.
1. Go to http://httpd.apache.org/download.cgi and select the file marked Win32 Binary (MSI
Installer) for the Apache series that you want to install. If there’s no link to the Windows binary,
click other files, and then follow the links for binaries and win32.
2. A wizard takes you through the installation process. The only part that needs special attention
is the Server Information screen (see Figure 2-3), in which you enter the default settings for your
web server. In the Network Domain and Server Name fields, enter localhost; in the last field,
enter an email address. The localhost address tells Apache you will be using it on your own
computer. The email address does not need to be a genuine one; it has no bearing on the way the
program runs and is normally of relevance only on a live production server.
3. Select the option labeled for All Users, on Port 80, as a Service. Apache will run in the
background, and you don’t need to worry about starting it. Click Next.
4. In the remaining dialog boxes, leave the default options unchanged and click next. In the final
dialog box, click Install to finish the Apache installation.
5. The process is quite quick, but don’t be alarmed if you see a Command Prompt window open
and close several times. This is perfectly normal. If a software firewall is installed, you will
probably see a warning message asking you whether to block Apache. You must allow
communication with Apache. Otherwise it won’t work.
Figure 2-3. Filling out the Server Information dialog box during installation of Apache
6. After the program has been installed, open a browser and type http://localhost/ into the address
bar. If all has gone well, you should see the test page shown in Figure 2-4 (Apache 2.2 displays a
test page that simply says “It works!”).
7. If you get an error message, it probably means that the Apache server is not running. Start up
the server, as described in the next section, and try again. If you still get problems, check

C:Program FilesApache Software FoundationApache2.2 logserror.log or C:Program
FilesApache GroupApache2logserror.log. A common cause of failure is that another program,
such as Skype, is already using port 80. If that happens, move the other program to a different
port, or reinstall Apache, and select the Port 8080 option in step 3.
Figure 2-4. Confirmation that Apache 2.0 is running successfully on Windows
If you install Apache on port 8080, you need to start Apache manually and add a colon followed
by the port number after localhost, like this: http://localhost:8080/.
Starting and stopping Apache on Windows
Apache places a tiny icon in the tray or notification area at the right end of the Windows taskbar.
This is the Apache Service Monitor, which shows you whether Apache is running. If it’s
running, there is a green light. When Apache has stopped, the arrow turns to a red light.
Setting up PHP on Windows
The files for PHP come in two versions: a ZIP file for manual installation, and a Windows
installer. Up to PHP 5.1, the Windows installer offered an extremely limited setup and was not
recommended. But new Windows installer capable of automating the installation of a full
featured PHP setup on either Apache or IIS. The new installer is expected to be available from
PHP 5.2.0 onward. The following instructions show you how to install PHP manually from the
ZIP file. Although this takes a little longer, it has the advantage of not making any changes to
your Windows registry. The process involves four stages, as follows:

Downloading and configuring PHP
If you have an old installation of PHP, you must first remove any PHP-related files from your
main Windows folder (C:WINDOWS or C:WINNT, depending on your system) and the
system32 subfolder. Deleting the contents of the Windows system folders is not to be undertaken
lightly, so I suggest that you cut and paste them to a temporary folder. Then, if anything goes
wrong, you can easily restore them. The PHP files you need to remove are php.ini (in the main
Windows folder) and php4ts.dll or php5ts.dll in the system32 subfolder. You should also remove
any other PHP-related DLL files from the system32 subfolder. They are easy to recognize
because they all begin with php. If there’s a copy of libmysql.dll in your Windows system folder,
remove that, too.
1. Go to www.php.net/downloads.php and select the Windows binaries ZIP or source file for
the latest stable version of PHP. Even if your hosting company is running an older version of
PHP, I suggest downloading the latest version of PHP to avoid problems when you install
MySQL. If you want to configure PHP with IIS then download only non thread safe file and
if you to configure PHP with Apache then download only threat safe file. Choose one and
download the ZIP file to a temporary folder on your hard disk.
2. Unzip the contents of the ZIP file to a new folder called C:php. The php folder should contain
several other folders, as well as about 30 files.
The precise name or location of the folder isn’t important, but it makes sense to use php or phpx,
where x is the PHP version number. If you choose a location different from C:php, you need to
substitute the name of your new folder in all later steps. Don’t put the PHP files in a folder that
contains spaces in either its name or pathname, because it can create problems with Apache.
3. In the php folder, locate the file called php.ini-development, make a copy of it, and rename the
copy php.ini.
4. Open php.ini in any text editor. Notepad will do, but it’s better to use a script editor that
displays line numbers, because finding the relevant sections will be a lot easier.
5. Scroll down to the following lines in the Error Handling and Logging section (the wording
may differ slightly, but you should be able to find them by searching for error_reporting):
Notice how most lines begin with a semicolon. This indicates that they are comments and will be
ignored by Windows. Only the final line in the screenshot (indicated by a marker alongside the
number on line 292) begins without a semicolon, and this is the one you need to amend. Change
it so that it looks like this:
error_reporting = E_ALL
This sets error reporting to a higher level, which helps ensure your PHP is robust.

The line numbers and markers in the screenshots are generated by the script editor and are not
part of php.ini. Use the screenshots and line numbers in this section only as a general guide. The
contents of php.ini undergo constant revision, so your version may look slightly different. The
important thing is to use the settings recommended in the text.
6. Scroll down to the Paths and Directories section. Locate the following:
extension_dir = ". /"
Change it to
extension_dir = "C:phpext"
This is where PHP will look for any extensions. This assumes you extracted the PHP files to the
recommended location. If you chose a different one, change the path accordingly.
7. Scroll further down until you come to Dynamic Extensions. You will see a long list titled
Windows Extensions, all of them commented out. These extensions add extra features to the core
functionality of PHP. Locate the following (around line 569):
;extension=php_mbstring.dll
Enable the extension by removing the semicolon from the beginning of the line like this:
extension=php_mbstring.dll
This enables support for Unicode. Even if you never plan to use anything other than English, it’s
required to work with the latest versions of MySQL.
8. About eight lines further down, locate the following:
;extension=php_gd2.dll
Remove the semicolon from the beginning of the line. This will allow you to use PHP’s image
manipulation functions.
9. About 12 lines further down, locate the line containing php_mysql.dll. Remove the semicolon
from the beginning of both lines and amend the second line so they look like this:
extension=php_mysql.dll
extension=php_mysqli.dll

The line numbers and markers in the screenshots are generated by the script editor and are not
part of php.ini. Use the screenshots and line numbers in this section only as a general guide. The
contents of php.ini undergo constant revision, so your version may look slightly different. The
important thing is to use the settings recommended in the text.
10. Add the following lines immediately below those in the previous step:
extension=php_pdo.dll
extension=php_pdo_mysql.dll
The four lines in this step and the previous one enable all the MySQL-specific functions.
11. In the Module Settings section immediately following the list of extensions, look for the
code shown alongside. Change the line shown in the screenshot as line 623 to the name of the
SMTP server you normally use for sending email. If your email address is, for instance,
david@example.com, your outgoing address is most probably smtp.example.com. In that case,
you would change the line like this:
SMTP = smtp.example.com
Changes to the settings in this step and the following one are intended to make it possible to test
the mail application in Chapter 5 on your local computer. However, it won’t work if your ISP’s
SMTP server requires a username and password every time you connect (as happens with Gmail
and other webmail services). Also, some ISPs reject mail that comes from an unidentified
domain. In such circumstances, you will need to upload the files to your remote server to test
them.
12. Remove the semicolon from the beginning of the command shown on line 627, and put your
own email address in place of me@example.com:
sendmail_from = david@example.com
This puts your correct email address in the from: field of emails sent through PHP.
13. The final change you need to make to php.ini is considerably further down. Locate the
following:
;session.save_path = "/tmp"
Remove the semicolon from the beginning of the line, and change the setting in quotes to your
computer’s Temp folder. On most Windows computers, this will be
C:WINDOWSTemp:
session.save_path = "C:WINDOWSTemp"
14. Save php.ini, and close it. Leave it inside the C:php folder.

Adding PHP to your Windows startup procedure
The installation of PHP is complete, but you still need to tell Windows where to find all the
necessary files whenever you switch on your computer.
Changes to the settings in this step and the following one are intended to make it possible to test
the mail application on your local computer. However, it won’t work if your ISP’s SMTP server
requires a username and password every time you connect (as happens with Gmail and other
webmail services). Also, some ISPs reject mail that comes from an unidentified domain. In such
circumstances, you will need to upload the files to your remote server to test them.2
1. Open the Windows Control Panel (Start -> Settings -> Control Panel or Start -> Control
Panel). Double-click the System icon. Select the Advanced tab and click Environment Variables,
as shown in the following screenshot.
2. In the System variables pane at the bottom of the dialog box that opens, highlight Path as
shown and click Edit.

3. A smaller dialog box opens. Click inside the Variable value field and move your cursor to the
end of the existing value. Type a semicolon followed by the name of the PHP folder you created
in step 2 of the previous section (;C:php). As shown in the screenshot, there should be no spaces
between the value just entered and the existing value or in the new pathname.
4. Click OK. With the Environment Variables dialog box still open, click New in the System
variables pane. Another small dialog box opens, in which you enter the details of the new system
variable. In the Variable name field, type PHPRC. In the Variable value field, enter the path of
the PHP folder (C:php).
5. Click OK to close all the dialog boxes. The next time you restart your computer, Windows
will know where to find all the necessary files to run PHP. However, before restarting your
computer, you still need to make some changes to your web server so that it knows how to

handle PHP files. If you are using Apache, continue with the next section. If you are using IIS,
skip ahead to the section titled “Configuring IIS to work with PHP.”
Configuring Apache to work with PHP
Now that all the configuration settings have been made for PHP, you need to make some
adjustments to the main configuration file for Apache.
1. The Apache configuration file httpd.conf is located in C:Program FilesApache Software
FoundationApache2.2conf (for Apache 2.0, it’s in C:Program Files Apache
GroupApache2conf). Use Windows Explorer to locate the file and open it in a script editor.
Like php.ini, httpd.conf is a very long file composed mainly of comments, which in this case can
be distinguished by a pound or hash sign (#) at the beginning of the line.
2. Scroll down until you find a long list of items that begin with Load Module (many of them
will be commented out). At the end of the list, add the following on a new line, (for Apache 2.2):
LoadModule php5_module c:/php/php5apache2_2.dll
If you are using Apache 2.0, this list is about 60 lines further down. Apache 2.0 uses a different
DLL file, so the command should look like this:
LoadModule php5_module c:/php/php5apache2.dll
3. Scroll down a bit further until you come to the following command (around line 214):
DirectoryIndex index.html This setting tells web servers what to display by default if a URL
doesn’t end with a filename, but contains only a folder name or the domain name (for instance,
www.friendsofed.com). Apache will choose the first available page from a space separated list.
The purpose of this book is to work with PHP, so add index.php.
DirectoryIndex index.html index.php
In Apache 2.0, includes index.html.var. Just add index.php at the end of the line as above.
4. Close to the end of httpd.conf, you’ll find a section that includes several commands that begin
with AddType. Add the following line in that section on a line of its own, as shown:
AddType application/x-httpd-php .php
6. Save and close httpd.conf.
7. You now need to restart your computer so that the changes made to the Windows PATH and
startup procedure can take effect. Apache should start automatically, unless you selected the

manual option earlier. If everything starts normally, skip ahead to the section titled “Testing PHP
on Windows.” If you see an error message, read on.
8. If there are any mistakes in httpd.conf, Apache will refuse to start. Depending on the version
you have installed, you might get a helpful message in a Command Prompt window that tells you
what the problem is and which line of httpd.conf it occurred on. Reopen httpd.conf and correct
the error (probably a typo). On the other hand, Windows might display a very unhelpful message
simply telling you that the operation has failed. Check the Apache error log (C:Program
FilesApache Software Foundation Apache2.2logserror.log or C:Program FilesApache
GroupApache2logs error.log) for clues about the problem. Alternatively, open a Command
Prompt window. Inside the Command Prompt window, change to the Apache program folder by
typing the following and pressing Enter: cd c:program filesapache software
foundationapache2.2bin For Apache 2.0, use this: cd c:program filesapache groupapache2bin
Then type this (followed by Enter): apache
The reason for the failure should appear onscreen, usually with a line number pinpointing the
problem in httpd.conf. After you correct httpd.conf, resave the file and restart Apache using the
Apache Service Monitor. Assuming everything goes OK this time, skip ahead to “Testing PHP
on Windows.”
If you type apache in the Command Prompt window and nothing appears to happen, it doesn’t
mean that Apache has hung. It indicates that Apache has started normally. However, while
Apache is running, it doesn’t return you to the command line; and if you close the window,
Apache will crash. To close Apache gracefully, open another Command Prompt window, change
the directory to the apache2.2bin or apache2bin folder, and type the following command:
apache -k shutdown You can then restart Apache using the Apache Service Monitor.
Configuring IIS to work with PHP
These instructions assume that you are familiar with IIS basics, and already have it installed and
running on your computer. You should also have completed the sections titled “Downloading
and configuring PHP” and “Adding PHP to your Windows startup procedure.”
1. Open the Internet Information Services panel (Start -> Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -
>Internet Information Services).
2. Expand the folder tree in the left panel, and highlight Default Web Site, as shown in the
screenshot. Right-click and select Properties from the context menu.
3. In the Default Web Site Properties dialog box, select the Home Directory tab, and set Execute
Permissions to Scripts only, as shown at the top of the next page. Then click Configuration.

4. The Application Configuration dialog box opens. Select the Mappings tab, and click Add.
5. In the Add/Edit Application Extension Mapping dialog box that opens, enter the full path to
php5isapi.dll in the Executable field. If you used the default location for the PHP files
recommended earlier, this will be C:phpphp5isapi.dll. Enter .php in the Extension field. Don’t
forget the period at the front of the extension—this is very important. Make sure that Script
engine is checked, and leave the other settings unchanged. Click OK twice to return to the
Default Web Site Properties dialog box.
If you click the Browse button to navigate to the location of your PHP files in step 5, make sure
that the drop-down menu labeled Files of type at the bottom of the Open dialog box is set to
Dynamic Link libraries (*.dll) or All files (*.*). Otherwise, you won’t be able to locate the
correct file.
6. Select the Documents tab of the Default Web Site Properties dialog box, and click Add. In the
dialog box that opens, type index.php in the Default Document Name field, and click OK. Use
the up and down arrows to move index.php to the position you want in the list. IIS uses the list to

serve up a default document whenever you enter a URL in the browser address bar that doesn’t
include a filename (such as www.friendsofed.com). Make sure that Enable Default Document is
checked. When you have finished, click OK to close the Default Web Site Properties dialog box.
7. Before your changes can take effect, you need to restart IIS. Open the Services panel (Start ->
Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services). Highlight IIS Admin, and click Restart the
service. Test PHP as described in the next section.
Testing PHP on Windows
Now comes the moment of truth: checking whether you have installed everything correctly. If
you have followed the instructions carefully, everything should be OK.
1. Open a script editor and type the following code into a blank file (there should be nothing else
in the page):
<?php phpinfo(); ?>
2. Save the file as index.php in your server root folder. If you have set up Apache as
recommended in this chapter, this is C:htdocs (create a new folder with that name, if you
haven’t already done so). If you are using IIS, save the file in C:Inetpubwwwroot.
3. Open a browser and type http://localhost/index.php in the address bar. (If your web server is
running on a nonstandard port, such as 8080, add a colon followed by the port number after
localhost, like this: http://localhost:8080/index.php.) You should see a page similar to the one
shown in Figure 2-5. Welcome to the world of PHP! The mass of information displayed by
index.php may appear overwhelming at the moment, but you should always display this page
whenever you need to find out anything about your PHP setup.

Figure 2-5. The phpinfo() command confirms that PHP is installed and displays useful
information about your setup.
Troubleshooting
Use the following checklist if you get error messages or fail to see the page shown in Figure 2-5:
Test an ordinary HTML web page in the same location. If both fail to display, check that your
web server is running. If just the PHP page fails to display, retrace your steps through the
sections on installing PHP. IIS doesn’t always recognize PHP after a simple restart, but rebooting
the computer usually does the trick. If you see an error message that the mysqli extension cannot
be loaded, this usually indicates that an old version of a file called libmysql.dll has been installed
in C:WINDOWSsystem32 by another program. Copy the version from C:php to
C:WINDOWSsystem32 and restart your web server.

How to configure PHP with IIS or Apache on Windows

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