# PHP

Endless Lifecycle Support (ELS) for PHP from TuxCare provides security fixes for PHP versions that have reached their end-of-life. This allows you to continue running your server vulnerability-free.

# About ALT-PHP

alt-php is a component provided by TuxCare designed for managing PHP versions on web servers and enabling users to choose PHP versions for their websites.

Here are the key features and characteristics of alt-php:

• Multiple PHP Versions - alt-php allows the installation and usage of various PHP versions on a single web server. This enables users to select the PHP version that best suits their web applications.

• User Segmentation - alt-php allows hosting providers and web server administrators to provide different PHP versions for different users. Each user can choose the PHP version that suits their website.

• Enhanced Compatibility - alt-php is designed to ensure maximum compatibility with various web applications and frameworks. This includes optimizations and changes to make it compatible with a wide range of PHP applications.

• Updates and Support - CloudLinux provides regular updates for alt-php, including bug fixes, performance improvements, and updates for new PHP versions. This helps ensure the security and currency of PHP usage.

• Management Tools - alt-php usually comes with a set of management tools, such as PHP Selector, allowing users to manage PHP versions and enable/disable various PHP extensions.

alt-php provides a more flexible and convenient environment for working with different PHP versions on a single server, which is particularly useful in a web hosting environment where multiple users have varying requirements for PHP versions for their web applications.

# Supported OS and PHP versions

# Installation on Linux

sudo yum install libvpx-1.3.0

# Useful Commands and Usage

When you deploy an updated version of PHP through PHP ELS, using your system's regular update tool (yum, dnf, apt), the new version will be installed under /opt/alt/php[version]/. This means that all modules, configurations and additional files pertaining to this version will be contained inside that path. Different versions of PHP will each have their own path and can coexist without issues on the same system. Below you will find the location of all the relevant files, should you want to make any changes.

Check current version of alt-php packagesList available groupsUpdate alt-phpSearch for packagesFile locationsEnabling a moduleIncrease upload or memory limits

To check whether the package is installed and see its current version, use the following command based on your OS:

RPMDEB

sudo yum list installed | grep php

# Installation on Windows

TuxCare provides two ways to install ELS PHP on Windows: manually by downloading and configuring PHP from the repository, or using the TuxCare Installer — a graphical tool that automates the process.

https://<YOUR-TOKEN>@windows.tuxcare.com/php/

https://<YOUR-TOKEN>@windows.tuxcare.com
  /php/<version>/tuxcare.els<N>/<filename>.zip

$base = "https://<YOUR-TOKEN>@windows.tuxcare.com"
$file = "/php/7.4.33/tuxcare.els8/" +
  "php-7.4.33-tuxcare-els8-nts-Win32-vc15-x64-signed.zip"
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "$base$file" -OutFile "php-7.4.33.zip"

BASE="https://<YOUR-TOKEN>@windows.tuxcare.com"
FILE="/php/7.4.33/tuxcare.els8/\
php-7.4.33-tuxcare-els8-nts-Win32-vc15-x64-signed.zip"
curl -O "${BASE}${FILE}"

# Additional configurations

Depending on your ELS PHP usage purpose, additional configurations may be required. You can integrate PHP with other tools, for example, IIS or WordPress. For further details, refer to the official PHP documentation.

# Change default PHP version

If you have multiple PHP versions installed and want to change the default, update your System Path environment variable. Open Settings > System > About → Advanced system settings → Environment Variables. Under System variables, find Path and click Edit. Move the desired PHP version's path to the top, and remove or move down other PHP paths. Click OK, restart your terminal, and verify with php -v.

# Extensions

Extensions are managed through the php.ini file located in your PHP installation directory (e.g. C:\PHP). Open it in a text editor and find the extensions section. Remove the semicolon ; at the beginning of a line to enable an extension, or add ; to disable it.

;extension=curl
extension=gd2
;extension=mbstring
extension=mysqli
extension=pdo_mysql

# Increase upload/memory limits

If you're integrating PHP with applications like WordPress, you might need to increase memory and upload size limits. Open the php.ini file and set the values as needed:

upload_max_filesize=40M
post_max_size=40M
memory_limit=256M

# Uninstallation

To uninstall a PHP version manually, delete the PHP installation directory (e.g. C:\PHP) and remove the corresponding path from System Path.

To uninstall via TuxCare Installer, open Settings > Apps, find TuxCare Installer and click Uninstall.

# SaxonC Use Case

You can extend alt-php with additional modules. Below is an example of installing the SaxonC PHP extension.

Although this guide uses alt-php82 in its examples, the same installation steps apply to alt-php83 and newer versions. Replace php82 with your target version in all commands and file paths.

This guide also uses SaxonC-HE as an example. Be sure to adjust file names and paths to match the version you downloaded.

# Set up SaxonC

# Build the PHP extension

# PHP extensions list

PHP extensions are modules that extend the functionality of the PHP programming language. These extensions provide additional capabilities for working with various types of data, performing specific tasks, interacting with external resources and supporting various protocols.

The PHP core includes many built-in extensions that provide basic functionality, such as working with databases, string processing, working with images, and others. However, to support more specific tasks and third-party libraries, you can use additional PHP extensions.