Running PHP Script

Question

I've enabled the Apache server on my mac, and when I access my local IP address I can see the web page I've created. However, it appears that the server doesn't process PHP scripts, and just returns the source code of the PHP script when I try to open the script in Safari 4. How do I get the built-in Apache server to process PHP scripts and return the desired result?

Answer 1

PHP is disabled by default. To enable it, you must edit Apache's configuration file. To do this, open up /private/etc/apache2/httpd.conf with a text editor. The file is owned by root, so you'll need appropriate access to modify the file. Text editors like BBEdit or TextWrangler can make this step much easier.
Fairly early on in the configuration file is the section for the Dynamic Shared Object support - these are the modules that Apache loads to enable it to perform various tasks. In this section are a whole bunch of "LoadModule" statements - one for each module that Apache is loading. One of these is for PHP support. In the httpd.conf file on my machine, the built-in PHP module's statement is on line 114, the next to last item in this section. It reads: "#LoadModule php5_module libexec/apache2/libphp5.so" Remove the "#" from the beginning of the line, save the file, and restart Apache.
If you plan on using PHP files as the default page for a directory (index.php, for example), you'll need to add index.php to the Directory Index section (line 225 in my file). Apache looks for them in the order listed, so if you list index.php after the index.html that's already there, Apache will look for index.html when asked for the directory before looking for index.php. If you're going to have index.php for most of your directories, you may want to list it first, before index.html.
With regard to PHP itself, Apple's included PHP isn't any more official that the one I mentioned from Marc Liyanage. They're both compiled from the same source code. And, as far as updating goes, I'd argue that it's easier to update Marc's version, as you simply download an updated version and the installer will overwrite the old version. And, you don't have to wait for Apple to release a new version of OS X or a security update to see if you get a more current version. His versions will almost always be more current than the one Apple provides.
In any event, Marc's version does not remove Apple's version from your system. His installs in /usr/local/ and leaves Apple's version intact. So, you can always go back to Apple's version by changing a few lines in a configuration file.