Setting Up Your PHP Development Environment: A Step-by-Step Guide

To start your PHP programming journey, you need a suitable development environment. Here’s a step-by-step guide to setting up a local environment on your computer:

Prerequisites:

  • A computer (Windows, macOS, or Linux)
  • A text editor or IDE (like Sublime Text, Visual Studio Code, or PhpStorm)

Steps:

1 – Install a Web Server:

  • Windows: Use XAMPP or WAMP, which includes Apache, MySQL, and PHP.
  • macOS: Install MAMP or use built-in Apache.
  • Linux: Install Apache, MySQL, and PHP using package managers like apt or yum.

2 – Create a PHP file:

  • Use your chosen text editor to create a new file with a .php extension (e.g., index.php).

3 – Write PHP code:

  • Open the index.php file and add your PHP code.

4 – Run the PHP script:

  • Access the file in your web browser (e.g., http://localhost/your_project_folder/index.php).

Basic PHP File Structure:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>My PHP Page</title>
</head>
<body>

<?php
  echo "Hello from PHP!";
?>

</body>
</html>
PHP

Once your development environment is set up, you’re ready to start exploring PHP’s features and building your first web applications. In the next article, we’ll dive into PHP’s basic syntax and data types.

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