How To Install Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP

(LAMP) stack on Ubuntu

About LAMP
LAMP stack is a group of open source software used to get web servers up and running. The acronym
stands for Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP. Since the virtual private server is already running Ubuntu,
the linux part is taken care of. Here is how to install the rest.

Set Up
The steps in this tutorial require the user to have root privileges on your VPS. You can see how to set
that up in the Initial Server Setup in steps 3 and 4.

Step OneInstall Apache

Apache is a free open source software which runs over 50% of the worlds web servers.
To install apache, open terminal and type in these commands:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install apache2

Thats it. To check if Apache is installed, direct your browser to your servers IP address (eg.
http://12.34.56.789). The page should display the words It works!" like this.

How to Find your Servers IP address

You can run the following command to reveal your servers IP address.
ifconfig eth0 | grep inet | awk '{ print $2 }'

Step TwoInstall MySQL

MySQL is a powerful database management system used for organizing and retrieving data
To install MySQL, open terminal and type in these commands:

sudo apt-get install mysql-server libapache2-mod-auth-mysql php5-mysql

During the installation, MySQL will ask you to set a root password. If you miss the chance to set the
password while the program is installing, it is very easy to set the password later from within the
MySQL shell.
Once you have installed MySQL, we should activate it with this command:
sudo mysql_install_db

Finish up by running the MySQL set up script:

sudo /usr/bin/mysql_secure_installation

The prompt will ask you for your current root password.
Type it in.
Enter current password for root (enter for none):
OK, successfully used password, moving on...

Then the prompt will ask you if you want to change the root password. Go ahead and choose N and
move on to the next steps.
Its easiest just to say Yes to all the options. At the end, MySQL will reload and implement the new
changes.
By default, a MySQL installation has an anonymous user, allowing anyone
to log into MySQL without having to have a user account created for
them. This is intended only for testing, and to make the installation
go a bit smoother. You should remove them before moving into a
production environment.
Remove anonymous users? [Y/n] y
... Success!
Normally, root should only be allowed to connect from 'localhost'. This
ensures that someone cannot guess at the root password from the network.
Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n] y
... Success!
By default, MySQL comes with a database named 'test' that anyone can
access. This is also intended only for testing, and should be removed
before moving into a production environment.
Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n] y
- Dropping test database...
... Success!
- Removing privileges on test database...
... Success!

Reloading the privilege tables will ensure that all changes made so far
will take effect immediately.
Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n] y
... Success!
Cleaning up...

Once you're done with that you can finish up by installing PHP.

Step ThreeInstall PHP

PHP is an open source web scripting language that is widely use to build dynamic webpages.
To install PHP, open terminal and type in this command.
sudo apt-get install php5 libapache2-mod-php5 php5-mcrypt

After you answer yes to the prompt twice, PHP will install itself.
It may also be useful to add php to the directory index, to serve the relevant php index files:
sudo nano /etc/apache2/mods-enabled/dir.conf

Add index.php to the beginning of index files. The page should now look like this:
<IfModule mod_dir.c>
DirectoryIndex index.php index.html index.cgi index.pl index.php
index.xhtml index.htm
</IfModule>

PHP Modules
PHP also has a variety of useful libraries and modules that you can add onto your virtual server. You
can see the libraries that are available.
apt-cache search php5-

Terminal will then display the list of possible modules. The beginning looks like this:
php5-cgi - server-side, HTML-embedded scripting language (CGI binary)
php5-cli - command-line interpreter for the php5 scripting language
php5-common - Common files for packages built from the php5 source
php5-curl - CURL module for php5
php5-dbg - Debug symbols for PHP5
php5-dev - Files for PHP5 module development

php5-gd - GD module for php5

php5-gmp - GMP module for php5
php5-ldap - LDAP module for php5
php5-mysql - MySQL module for php5
php5-odbc - ODBC module for php5
php5-pgsql - PostgreSQL module for php5
php5-pspell - pspell module for php5
php5-recode - recode module for php5
php5-snmp - SNMP module for php5
php5-sqlite - SQLite module for php5
php5-tidy - tidy module for php5
php5-xmlrpc - XML-RPC module for php5
php5-xsl - XSL module for php5
php5-adodb - Extension optimising the ADOdb database abstraction library
php5-auth-pam - A PHP5 extension for PAM authentication
[...]

Once you decide to install the module, type:

sudo apt-get install name of the module

You can install multiple libraries at once by separating the name of each module with a space.
Congratulations! You now have LAMP stack on your droplet!

Step FourRESULTS: See PHP on your Server

Although LAMP is installed, we can still take a look and see the components online by creating a quick
php info page
To set this up, first create a new file:
sudo nano /var/www/info.php

Add in the following line:

<?php
phpinfo();
?>

Then Save and Exit.

Restart apache so that all of the changes take effect:
sudo service apache2 restart

Finish up by visiting your php info page (make sure you replace the example ip address with your
correct one): http://12.34.56.789/info.php

It should look similar to this.

To Configure the Apache Web Server on an

Ubuntu or Debian VPS
Tagged In: Ubuntu, Apache, Getting Started, Debian, My Sql, Php

What is Apache?
Apache is the most popular web server on the internet. It is used to serve more than half of all active
websites.
Although there are many viable web servers that will serve your content, it is helpful to understand how
Apache works because of its ubiquity.
In this article, we will examine some general configuration files and options that can be controlled
within them. This article will follow the Ubuntu/Debian layout of Apache files, which is different from
how other distributions build the configuration hierarchy.

How to Install Apache on Ubuntu and Debian

If you do not already have Apache installed, you can do so now by issuing the following commands:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install apache2

This is all that is necessary to have a working web server. If you visit your VPS's IP address in a web
browser, you will get the default Apache index page:
your_domain_name_or_ip_address
It works!
This is the default web page for this server.
The web server software is running but no content has been added, yet.

The Apache File Hierarchy in Ubuntu and Debian

On Ubuntu and Debian, Apache keeps its main configuration files within the "/etc/apache2" folder:
cd /etc/apache2
ls -F
apache2.conf
conf.d/

envvars
httpd.conf

magic
mods-available/

mods-enabled/
ports.conf

sites-available/
sites-enabled/

There are a number of plain text files and some sub-directories in this directory. These are some of the
more useful locations to be familiar with:
apache2.conf: This is the main configuration file for the server. Almost all configuration can be
done from within this file, although it is recommended to use separate, designated files for
simplicity. This file will configure defaults and be the central point of access for the server to
read configuration details.
ports.conf: This file is used to specify the ports that virtual hosts should listen on. Be sure to
check that this file is correct if you are configuring SSL.
conf.d/: This directory is used for controlling specific aspects of the Apache configuration. For
example, it is often used to define SSL configuration and default security choices.
sites-available/: This directory contains all of the virtual host files that define different web
sites. These will establish which content gets served for which requests. These are available
configurations, not active configurations.
sites-enabled/: This directory establishes which virtual host definitions are actually being used.
Usually, this directory consists of symbolic links to files defined in the "sites-available"
directory.
mods-[enabled,available]/: These directories are similar in function to the sites directories, but
they define modules that can be optionally loaded instead.
As you can see, Apache configuration does not take place in a single monolithic file, but instead
happens through a modular design where new files can be added and modified as needed.

Looking at the Apache2.conf File

The main configuration details for your Apache server are held in the "/etc/apache2/apache2.conf" file.
This file is divided into three main sections: configuration for the global Apache server process,
configuration for the default server, and configuration of Virtual Hosts.
In Ubuntu and Debian, the majority of the file is for global definitions, and the configuration of the
default server and virtual hosts is handled at the end, by using the "Include ..." directive.
The "Include" directive allows Apache to read other configuration files into the current file at the
location that the statement appears. The result is that Apache dynamically generates an overarching
configuration file on startup.
If you scroll to the bottom of the file, there are a number of different "Include" statements. These load
module definitions, the ports.conf document, the specific configuration files in the "conf.d/" directory,
and finally, the Virtual Host definitions in the "sites-enabled/" directory.

We will focus on the first part of the file to learn how Apache defines its global settings.

Global Configuration Section

This section is used to configure some options that control how Apache works as a whole.
There are some interesting options you may want to modify in this section:

Timeout
By default, this parameter is set to "300", which means that the server has a maximum of 300 seconds
to fulfill each request.
This is probably too high for most set ups and can safely be dropped to something between 30 and 60
seconds.

KeepAlive
This option, if set to "On", will allow each connection to remain open to handle multiple requests from
the same client.
If this is set to "Off", each request will have to establish a new connection, which can result in
significant overhead depending on your setup and traffic situation.

MaxKeepAliveRequests
This controls how many separate request each connection will handle before dying. Keeping this
number high will allow Apache to serve content to each client more effectively.
Setting this value to 0 will allow Apache to serve an unlimited amount of request for each connection.

KeepAliveTimeout
This setting specifies how long to wait for the next request after finishing the last one. If the timeout
threshold is reached, then the connection will die.
This just means that the next time content is requested, the server will establish a new connection to
handle the request for the content that make up the page the client is visiting.

MPM Configuration
The next section specifies the configuration of the MPM (Multi-Processing Module) options. You can
cross-reference which section your Apache installation was compiled with by exiting into the terminal
and typing:
apache2 -l
Compiled in modules:
core.c
mod_log_config.c
mod_logio.c
prefork.c
http_core.c
mod_so.c

As you can see, in this server, "prefork.c" is a module that was compiled in and is also in the
"apache2.conf" file. Your installation may have multiple to choose from, but only one can be selected.
You can adjust the configuration of the prefork MPM in the appropriate section.

Exploring the Default Virtual Host File

The default Virtual Host declaration can be found in a file called "default" in the "sites-available"
directory.
We can learn about the general format of a Virtual Host file by examining this file. Open the file with
the following command:
sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/default
<VirtualHost *:80>
ServerAdmin webmaster@localhost

. . .

DocumentRoot /var/www
<Directory />
Options FollowSymLinks
AllowOverride None
</Directory>
<Directory /var/www/>
Options Indexes FollowSymLinks MultiViews
AllowOverride None
Order allow,deny
allow from all
</Directory>

The default Virtual Host is configured to handle any request on port 80, the standard http port. This is
defined in the declaration header where it says "*:80", meaning port 80 on any interface.

This does not mean that it will necessarily handle each request to the server on this port however.
Apache uses the most specific Virtual Host definition that matches the request. This means that if there
was a more specific definition, it could supersede this definition.

Virtual Host Top Level Configuration

These options are set within the Virtual Host definition outside of any other lower level subdeclaration. They apply to the whole Virtual Host.
The "ServerAdmin" option specifies a contact email that should be used when there are server
problems.
This can be inserted into an error page if you have "ServerSignature" set to "Email" in the
"/etc/apache2/conf.d/security" file, so make sure you are willing to receive the mail if you adjust that
setting.
If we were using this as a template for other Virtual Host definitions, we would want to add a
"ServerName" definition that specifies the domain name or IP address that this request should handle.
This is the option that would add specificity to the Virtual Host, allowing it to trump the default
definition if it matches the ServerName value.
You can also make the Virtual Host apply to more than one name by using the "ServerAlias" definition.
This provide alternate paths to get to the same content. A good use-case for this is adding the same
domain, preceded by "www".
The "DocumentRoot" option specifies where the content that is requested for this Virtual Host will be
located. The default Virtual Host is set up to serve content out of the "/var/www" directory on Ubuntu.

Directory Definitions
Within the Virtual Host definition, there are definitions for how the server handles different directories
within the file system. Apache will apply all of these directions in order from shortest to longest, so
there is again a chance to override previous options.
The first directory definition applies rules for the "/", or root, directory. This will provide the baseline
configuration for your Virtual Host, as it applies to all files served on the file system.
By default, Ubuntu does not set up any access restrictions to the filesystem. Apache recommends that
you add some default access restrictions. You can modify this like so:
<Directory />
Options FollowSymLinks
AllowOverride None
Order Deny,Allow
Deny from All
<Directory>

This will deny access to all content unless specified otherwise in subsequent directory definitions.
The next directory definition is for the document root, so it specifies the "allow from all" option that
overrides the "/" option for this directory.
The "AllowOverride" option is used to decide whether an ".htaccess" file can override settings if it is
placed in the content directory. This is not allowed by default, but can be useful to enable in a variety of
circumstances.

Alias and ScriptAlias Statements

Directory definitions are sometimes preceded by "Alias" or "ScriptAlias" statements. Alias maps a url
path to a directory path.
ScriptAlias operates in the same way, but is used to define directories that will have executable
components in them.
For instance, this line in a Virtual Host that handles request to "example.com" would allow access to
content within "/path/to/content/" by navigating to "example.com/content/":
Alias /content/ /path/to/content/

Following the alias, you should remember to define the directory with access privileges as discussed in
the previous section.

Enabling Sites and Modules in Apache

Once you have a Virtual Host file that meets your requirements, you can use the tools included with
Apache to transition them into live sites.
To automatically create a symbolic link in the "sites-enabled" directory to an existing file in the "sitesavailable" directory, issue the following command:
sudo a2ensite virtual_host_file_name

After enabling a site, issue the following command to tell Apache to re-read its configuration files,
allowing the change to propagate:
sudo service apache2 reload

There is also a companion command for disabling a Virtual Host. It operates by removing the symbolic
link from the "sites-enabled" directory:
sudo a2dissite virtual_host_file_name

Again, reload the configuration to make the change happen:

sudo service apache2 reload

Modules can be enabled or disabled by using the "a2enmod" and "a2dismod" commands respectively.
They work in the same way as the "site" versions of these commands.
Remember to reload your configuration changes after modules have been enabled or disabled as well.

Conclusion
We have gone over some basic Apache configuration files. Apache is versatile and very modular, so
configuration needs will be different depending on your setup.
You should have a good understanding of what the main configuration files are used for and how they
interact with each other. If you need to know about specific configuration options, the provided files are
well commented and Apache provides excellent documentation.
Hopefully, the configuration files will not be as intimidating now, and you feel more confortable
experimenting and modifying to suit your needs.