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How do I execute my .php files as PHP 5?

Note: As of May 2009, new accounts on the shared hosting system at Modwest run PHP5 by default. If your account predates May 2009 and you would like to update to our newer hosting environment, please contact us.

The below applies only for accounts created prior to May 2009:

You have four options if you want .php files to run as PHP 5:

Contact support and ask us to switch your account from our Redhat environment running PHP4 by default, to our newer Debian environment that runs PHP5 by default.
Toggle your account's default PHP to be PHP 5

Specify an interpreter in the files needing to run as PHP 5

Rename specific .php files to end in .php5

If you want to globally change your whole account to run all .php scripts using PHP5 you need to either:

Use the toggle in the PHP Configurator

Open a shell to your account

Type:
rm /sitebin/php ln -s /usr/local/bin/php5 /sitebin/php

Note that you can switch back to PHP 4 by following the same procedure, but using usr/local/bin/php4 instead of /usr/local/bin/php5

To specify an interpreter, you need do the following:

Run the following shell command on the .php file:
chmod +x myphpfile.php
For more information about how to get a command prompt for your server go here.

Now add the following code to the first line of the file (not within your PHP tags):
#!/usr/local/bin/php5
This is a switch that forces PHP 5 to parse the php script.

Again, if PHP 5 is your default, use /usr/local/bin/php4 instead of /usr/local/bin/php5

Those that rename files from *.php to *.php5, that is all you need to do. If you have switched your account to use PHP 5 by default, you may rename files to be *.php4 to force those files to use PHP 4.

For more information on PHP 5 go here.

User-Contributed Notes

anonymous -at- example.com
07-Mar-2006 10:15

If you have a bunch of files you want to rename with a different
extension (for example, *.php => *.php5), this is a helpful article for
doing so:

http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/150

anonymous -at- example.com
21-Feb-2007 14:29

PHP 5.2.0 - Manual config gotchas. (updated 2007-04-26)


rm /sitebin/php
ln -s /usr/local/bin/php-5.2.0 /sitebin/php

mkdir /etc/php5 in your shared account
cp /etc/php.ini /etc/php5/

vim /etc/php5/php.ini
add the following values for specified php configuration options: 

include_path  = ".:/usr/local/lib/php-5.2.0" 
extension_dir = /usr/local/libexec/php-5.2.0   
zend_extension = /usr/local/libexec/php-5.2.0/ZendOptimizer.so  


this should get you a working 5.2.0 config.

Modwest Support
16-Jul-2008 11:37

phpinfo() for the experimental 5.2 insall is here:

http://phpinfo.modwest.com/php5/php5.2.php5

anonymous -at- example.com
14-Jan-2009 10:30

A few notes from my experiments...

I tested Drupal 6, Wordpress, and Gallery 2.

Use the existing /etc/php5/php.ini.  If you copy /etc/php.ini, you get a
php 4.x ini file.

GD is bundled, but must be explicitly enabled.
change
;extension = gd.so
to
extension = gd.so

Successfully enabled:
GD
curl
mbstring
xml
mcrypt - enabled, did not test further
pspell - enabled, did not test further

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