Practical.Running phpBB3 on localhost

This tutorial has instructions for installing Apache, PHP, MySQL and running phpBB on a localhost, a server which runs on your computer. Using phpBB on your localhost can speed up development of your Web site or MODs. Development and MOD installations on a localhost do not require the repetitive cycle of FTP uploads since the entire production is on one computer. In addition, a localhost offers the opportunity to detect and prevent errors before your site is deployed live, thus decreasing downtime for the Web site and server. This tutorial is written such that the novice web developer or webmaster can easily get an installation of his website and phpBB running on his localhost.

Download LAMP / XAMPP / WAMP / MAMP pre-built packages
  EasyPHP 13.1 VC11 Apache 2.4.4 - PHP 5.5.0 - MySQL 5.6.11 For Windows 7/8 (For Windows 2000, XP use 13.1 VC9 version)   WampServer 2.4 32/64 bit Apache 2.4.4 - PHP 5.4.16/5.4.12 - MySQL 5.6.12 For Windows NT/XP/Vista/7.   MAMP and MAMP Pro 2.2 Apache 2.2.22 - PHP 5.4.4/5.3.14 - MySQL 5.5.25 For Mac OS X (min. Mac OS X 10.6.6, compatible with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion).   XAMPP for Linux 1.8.3 Apache 2.4.7 - PHP 5.5.6 - MySQL 5.5.33 - SQLite 2.8.17/3.7.17" For Linux SuSE, RedHat, Mandrake and Debian   XAMPP for Windows 1.8.3 Apache 2.4.7 - PHP 5.5.6 - MySQL 5.6.14 For Vista, 7, 8, 2008 & 2012. (For Windows 2000, XP use 1.8.2 version)   XAMPP for Mac OS X 1.8.3 Apache 2.4.7 - PHP 5.5.6 - MySQL 5.5.34 - SQLite 2.8.17/3.7.17 For Mac OS X 10.4, 10.5+ PPC and Intel.   XAMPP for Solaris 1.7.7 Apache 2.2.21 - PHP 5.3.8 - MySQL 5.5.16 Developed and tested with Solaris 10. This version runs only on SPARC systems and not on x86 processors.   AppServ 2.5.10 Apache 2.2.8 - PHP 5.2.6 - MySQL 5.0.51b'' For Windows NT, 2000, 2003 and XP. If you use Windows 9x or ME is recommended to use a version below 2.0.x</li> </ul>

Install Apache Package
Once Downloaded, install one of the above packages, making sure to follow the instructions. Be sure to remember what directory it uses for it’s “webroot” such as,  , or   etc... Average time needed to install an Apache package is about 15 minutes.

Be sure to consult the User Documentation regarding your pre-built Package for configuration instructions. Check to ensure the Apache/MySQL ports are set to 80/3306 -- some may be set to 8888/8889 (for example). Please note that applications such as Skype can conflict with these default ports (80 and 3306). For Mac OS X: ensure Web Sharing is turned OFF in System Preferences. Most of the pre-built packages preferences/options allow you to choose which PHP version to run. We strongly recommend running PHP5. Although you can test either version, you should choose the version that your server is using.

Start localhost Apache/MySQL Services/Server
Once installed, start your servers (or “web services”). If your services do not start, try exiting all applications and/or restart your computer. You may be experiencing a port conflict. Every time you start up your computer, you’ll have to start your localhost services/server again to run your localhost on your computer. However, some packages may contain details on how to setup startup files to start the servers/services on computer startup. -- Consult the user documentation for details.
 * MAMP -- OS X: Use the MAMP Widget or MAMP.app to Start Servers;
 * WAMP -- XP & Vista: Click the services icon in the lower right-hand corner, and select “start all services”

Any changes that you manually make to the  or   files will require you to restart (stop and start) your Servers/Services.

MAMP Pro, contains it’s own server config templates located in  which can be accessed and edited through the file menu in the application. Most other packages these configuration files are located within a,   or   directory. In the  file, set   to   and   to   Be sure to note the location of the error log files...   or   which you will need for debugging some types of any errors you may find when developing your website or phpBB.

Using operating system package manager
For most Linux distributions there is an easier and better way of getting a LAMP stack set up, instead of using pre-built packages you can use the packages provided by your vendor.

Debian/Ubuntu
This might work for other Debian or Ubuntu derived distributions.


 * You will asked to give a new password for the root MySQL user, enter one and remember it.
 * Next you will be asked which web servers phpMyAdmin should be configured for, tick 'apache2' by pressing space.
 * Now the installation should take place.
 * Now the installation should take place.

You can access phpMyAdmin at  and the directory served by the web server is. If you want to install phpBB using Subversion then you can fetch the SVN client by doing.

=== Installation on Mac OS X ===

If you are using any version of OS X (Client or Server) then some key parts of the web server are already installed: Apache, and PHP. All you need to do is activate these two, and then install MySQL. This section for OS X has been written assuming that you have either 10.4 (Tiger) or 10.5 (Leopard) installed. Older versions of OS X do include PHP and Apache, but they are older versions and undesirable.

Enabling Apache and PHP
As the root user, you need to edit the Apache httpd.conf file. With your favorite line editor, (I use TextEdit) open this file: /etc/apache2/http.conf

Now scroll down until you get to the modules section. Find this line:

And remove the. What are you doing here is un-commenting that line, thus allowing PHP to be loaded. Save and close the httpd.conf file.

Now in the System Preferences, click Sharing, then check the box for Web Sharing. In a few moments, Apache should be loaded up.

Open Safari (or whichever browser you use) and go to http://127.0.0.1/

If everything went OK, you should see an Apache web page.

Installing MySQL
The client version of OS X does not include MySQL, so you must download it here: http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/mysql/5.1.html#macosx-dmg

The latest major release of MySQL is version 5.1. It's generally best to always stay current with PHP and MySQL versions.

Which version to download? If you have an Intel Mac, choose x86_64. If you have a G5, choose PowerPC 64-bit. If you have any other Mac, choose PowerPC 32-bit. Make sure you are downloading the package version. This will include the friendly OS X Installer interface. Once you have downloaded MySQL and have opened the package, the installation is automatic.

In the System Preferences, a new Preference Pane for MySQL will be added. You can use this Preference Pane to stop or start the MySQL server. Make sure MySQL is running as soon as you start up your Mac.

Installing phpBB or other scripts
Now that you have the 3 main components of a modern web server, it's time to start serving some scripts. By default, Apache serves files from /Library/WebServer/Documents/

The Apache test page is located in this directory. To make a PHP test page, make a new file with this code  in your browser. This should bring you to an index page stating that you have successfully installed your Apache/PHP/MySQL Package. To access your Database Manager, you can utilise the pre-installed phpMyAdmin. An alias is located in each package, or try browsing to  or   depending on your package), I recommend that you grab a copy of Navicat or similar GUI Database Administration Tool. (it can speed up your development/testing time by 400%-500%)

Create a new Database, in this example, we’ll name it. -- Consult the documentation for the database admin tool or phpMyAdmin on how to create a new Database.
 * Navicat: File menu &gt; Connection &gt; New Database.
 * phpMyAdmin: type in the name of the new database in the “Create new database” field.
 * MySQL Monitor:

Now create a new user (and unique password) and give that user permission (privileges) to access all aspects of the database. (Select, Insert, Update, Delete, Create, Drop, References, Index, Alter, etc).
 * Navicat: Manage Users (Icon) &gt; Add User &gt; (fill username, Host: localhost, password) &gt; Select User &gt; Select phpbb_phpBB3 Database &gt; Click Set Privilage &gt; Select All :: Close.
 * phpMyAdmin: (from home) &gt; Privileges &gt; Add a new User &gt; (fill User name, Host: localhost, password) Here decide if you want to give the user global permissions, or permissions based on the database name. You can name the user “phpbb” and Grant all privs to wildcard name and it will have all permissions to your phpbb_phpBB3 database. &gt; Go.
 * MySQL Monitor:

Fetching phpBB
Download the latest stable version of phpBB by pointing your browser to: https://www.phpbb.com/downloads/#install

Using Git
If you are a developer or MOD Author and wish to test a development version of phpBB or your MOD (or style) with the next release of phpBB 3.0.x, the development code repository is at GitHub, View on GitHub. More information about using Git for phpBB development is at Git.

Extracting phpBB
After unzipping your phpBB download, drag the phpBB3 directory to your localhost web root directory
 * WAMP:
 * MAMP:
 * XAMPP (win):
 * Debian/Ubuntu:
 * OS X:

Install phpBB
Open your browser and go to

Since the  file is empty, you will be redirected to the. You may now proceed to install phpBB into your localhost using your newly created Database and Database user.

Once installation is complete, edit your  file and enable DEBUG and DEBUG_EXTRA (removing the double slashes). This enables your board to run with the  directory in place. It is not necessary to remove this directory on your localhost. However, be sure that you don’t accidentally upload it to your live server.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed phpBB onto your localhost. If you plan on using the SVN versions, you may continue to read the rest of the tutorial. Or see the next step for instructions on updating your phpBB 3.0.x installation to the latest version.

Updating your phpBB installation
There are several ways to update your phpBB installation, see INSTALL.html

The various update packages are available from Download phpBB