{"id":117,"date":"2017-01-02T19:57:12","date_gmt":"2017-01-02T19:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cellbiol.com\/test-bioinfo\/?page_id=117"},"modified":"2017-06-04T14:32:18","modified_gmt":"2017-06-04T14:32:18","slug":"installing-a-lamp-linux-apache-php-mysql-server","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.cellbiol.com\/bioinformatics_web_development\/chapter-2-the-linux-operating-system-setting-up-a-linux-web-server\/installing-a-lamp-linux-apache-php-mysql-server\/","title":{"rendered":"2-5: Installing a LAMP (Linux, Apache PHP, MySQL) Server"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>
Figure 2-5-1: The Apache Logo \u2013 Source: The Apache Incubator<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Open a web browser on your linux machine, for example Firefox, and type:<\/p>\n

localhost<\/p>\n

in the address bar. You should get a connection failed message. If you try to visit the machine IP address from a remote computer, you will get the same. Our linux machine is still not a web server, as it misses any web server software.<\/p>\n

We will now install the apache2 web server software<\/a>. We will also install support for the PHP programming language<\/a>\u00a0and for MySQL databases<\/a>. The full bundle is known as LAMP (L<\/strong>inux-A<\/strong>pache-P<\/strong>HP-M<\/strong>ySQL) server.<\/p>\n

There is a longer way, and a very short and easy way to install LAMP. We will take the easy path. For information, thought, these are, in summary, the commands for the long way:<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get update<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get install apache2<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get install mysql-server<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get install php libapache2-mod-php php-mcrypt php-mysql<\/p>\n

You can find a more exhaustive description of the process with additional configuration details in this nice DigitalOcean tutorial<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Let’s instead take advantage of the “tasksel<\/a>” shell command. Tasksel allows to install bundles of different programs grouped together to achieve a certain functionality such as for example a full desktop environment, a full mail server, a full web server etc.., without having to install individual software packets.<\/p>\n

Here’s the short procedure required to install LAMP:<\/p>\n

Let’s update the repositories:<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get update<\/p>\n

Installing tasksel:<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo apt-get install tasksel<\/p>\n

Installing LAMP with a single command:<\/p>\n

andrea@ubuntu:~$ sudo tasksel install lamp-server<\/p>\n

While MySQL is installed you will be required to input a password for the root user. It is important that you enter a good password and then remember it or securely store it for eventual later usage.<\/p>\n

You can use a tool such as this one<\/a>\u00a0to generate a secure password. You may want to generate a 15 or more characters password for a good security.<\/p>\n

Once the installation is over, open again Firefox and visit<\/p>\n

localhost<\/p>\n

and\/or visit your Linux machine IP address from a remote computer.<\/p>\n

If everything went fine during installation you will now see the default apache web page:<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
Figure 2-5-2: The default apache web page at localhost<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Congratulations, you were able to successfully set up a Linux web server!<\/p>\n

In order to use it, we need to understand a few things about how the web server is configured by default. In the next section we will look at a few important configuration details, that will allow us to use the server at best for this course and to use it as the course server, that will host a web development account for each student. To achieve this a few tweaks will be required to modify the behavior of the default apache installation. Keep reading about the Apache web server configuration<\/a>\u00a0in the next section.<\/p>\n

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