Chick Newman wrote:
I am using Apache 2.0.55 on a Windows XP SP3 computer with PHP5 which was installed manually (at C:\php) several years ago (using instructions from David Powers book on Dreamweaver 8 and PHP/MySQL to tweak Windows and Apache to recognize the PHP installation). I would like to upgrade to the latest Apache version, 2.2.11. One choice is to download XAMPP and have everything (Apache, PHP and MySQL) installed using that program's installer. However, my current server root folder is in C:\htdocs whereas the XAMPP htdocs folder will reside (I believe) in C:\XAMPP\htdocs (or something similar). So...will I then have to reconfigure my root folder or can I change the default root to the one I am currently using? Do I uninstall the current php folder and the current apache version before installing XAMPP?Regarding this 2d question, and assuming that you are/will be using the "msi" version of the Apache 2.2 installer : If you install on top of your current "Apache + other stuff", chances are that it will end up being messed up somewhere, so I wouldn't. Particularly so since Apache 2.0.x is one major version, and Apache 2.2.x is really a different major version, not just an upgrade.Alternatively, I just may upgrade the apache server only. Can I just do this by installing it on top of the current Apache installation? Or do I completely uninstall the older (2.0.55)Apache server (and/or the PHP folder) before proceeding with the upgrade.
The Apache 2.2 msi installer gives you a chance to change the installation directory, so pick another one than the former. (At the same time, I suggest to override the stupid directory names containing spaces, and to pick sensible names. That will, inevitably, save you some aggravation later with missing quotes and such.) The thing to remember of course is that you cannot have two running servers listening to the same port 80 at the same time. So at least turn off your current Apache while installing the new one. Changing the port on either one after that, is easy.
This kind of brings us back to the first question.The thing is, there is no easy answer, because each of the options has advantages and inconvenients. Pre-packaged solutions are easy at first, because they just do everything for you, and generally they work out of the box. However, if you are having any problem with it afterward, you'll probably need to go to the XAMP forum for help, because people here won't know this configuration. Also, sometimes these "all-in-one" packages can be a bit difficult to understand, in the sense that they put things not necessarily where one would expect them with a standard Apache. They can also lock you up in some kind of "only really good for this" configuration, making it harder to do other unrelated things later.
If you have the time and are willing to do what it takes to really understand what you are doing, gradually, I would do both :
- install a standard Apache somewhere - install the prepackaged XAMP somewhere else- then start looking item by item at the configuration of the XAMP package, and introducing the corresponding elements one by one in your standard Apache. This way, you will gain a good understanding about where each piece fits in the puzzle, and be able to ply your Apache to your own needs.
Changing things like the port Apache listens to, or changing its DocumentRoot directory, are easy. It only leads to problems if, in the packages or applications which you add later, there are "unclean" things, like URLs or paths expressed in absolute terms. But then, that is exactly what you need to understand anyway in case you have problems or just want to tune the configuration.
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