xampp 1.8.2 for wdindows:apachefriends-XAMPP
Many people know from their own experience that it's not easy to install an Apache web server and it gets harder if you want to add MySQL, PHP and Perl. XAMPP is an easy to install Apache distribution containing MySQL, PHP and Perl. XAMPP is really very easy to install and to use - just download, extract and start.
Method A: Installation with the Installer
Using the installer version is the easiest way to install XAMPP.
After the installation is complete, you will find XAMPP under Start | Programs | XAMPP. You can use the XAMPP Control Panel to start/stop all server and also install/uninstall services.
The XAMPP control panel for start/stop Apache, MySQL, FilaZilla & Mercury or install these server as services.
Method B: "Installation" without the Installer
Unzip the zip archives into the folder of your choice. XAMPP is extracting to the subdirectory "[Ziel]\xampp" below the selected target directory. Now start the file"setup_xampp.bat", to adjust the XAMPP configuration to your system.
If you choose a root directory "C:\" as target, you must not start "setup_xampp.bat".
Like with the installer version, you can now use the "XAMPP Control Panel" for additional tasks.
I want to start XAMPP without setup
If you extract XAMPP in a top level folder like "C:\" or "D:\", you can start most servers like Apache or MySQL directly without execution of the file "setup_xampp.bat".
Not using the setup script, or selecting relative paths in the setup script, is preferred if you are installing XAMPP on a usb drive. Because on each pc such a drive can have an other drive letter. You can switch from absolute to relative paths at any time with the setup script.
Start, stop, test the XAMPP servers
The universal control center is the "XAMPP Control Panel" (thanks www.nat32.com). It is started with:
\xampp\xampp-control.exe
As you know this from older XAMPP versions, you can also use some batchfiles to start/stop the servers:
-
Apache & MySQL start:
- \xampp\xampp_start.exe Apache & MySQL stop:
- \xampp\xampp_stop.exe Nur Apache start:
- \xampp\apache_start.bat Nur Apache stop:
- \xampp\apache_stop.bat Nur MySQL start:
- \xampp\mysql_start.bat Nur MySQL stop:
- \xampp\mysql_stop.bat Mercury Mailserver start:
- \xampp\mercury_start.bat Mercury Mailserver stop:
- \xampp\mercury_stop.bat FileZilla Server start:
- \xampp\filezilla_start.bat FileZilla Server stop:
- \xampp\filezilla_stop.bat
Test
After starting of Apache (and MySQL), go to the address http://localhost/ or
http://127.0.0.1/ in your browser and examine all of the XAMPP examples and tools.
Installing a particular server as as service
Each server in XAMPP you can install also as Windows service:
-
Apache service install:
- \xampp\apache\apache_installservice.bat Apache service uninstall:
- \xampp\apache\apache_uninstallservice.bat MySQL service install:
- \xampp\mysql\mysql_installservice.bat MySQL service uninstall:
- \xampp\mysql\mysql_uninstallservice.bat FileZilla service (un)install:
- \xampp\filezilla_setup.bat Mercury:
- No service installation available!
The XAMPP upgrades
With a new XAMPP version, there is normally a upgrade package too. Additionally, we have sometimes small patches between the releases.
An upgrade is always problematically and there can be errors in the upgrade process. Because of this, you should always make a backup from your XAMPP folder before you upgrade it. werden.
We are trying to adjust your configuration files during the upgrade progress, if necessary. Especially if a new XAMPP have a lot of changes compared to the old one, we are providing no upgrade package for security reasons. Sorry.
As with the add-ons, install the upgrade directly into the XAMPP directory (e.g."C:\xampp"). And you must also start the setup script "setup_xampp.bat".
The XAMPP security console
As mentioned at another place, XAMPP is not meant for production use but only for developers in a development environment. XAMPP is configured is to be as open as possible and to allow the web developer anything he/she wants. For development environments this is great but in a production environment it could be fatal.
Here a list of missing security in XAMPP:
- The MySQL administrator (root) has no password.
- The MySQL daemon is accessible via network.
- phpMyAdmin is accessible via network.
- The XAMPP demopage is accessible via network.
- The default users of Mercury and FileZilla are known.
All points can be a huge security risk. Especially if XAMPP is accessible via network and people outside your LAN. It can also help to use a firewall or a (NAT-) router. In case of a router or firewall, your pc is normally not accessible via network. It is up to you to fix these problems. As a small help there is the "XAMPP Security console".
Please secure XAMPP before publishing anything online. A firewall or an external router are only sufficient for low levels of security. For slightly more security, you can run the "XAMPP Security console" and assign passwords.
If you want have your XAMPP accessible from the internet, you should go to the following URI which can fix some problems:
http://localhost/security/
With the security console you can set a password for the MySQL user "root" and phpMyAdmin. You can also enable a authentication for the XAMPP demopages.
This web based tool does not fix any additional security issues! Especially the FileZilla FTP server and the Mercury mail server you must secure yourself. If you don't need these servers, don't start them. A server which is not started, is very secure!