Step-by-Step Guide

1. Update the Package Index
   Open a terminal and update the package index to ensure you have the latest information about available packages:

   sudo yum update -y

2. Install PHP
   Install PHP along with some common PHP modules using the yum package manager:

   sudo yum install php php-mysqlnd php-fpm -y

This command installs PHP, the PHP MySQL extension, and PHP-FPM (FastCGI Process Manager).

3. Verify PHP Installation
   Check the PHP version to ensure it is installed correctly:

   php -v

You should see the PHP version information displayed.

4. Configure PHP-FPM
   Open the PHP-FPM configuration file for editing:

   sudo nano /etc/php-fpm.d/www.conf

Make sure the user and group directives are set to nginx if you plan to use PHP with Nginx, or apache if you plan to use PHP with Apache:

   user = apache
   group = apache

For Nginx, use:

   user = nginx
   group = nginx

Save and close the file.

5. Start and Enable PHP-FPM
   Start the PHP-FPM service:

   sudo systemctl start php-fpm

Enable PHP-FPM to start on boot:

   sudo systemctl enable php-fpm

6. Install and Configure Apache (Optional)
   If you plan to use PHP with Apache, install Apache:

   sudo yum install httpd -y

Start and enable Apache:

   sudo systemctl start httpd
   sudo systemctl enable httpd

Configure Apache to use PHP by editing the default virtual host configuration file:

   sudo nano /etc/httpd/conf.d/php.conf

Add the following lines to configure Apache to handle PHP files:

   <FilesMatch \.php$>
       SetHandler "proxy:unix:/var/run/php-fpm/php-fpm.sock|fcgi://localhost"
   </FilesMatch>

Save and close the file. Restart Apache to apply the changes:

   sudo systemctl restart httpd

7. Install and Configure Nginx (Optional)
   If you plan to use PHP with Nginx, install Nginx:

   sudo yum install nginx -y

Start and enable Nginx:

   sudo systemctl start nginx
   sudo systemctl enable nginx

Configure Nginx to use PHP by editing the default server block configuration file:

   sudo nano /etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf

Add the following lines to configure Nginx to handle PHP files:

   server {
       listen 80;
       server_name your_domain www.your_domain;

       root /usr/share/nginx/html;
       index index.php index.html index.htm;

       location / {
           try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
       }

       location ~ \.php$ {
           include fastcgi_params;
           fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php-fpm/php-fpm.sock;
           fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
           fastcgi_index index.php;
       }

       location ~ /\.ht {
           deny all;
       }
   }

Save and close the file. Restart Nginx to apply the changes:

   sudo systemctl restart nginx

8. Test PHP Installation
   To test PHP with Apache or Nginx, create a new PHP file in the web root directory. For Apache, use:

   sudo nano /var/www/html/info.php

For Nginx, use:

   sudo nano /usr/share/nginx/html/info.php

Add the following PHP code to the file:

   <?php
   phpinfo();
   ?>

Save and close the file.

9. Access the PHP Info Page
   Open your web browser and visit http://your_server_ip/info.php. You should see the PHP information page, indicating that PHP is working correctly with Apache or Nginx.
10. Install Additional PHP Modules (Optional)
    You can install additional PHP modules as needed. To search for available PHP modules, use: sudo yum search php- To install a specific PHP module, use: sudo yum install php-module_name -y Replace module_name with the name of the module you wish to install. Restart PHP-FPM after installing additional modules: sudo systemctl restart php-fpm
11. Remove the PHP Info Page
    For security reasons, it’s a good idea to remove the PHP info page after testing:
    bash sudo rm /var/www/html/info.php