PHP Configuration | Did we do it correctly?

SYSTEM INFORMATION
OS type and version Ubuntu 24.04.1 LTS
Webmin version 2.202

Regarding >>> According to the manual >>> webmin .com/docs/modules/php-configuration

I did install the PHP through the system >>> Software Packages:

But the location according to the webmin manual above the PHP configuration settings should be found in “Tools”:
https://i.postimg.cc/X7144dJB/2024-08-27-04h17-31.jpg

But in our just installed version of Webmin I cannot find it at all there. Instead it resides in “Un-used modules”:
https://i.postimg.cc/0PnNVJ8s/2024-08-27-04h20-51.jpg

Now does that mean that?:

  1. It isn’t active and really used by Webmin?
  2. If that is the case (See #1), how do we “configure” install PHP so it is active in Webmin?
  3. Is there something we missed that generated this result?
  4. It doesn’t seem like all PHP versions is installed?
  • We only have these installed:
  • Configuration for CLI
  • Configuration for mod_php
    and missing (?):
  • Configuration for FPM
  • Configuration for CGI

Basically I just want to check if our PHP is installed correctly.

Thanks in advance.
Kind regards

I’m pretty sure you should be using Virtualmin, and not Webmin alone. If you’re trying to manage websites in Webmin, I strongly recommend you start with a freshly installed supported OS and follow the Virtualmin installation docs.

If you really insist on doing this in Webmin alone (you almost certainly should not!), you’re still making mistakes here.

You should not install the php package. You should install the specific execution mode you need (php-fpm recommended, as well as the php-cli package, and whatever modules you need). Installing php package all by itself will install mod_php, which should never be used today. It sucks that that’s how the package is named and how the dependencies work out, but we can’t control what the OS vendors do. So, uninstall mod_php. You should never use it. Then install the stuff you intend to use.

Then, click “Refresh modules”. Assuming you have everything you need to run PHP applications, you’ll probably see PHP Configuration show up in Tools.

But, really, unless I’m guessing wildly wrong about what you’re trying to do, Virtualmin is going to be the nicest experience for you, by far. To be clear: Webmin by itself is not for managing websites. Virtualmin is.

2 Likes

Thanks for the reply Joe.

Actually no.
Just attempting to setup a server for internal use within the company which is will run a specific service / one website. It will run web cron jobs for our other servers/web apps basically once its been setup.

So I’m not looking for a multi website manage function. I choose to use Webmin simply because its easier with a GUI than using the prompt so manage the Linux server.

Kind regards

You have rejected the best advice that you can receive and you want the community to hand-hold you as you explore ways to get Webmin to do that which Virtualmin already does out of the box.

Arey, install Virtualmin and use it to host your single website. No one is forcing you to manage multiple websites with Virtualmin. Virtualmin works perfectly well to manage single websites too.

3 Likes

We used Webmin in the past without any problems. I’m just a bit rusty on it since its been a while we used it.

Using Virtualmin is overkill for a cron job server and it will use more server resources too like memory/CPU with the extra functions which we will not use.

I understand that you guys want to steer people towards your premium product in the hope that people will pay, but is not what we are looking for in this case…

Webmin is perfectly fine web server management GUI.
If we were looking a hosting panel then we would have used Virtualmin.

I only wanted to confirm is there PHP settings had been moved in Webmin (because in the manual they are in “tools”.), or if I missed something. Plus I’m a bit surpsied to find the “PHP settings” in the "Un-used Modules.

Thanks again.

That is not, at all, why I recommended Virtualmin. Virtualmin GPL is free.

PHP Configuration will appear in Tools, if everything needed to run PHP is installed. (It looks for php or php-cgi command. I’m pretty sure if you follow the instructions I gave above, it should work.)

4 Likes

Even for one website, virtualmin is brilliant.

4 Likes

Once you try virtualmin you won’t go back to webmin even though you will still have webmin.

Right but virtualmin cant run a free trier Amazon AWS (1 GB memory), because it needs to 2GB memory minimum while Webmin easily can do that. But I appreciate your suggestions. The initial idea was to do that and test run our cron script web app.

Thank you.

Virtualmin will run on 1gig, I test on vultr all the time with 1 Gig.

2 Likes

Virtualmin runs on 512 MB on vps01.indiax.com

On AWS.

2 Likes

Thanks a bunch!

I did actually give it a chance and attempted two times with two different instances of AWS VPS’es and on each one of them the installation process froze on the 6nd of 7th step and just died.

First time it happened I terminated the first VPS, and created a new free tier VPS instance and unfortunately it just froze on the exact same installation step.

So after that I just tossed the towel and said bugger

The intent of my message and that of @stefan1959 above was to confirm to you that it is possible to install and operate Virtualmin on a VPS with AWS free tier using the install option and command line switches documented at Downloading and Installing | Virtualmin — Open Source Web Hosting Control Panel

If you had tried the said options before you said bugger, maybe you would have had success.

Additionally, this too is a useful bit of documentation for future visitors who wish to pursue the same goal with more determination:

2 Likes

That installation script and process you linked to Downloading and Installing | Virtualmin — Open Source Web Hosting Control Panel is exactly what I used and followed to the tee and it froze both times.

Now why it froze is a different question. I could not even investigate it because it also stalled somewhat the VPS instance so I could dig deep into it. Plus I have the not the luxury of oceans of time to spend.

Thanks again though for sharing that information. I appreciate it.

Which command line / install script options did you use?

You should try the minimal install option. Or if you want a default install, just create a swap file before you begin the install of Virtualmin - that usually does the trick on low resource systems.

Edit: And make the swap file big on low resource systems. 2GB for example.

The default option in the manual. :point_down:


I was going for using the LAMP option.

You do have other options. If you wish to use Virtualmin on a box with a specific limitation of resources then you will have to take the trouble to apply the appropriate install script option - that’s why such options are offered.

If you want to copy paste the default installation options then your VPS must meet the minimum system requirements as outlined in the Virtualmin documentation.

You are installing Virtualmin again and again with the same installation options on a system that does not meet the requirements outlined in the Virtualmin documentation. When the installation fails, you say bugger.

@stefan1959 and I have confirmed to you that Virtualmin can be installed and operated on the free tier that you are after. It now falls upon you to apply the appropriate command line options. Use the Virtualmin documentation. All the info you need can be found there.

And this is a great tip:

1 Like

Errrh what?
I did check that the VPS met the required specifications when I configured the Amazon AWS EC2 instance.

I’m not a illiterate computer newbie.

There’s no need to be so argumentative.

Installing Virtualmin on a system at the lower end of the recommended memory can be tricky (--minimal mode probably makes it work). It’s just because stuff continues to get bigger, especially clamav, but our dependency list has gotten longer which makes some operating systems choke during the install (apt-get/dpkg are very memory-intensive for long lists of dependencies).

If OP knows what they’re doing and wants to use Webmin alone, that’s fine. Let’em. We’ve made our recommendation, and Virtualmin can use exactly the same amount of memory as Webmin alone (though installation with the install script still might be a little hairy on a very small system).

We’ll try to resolve that in the Virtualmin 8 installer. I’ll need to work with Ilia and Jamie to make sure we’re being mindful of memory usage in our defaults in Webmin/Virtualmin/Usermin, and also maybe break up the installation into another stage that allows fewer deps, I dunno. At the release of Virtualmin 7 installer, it could reliably install on a 512MB system (by creating a swap file of about 750MB), but I guess things have changed; newer distros have gotten bigger, Ilia has added several new dependencies, and there are also a bunch of new stats and other features that may increase memory usage. I’ll encourage Ilia to test on a small system when adding new deps to the install.

3 Likes

@LionKing how did you get a free aws hating account , is a 12 month trial or free forever?

1 Like