PHP is a popular scripting language primarily used for Web development. The PHP 7.4 version brings a slew of new features and performance improvements compared to its predecessors. This article provides a detailed guide on how to install PHP 7.4 on the CentOS 7 operating system.

System Preparation

Before initiating the installation, it's essential to ensure that your system is up-to-date. Open the terminal and execute the following command to update the system:

sudo yum update

After completing the updates, it's recommended to restart the system to apply all updates.

Adding the Remi Repository

PHP 7.4 isn't available in the default CentOS 7 repositories, so it's necessary to add the Remi repository, which contains PHP 7.4. The Remi repository depends on the EPEL repository, so first, install EPEL:

sudo yum install epel-release

Next, add the Remi repository to the system:

sudo yum install https://rpms.remirepo.net/enterprise/remi-release-7.rpm

Enabling PHP 7.4 in the Remi Repository

After adding the Remi repository, you need to enable PHP 7.4, which can be done using the yum-config-manager tool:

sudo yum install yum-utils
sudo yum-config-manager --enable remi-php74

Installing PHP 7.4

Now that the repository is added, and PHP 7.4 is enabled, we can proceed with the installation:

sudo yum install php

This command will install PHP 7.4 along with several basic modules. If you need specific modules for PHP, you can install them using the yum command as follows:

sudo yum install php-mysqlnd php-pdo php-gd php-mbstring

Verifying the Installation

After completing the PHP installation, you can verify the PHP version to ensure that the installation was successful:

php -v

This command should display information about PHP 7.4, confirming that the installation was successful.

Configuring PHP

After installing PHP, you may need to modify the php.ini configuration file according to your application's requirements. The configuration file is typically located at /etc/php.ini. You can edit it using any text editor:

sudo nano /etc/php.ini

After making the necessary changes, don't forget to restart the web server to apply the changes. If you're using Apache, restart it with the following command:

sudo systemctl restart httpd

If you're using Nginx, use this command:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Installing PHP 7.4 on CentOS 7 involves several steps, including adding repositories and enabling a specific PHP version. After installing PHP and its modules, it's essential to configure it according to your application's needs. By following the steps outlined above, you'll ensure that your server environment is ready for developing and running web applications in PHP 7.4.