Install Symfony 5 on Ubuntu: A Step-by-Step Guide

This brief tutorial shows students and new users how to install Symfony 5 Framework on Ubuntu 18.04 | 16.04 with an Apache2 HTTP server.

For the uninitiated, Symfony is a free, open-source, reusable PHP component and framework that helps speed up the creation and maintenance of your PHP web and API applications.

If you are looking for a solution to develop and maintain your PHP application quickly and don’t want to fiddle with repetitive coding tasks, then Symfony is a great place to start. It supports more than 50 stand-alone components available for your applications.

This PHP framework is designed for ease of use to allow web admins to collaborate and automate engaging experiences with users across multiple devices, including mobile.

For more about Symfony, please check their Homepage

To get started with installing the Symfony framework, follow the steps below:

Install Apache2 HTTP Server

The Symfony framework works as a web server, and the Apache2 HTTP server is the most popular open-source web server available today. To install and use Apache2 with Symfony, run the commands below:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install apache2

After installing Apache2, the commands below can stop, start, and enable the Apache2 service to always start up with the server boots.

sudo systemctl stop apache2.service
sudo systemctl start apache2.service
sudo systemctl enable apache2.service

Now that Apache2 has been installed browse your browser to the URL below to test whether the web server works.

http://localhost

If you see the page above, then Apache2 is successfully installed.

Install PHP 7.2 and Related Modules

Symfony is a PHP-based framework, and PHP is required. However, PHP 7.2 may not be available in Ubuntu’s default repositories. To run PHP 7.2 on Ubuntu 16.04 and previous, you may need to run the commands below:

sudo apt-get install software-properties-common
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php

Then update and upgrade to PHP 7.2

sudo apt update

Next, run the commands below to install PHP 7.2 and related modules.

sudo apt install php7.2 libapache2-mod-php7.2 php7.2-common php7.2-sqlite3 php7.2-mysql php7.2-gmp php7.2-curl php7.2-intl php7.2-mbstring php7.2-xmlrpc php7.2-soap php7.2-ldap php7.2-gd php7.2-bcmath php7.2-xml php7.2-cli php7.2-zip

After installing PHP 7.2, run the commands below to open the PHP default configuration file for Apache2.

sudo nano /etc/php/7.2/apache2/php.ini

The lines below are a good setting for most PHP-based CMS. Update the configuration file with these and save.

file_uploads = On
allow_url_fopen = On
short_open_tag = On
memory_limit = 256M
upload_max_filesize = 100M
max_execution_time = 360
date.timezone = America/Chicago

Every time you change the PHP configuration file, you should restart the Apache2 web server. To do so, run the commands below:

sudo systemctl restart apache2.service

Once PHP is installed, create a test file called phpinfo.php in the Apache2 default root directory to test whether it’s functioning. ( /var/www/html/)

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

Then, type the content below and save the file.

<?php phpinfo( ); ?>

Next, open your browser and browse to the server’s hostname or IP address, followed by phpinfo.php

http://localhost/phpinfo.php

You should see the PHP default test page.

Download Symfony’s Latest Release

To get Symfony’s latest release, you may want to use Composer. Composer allows you to download and manage packages and their dependencies easily.

To install Composer on Ubuntu, run the commands below:

sudo apt install curl git
curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer | sudo php -- --install-dir=/usr/local/bin --filename=composer

After installing Composer above, change the Apache2 home directory and download Symfony packages into a new project folder called symfony5.

cd /var/www/
sudo composer create-project symfony/skeleton symfony5

Then, run the commands below to set the correct permissions for the Symfony root directory and give Apache2 control.

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/symfony5/
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/symfony5/

Configure Apache

Finally, configure the Apahce2 site configuration file for Symfony. This file will control how users access Symfony content. Run the commands below to create a new configuration file called symfony.conf.

sudo nano /etc/apache2/sites-available/symfony.conf

Then copy and paste the content below into the file and save it. Replace the highlighted line with your domain name and directory root location.

<VirtualHost *:80>
     ServerAdmin admin@example.com
     DocumentRoot /var/www/symfony5/public
     ServerName example.com
     ServerAlias www.example.com

     <Directory /var/www/symfony5/public/>
          Options FollowSymlinks
          AllowOverride All
          Require all granted
     </Directory>

     ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
     CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

Save the file and exit.

Enable the Symfony

After configuring the VirtualHost above, please enable it by running the commands below.

sudo a2ensite symfony.conf
sudo systemctl restart apache2.service

Then, open your browser and browse to the host’s domain name or server IP address. You should then see the Symfony 5 homepage.

http://example.com/

Symfony 5 framework application is now ready, and you can start working on it.

Conclusion:

This post shows you how to install the Symfony 5 framework on Ubuntu 18.04 | 16.04. If you find any error, please report it in the comment form below.

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