How to Install the LAMP Stack on Windows WSL

How to Install LAMP Stack on Windows WSL

Step 1Enable WSL in Windows

To run Linux tools on Windows, you first need to enable the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). This lets you install and use Linux systems directly on your computer. You can turn on WSL by opening PowerShell as an administrator and running a simple command.

To enable WSL in Windows, open the PowerShell terminal as administrator. Click on Start, then type PowerShell.

Right-click the Windows PowerShell app and choose “Run as administrator”.

When the console opens, run this command:

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart

You should see a success message saying the operation completed successfully.

Step 2Enable Virtual Machine Platform

For the newer WSL 2 version to work, you must enable the Virtual Machine Platform feature in Windows. This is a necessary step done from the same administrator PowerShell window. Running a specific command activates this Windows feature, which is required for WSL 2.

The Windows 10 Virtual Machine Platform must be enabled for WSL 2 to function. Run the command `Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName VirtualMachinePlatform -All` from the same PowerShell administrator console to enable this feature.

dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart

If you’re using Windows 10 version lower than 2004, use this command instead:

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName VirtualMachinePlatform -NoRestart

After restarting, log back in and launch PowerShell as administrator. Then run this command to set WSL 2 as the default version:

wsl --set-default-version 2

Step 3Install Ubuntu on 🪟 Windows 10

After setting up WSL 2, the next step for your LAMP stack on WSL is 💿 installing Ubuntu. Ubuntu is a popular Linux operating system you can easily get from the Windows Store. Installing Ubuntu 20.04 LTS from the Microsoft Store lets you start using Linux command line tools on Windows.

Get Ubuntu 20.04 LTS – Microsoft Store

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS on Windows lets you use the Ubuntu Terminal and run Linux command line tools like bash, ssh, git, apt, and many more.

Click the Get button and 💿 install it. After installing Ubuntu, you’ll be able to launch it from the Windows WSL environment.

When you launch Ubuntu, the Linux operating system, it will prompt you to create a user account. This user account setup process, which establishes your identity within Ubuntu, may take a few minutes to complete.

Here’s what you’ll see:

Please create a default UNIX user account. The username does not need to match your Windows username.
For more information visit: https://aka.ms/wslusers
Enter new UNIX username: user1
New password:
Retype new password:
passwd: password updated successfully
Installation successful!
To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
See "man sudo_root" for details.

Welcome to Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS (GNU/Linux 4.4.0-19041-Microsoft x86_64)

 * Documentation:  https://help.ubuntu.com
 * Management:     https://landscape.canonical.com
 * Support:        https://ubuntu.com/support

  System information as of Mon Apr 12 17:57:37 CDT 2021

  System load:    0.52      Processes:             7
  Usage of /home: unknown   Users logged in:       0
  Memory usage:   26%       IPv4 address for eth0: 192.168.1.100
  Swap usage:     0%

1 update can be installed immediately.
0 of these updates are security updates.
To see these additional updates run: apt list --upgradable

That’s it! If you run into issues, try these troubleshooting commands:

wsl --set-default-version 1
bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto start

Now you’re ready to install Apache, MariaDB, and PHP.

Step 4Prepare Ubuntu Linux

Ubuntu is now installed inside Windows WSL. Update it using these commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
sudo apt autoremove

These commands help manage and update your Ubuntu operating system.

Step 5Install Apache HTTP Server

💿 Installing the Apache web server is a key part of setting up your LAMP stack on WSL. You can add Apache to your Ubuntu system using its package manager with simple commands in the terminal. Running `sudo apt update` and `sudo apt install apache2` will get your web server ready for websites.

To install Apache on Ubuntu, run these commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install apache2

After 💿 installing Apache2, use these commands to stop, start, and restart Apache:

sudo service apache2 stop
sudo service apache2 start
sudo service apache2 restart

To check that Apache is working, open your web browser and go to:

http://localhost

You should see a test page if everything works.

Step 6Install MariaDB Database Server

Next for your LAMP stack on WSL is 💿 installing MariaDB, a popular and secure database server. You can add MariaDB to your Ubuntu system using simple commands in the terminal. Running `sudo apt-get install mariadb-server mariadb-client` is essential for storing your website data.

To install MariaDB, run these commands:

sudo apt-get install mariadb-server mariadb-client

After 💿 installing MariaDB, use these commands to stop, start, and 🔄 restart the database:

sudo service mysql stop
sudo service mysql start
sudo service mysql restart

sudo mysql_secure_installation

Answer the questions like this:

• Enter current password for root (enter for none): Just press Enter
• Set root password? [Y/n]: Y
• New password: Enter your password
• Re-enter new password: Repeat your password
• Remove anonymous users? [Y/n]: Y
• Disallow root login remotely? [Y/n]: Y
• Remove test database and access to it? [Y/n]: Y
• Reload privilege tables now? [Y/n]: Y

To check that MariaDB is working, log in using this command:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Type your root password when asked. You should see:

Welcome to the MariaDB monitor.  Commands end with ; or g.
Your MariaDB connection id is 46
Server version: 10.3.29-MariaDB-0ubuntu0.20.04.1 Ubuntu 20.04
Copyright (c) 2000, 2018, Oracle, MariaDB Corporation Ab and others.
Type 'help;' or 'h' for help. Type 'c' to clear the current input statement.
MariaDB [(none)]>

If you see this, MariaDB installed successfully.

Step 7Install PHP and Related Modules

To finish setting up your LAMP stack on WSL, you need to install PHP. PHP is the programming language that makes websites interactive. You’ll also install helpful PHP modules using a single command in your Ubuntu terminal. Running `sudo apt install php libapache2-mod-php php-common php-mysql php-gmp php-curl php-i` gets everything working.

To install PHP and useful modules, run this command:

sudo apt install php libapache2-mod-php php-common php-mysql php-gmp php-curl php-intl php7.4-mbstring php-xmlrpc php-gd php-xml php-cli php-zip

To check that PHP is installed, run:

php -v

You should see something like:

PHP 7.4.3 (cli) (built: Oct  6 2020 15:47:56) ( NTS )
Copyright (c) The PHP Group
Zend Engine v3.4.0, Copyright (c) Zend Technologies
with Zend OPcache v7.4.3, Copyright (c), by Zend Technologies

You can also test PHP by creating a test file. Run this command:

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

Type this content and save the file:

<?php phpinfo( ); ?>

Restart Apache with:

sudo service apache2 restart

Then open your browser and go to:

http://localhost/phpinfo.php

You should see the PHP information page.

Summary

You have successfully installed the LAMP stack on Windows WSL. This setup includes Linux (Ubuntu), Apache web server, MariaDB database, and PHP. You’ve enabled WSL 2 on Windows, installed Ubuntu from the Store, and updated it. This gives you a complete environment for building and testing websites right on your PC.

• Enabled WSL 2 on Windows with PowerShell
• Installed Ubuntu 20.04 from the Windows Store
• Updated Ubuntu with the latest packages
• Installed Apache web server
• Installed MariaDB database server and secured it
• Installed PHP and important modules

Your LAMP stack is now ready to use for web development and testing on your local Windows machine. If you run into any issues, check the troubleshooting commands above or leave a comment below.