phpServer

PHP + MySQL Development Environment (Docker)

This guide explains how to quickly set up and run a lightweight local PHP + MySQL development environment using Docker. By the end, you’ll be able to develop and run multiple PHP projects locally at:

http://localhost/

1. Setup

• Clone the Repository
• Open your terminal and clone the project repository:

git clone git@github.com:BB-WEX/phpServer.git ~/sites/phpServer
cd ~/sites/phpServer

Replace your-username with your GitHub username or the repository URL.

2. Project Structure

The www/ folder acts as your workspace for multiple PHP projects:

www/
├── my_new_app/
│   └── index.php
├── another_app/
│   └── index.php
└── ...

Each project should live in its own folder under www/. eg:

mkdir -p www/my_new_app
echo "<?php phpinfo(); ?>" > www/my_new_app/index.php

You can add as many projects as you like — each will be accessible in the browser.

3. Start the Environment

From the project folder (~/sites/phpServer), run:

docker-compose up -d

This will:

• Download the required Docker images (first time only)
• Start your PHP + MySQL containers in the background

4. Access Your Sites

• Once the containers are running:
• Open your browser at http://localhost/
• Access each project by its folder name:

http://localhost/my_new_app
http://localhost/another_app

5. Show a Directory of All Projects

By default, Apache returns 403 Forbidden when no index.php is found in www/. If you’d rather see a list of all project folders, enable directory listings:

1. Create a .htaccess file in www/

• Inside the www/ folder, create a file named .htaccess with the following content: Options +Indexes

2. Restart the PHP container docker-compose restart php

Now, when you visit http://localhost/, you’ll see a directory listing of all project folders in www/.

6. Database Access

Your MySQL database is available on your local machine:

Host | 127.0.0.1
Port | 3306
User | root
Password | root
Default DB | mydatabase

7. Managing Containers

Start environment in background:

docker-compose up -d

Stop all containers:

docker-compose down

List running containers:

docker ps

Access PHP container shell:

docker-compose exec php bash

Access MySQL container shell:

docker-compose exec mysql bash

8. Rebuilding Containers

If you change the docker-compose.yml file, rebuild with:

docker-compose up --build -d

9. Shutting Down

Stop everything safely with:

docker-compose down

Your MySQL data is stored in a Docker volume (db_data) and will persist between restarts.