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What is XAMPP?
XAMPP is the most popular PHP development environment
XAMPP is a completely free, easy to install Apache distribution containing MariaDB, PHP, and Perl. The XAMPP open source package has been set up to be incredibly easy to install and to use.
XAMPP is an abbreviation for cross-platform, Apache, MySQL, PHP and Perl, and it allows you to build WordPress site offline, on a local web server on your computer. This simple and lightweight solution works on Windows, Linux, and Mac – hence the “cross-platform” part.
It’s a completely free, open source Apache server distribution with MariaDB (formerly MySQL), PHP, and Perl. XAMPP is available for all major operating systems, and is extremely easy to install and use. This explains why it’s the most popular PHP development environment.
Here’s what the alphabets in XAMPP stand for:
- X — cross-platform (X), as it supports multiple operating systems
- A — Apache HTTP Server
- M — MariaDB (formerly MySQL)
- P — PHP
- P — PERL
Apart from the core components mentioned above, XAMPP usually comes with other useful tools such as Mercury mail server, phpMyAdmin for database administration, Webalizer for web server log analysis, OpenSSL, Apache Tomcat for running Java code, and FileZilla FTP server.
Why XAMPP?
As a professional WordPress developer, I cannot stress enough how beneficial having a local development environment is. It lets me setup new WordPress installs in a jiffy. And since it’s hosted locally on my computer, there’s no delay in uploading my changes and see them come alive on the browser.
Want to try a new theme? Just copy and paste it into your wp-content/themes directory. And bam! It’s loaded instantly. The same with plugins and changing any settings. No server delay, no upload hassles, no unnecessary waiting times. Everything happens in real time.
It’s like taking your car on a racetrack and pushing it to its limits. The perfect testing environment to go wild without any repercussions (well, almost).
With XAMPP installed on my PC, I can continue working on my site even if I’m at a remote location with no connectivity. Developing locally is also much secure, as your site is offline and away from the prying eyes of hackers (and pesky clients).
Why XAMPP for WordPress?
Like all software, WordPress has certain prerequisites to run. The current recommended WordPress requirements are:
- PHP version 7.3 or greater
- MySQL version 5.6 or greater OR MariaDB version 10.1 or greater
- HTTPS support
- Apache OR nginx server
XAMPP checks all the boxes listed above. It’s free, reliable, easy to use, and works on all major platforms. You can’t go wrong with it.
How to set up
How to Use XAMPP to Set Up a Local WordPress Site (In 3 Steps)
- Step 1: Install XAMPP. First of all, you’ll need to go to the Apache Friends website, and select the relevant download link on the homepage:
- Step 2: Run XAMPP and Configure Your Environment. Now, open up the XAMPP application and hit the Start button.
- Step 3: Download and Run WordPress.
Components
| Component | On Windows | On Linux | On macOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apache 2.4.46 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| MariaDB 10.4.14 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| PHP 7.4.10 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| phpMyAdmin 5.0.2 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| OpenSSL 1.1.1g | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Webalizer | Yes – 2.23-04 | Yes – 2.23-05 | Yes – 2.23-05 |
| FileZilla FTP Server 0.9.41 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mercury Mail Transport System 4.63 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Strawberry Perl 5.32.0.1 Portable | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tomcat 7.0.105 (with mod_proxy_ajp as connector) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| XAMPP Control Panel 3.2.4 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| APR 1.5.2 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| APR-utils 1.5.4 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| cUrl 7.53.1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| expat 2.0.1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| FPDF 1.7 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| FreeTDS 0.91 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Freetype2 2.4.8 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| GD 2.2.5 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| gdbm 1.8.3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| gettext 0.19.8.1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ICU4C Library 66.1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| IMAP C-Client 2007e | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| libapreq 2.13 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| libpng 1.5.26 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| libxml 2.0.1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| libxslt 1.1.33 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| mcrypt 2.5.8 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| mhash 0.9.9.9 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ming 0.4.5 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| mod_perl 2.0.8-dev | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ncurses 5.9 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| OpenLDAP (client) 2.4.48 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| pdf class 0.11.7 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Perl 5.30.3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ProFTPD 1.3.6 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sablotron 1.0.3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| zlib 1.2.11 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
