I need to upgrade to php5 but I'm so very scared...

ali_p

I am finally ready to upgrade to php 5 from php 4 but I am so so scared. I have not upgraded my php since i first installed back in 2003 and i really cannot remember how i did it. I am using window xp and i am currently using IIS 5.1 as my server. What has been putting me off for so long are all the variables that I'm worried that i don't remember.

I've heard of a thing called XAMP which is supposed to have everything bundled to make for a easy install, but i'm not sure if this is the right step to take. But then on the other hand I'm way to nervous to try and do the upgrade myself.

I've looked through loads of tutorials but now i'm confused as i'm not sure whether they all apply to what i currently have running.

So my question is:
If i am currently running php v4.3.7 on windows xp on IIS 5.1 with MySQL ( not too sure of the version ) what is the best and least complicated way for me to upgrade?

Thanks in advance.

alimadzi

I assume you have a Web server for your projects. Just download the latest version of WAMP (http://wampserver.com/en/) and test those projects locally on PHP 5. Make your fixes and then deploy PHP 5 on your Web server.

Here's a list of items to address in your upgrade:

http://us2.php.net/manual/en/migration5.php

This process really won't be as bad as you're afraid it might be. And since support for PHP 4 will be ending, it's a necessary move. Have fun!

Weedpacket

Here's how I replaced my PHP 4 installation with PHP 5 on Windows XP. (I've got PHP installed in C:\php). Caveat: I'm having to do this from memory and it was a couple of years ago, but I recall it wasn't that much different from a point upgrade. It doesn't cover changing the existing code, only the installation.

Downloaded the .zip file from php.net.
Shut down Apache
Renamed c:\php to c:\php4
Created a new c:\php
Unzipped the contents of the archive into c:\php
Renamed c:\php\php-ini.recommended to c:\php\php.ini
Compared c:\php\php.ini with c:\php4\php.ini and corrected the former as appropriate.
Done.
No, wait...
Restarted Apache

I've just realised I've still got c:\php4 sitting here......

ali_p

Thanks guys,

I'm using IIS 5.1 so i presume i treat this in much the same way as apache.
Also I've just found this
http://ie2.php.net/manual/en/install.windows.php#install.windows.installer.msi
Its the php5.2 installer which looks pretty nifty hopefully this should do the job.

Thanks again

MarkR

Upgrading the software is straightforward enough.

The tricky bit is upgrading your applications. This requires a lot of laborious testing work.

Mark