I am trying to revert my PHP version to 5.6 from 7 and though I removed PHP 7 and then installed PHP 5.6 I still seem to be running version 7.
Is there a simple method for moving through PHP versions where apache, phpMyAdmin and co are configured appropriately?
A simple way to change the current version of PHP on the fly and even site by site would be great.
Update
Today I got again problem with PHP 7 running despite I have disabled php7.0 apache module: phpinfo was showing php 7 using fastCGI ...
... So if after you follow the below instructions you face this situation, you may need to disable the proxy_fcgi apache module:
sudo a2dismod proxy_fcgi proxy; sudo service apache2 restart
1. Re-Install PHP 5.6
What worked for me was this guide: http://www.lornajane.net/posts/2016/php-7-0-and-5-6-on-ubuntu
Actually is not required to remove php7.0, you can install php5.6 together ( also because you will have dependency problem with phpmyadmin package that required php7.0)
Assuming libapache2-mod-php is a suitable way to enable PHP in Apache for you, you can proceed in this way:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install php7.0 php5.6 php5.6-mysql php-gettext php5.6-mbstring php-mbstring php7.0-mbstring php-xdebug libapache2-mod-php5.6 libapache2-mod-php7.0
2. Switch PHP version:
From php5.6 to php7.0:
Apache:
sudo a2dismod php5.6 ; sudo a2enmod php7.0 ; sudo service apache2 restart
CLI:
sudo update-alternatives --set php /usr/bin/php7.0
From php7.0 to php5.6:
Apache:
sudo a2dismod php7.0 ; sudo a2enmod php5.6 ; sudo service apache2 restart
CLI:
sudo update-alternatives --set php /usr/bin/php5.6
php -v after restarting apache it still shows 5.6.21
– toesslab
May 06 '16 at 10:29
phpinfo() in a webpage you will see the difference.
– Postadelmaga
May 08 '16 at 00:43
php5.6 module try to compare phpinfo between php5.6 and php7.0, check the apache log.
– Postadelmaga
May 18 '16 at 02:39
php7.0 and php5.6 in CLI without removing the native php7 install, php5.6 won't occur as a prompt but will still work. You can even use php5.6 -v to check
– myol
May 18 '16 at 16:02
sudo ln -sfn /usr/bin/php5 /etc/alternatives/php is what I needed.
– Jorge Orpinel Pérez
Jul 16 '16 at 05:43
Ubuntu 16.04 comes with php 7.0, and some php applications might still fail with php 7.0 .Therefore, in some cases, it might be sensible to have both php 7.0 and php 5.x, so that you can choose which version to use for your needs at any time.
You can do so with:
xavi@computer# sudo su
root@computer# add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
root@computer# apt-get update
root@computer# apt-get install php7.0 php5.6 php5.6-mysql php-gettext php5.6-mbstring php-xdebug libapache2-mod-php5.6 libapache2-mod-php7.0 php5.6-curl php5.6-gd php5.6-mcrypt php5.6-xml php5.6-xmlrpc
Installing both php5.6 & php7.0 was clean in my case: no complain of issues, etc.
To switch from php 5.6 to php 7.0 you need to do two things:
# For php in web apps
sudo a2dismod php5.6 && sudo a2enmod php7.0 && sudo service apache2 restart
# For php-cli in the command line
sudo ln -sfn /usr/bin/php7.0 /etc/alternatives/php
or from php7.0 to php5.6:
# For php in web apps
sudo a2dismod php7.0 && sudo a2enmod php5.6 && sudo service apache2 restart
# For php-cli in the command line
sudo ln -sfn /usr/bin/php5.6 /etc/alternatives/php
You can also quickly check which yours is using by running php -v.
sudo a2dismod php7.0 && sudo a2enmod php5.6 && sudo service apache2 restart to make sure the following commands are only run when the before one succeeds. Proposed an edit to this answer.
– Videonauth
May 02 '16 at 10:30
php5.6 and php7.0 on ubuntu 16.04
– Amine Jallouli
May 14 '16 at 11:26
php would take much longer than your boss is willing to pay you for. You have a family, so you don't have any time to "volunteer". That makes you grateful that people like Ondrej keep these PPAs up and running, so e.g. the Phalcon 5.4 that runs only on PHP 5.6 can be used, you rock it with the job you love, and your boss is happy with you.
– bballdave025
Jun 01 '23 at 23:19
Your question lacks important details, so I will answer more broadly.
Assuming you are using packages, there are some important details:
Apache2 can be configured to use either apache2 SAPI using libapache2-mod-php7.0 package or FPM SAPI using php7.0-fpm with mod_proxy_fcgi.
Ubuntu 16.04 has only PHP 7.0 in the repositories, you can use ppa:ondrej/php to add support for PHP 5.6 using similar naming scheme (e.g. libapache2-mod-php5.6 or php5.6-fpm).
If you are using Apache2 SAPI (libapache2-mod-php*), you need to disable PHP 7.0 after you install libapache2-mod-php5.6 by running a2dismod php7.0 and enable PHP 5.6 by running a2enmod php5.6.
If you are using FPM SAPI (php*-fpm) then you need to change FPM unix socket from /run/php/php7.0-fpm.sock to /run/php/php5.6-fpm.sock.
Please remember that for modules bundled with PHP (like MySQL) the naming convention is phpX.Y-<ext> (f.e. php7.0-mysql and php5.6-mysql), but for external PECL modules (f.e. APCu, mongodb, ...) it's just php-<ext> (f.e. php-apcu, php-mongodb). I recommend running apt-cache search php <ext> on your system to search for correct package name before asking a questions on the Internet.
I think you should remove your php packages and install php5.6. You can proceed as follows:
sudo apt-get purge php7.*
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ondrej/php
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install php5.6
You can then check the version of your php to be sure. It is done as seen below:
php -v
php5-common, so simply: apt-get purge php5-common will purge all php5 packages from your system.
– oerdnj
Apr 25 '16 at 10:09
dpkg -l | grep php| awk '{print $2}' |tr "\n" " "? – storm Apr 24 '16 at 10:57aptitude purge php7.0-common php7.0-json php7.0-xmlalso I want to know what you mean byall my php is rendering as text now– storm Apr 24 '16 at 11:22libapache2-mod-php5.6package ... see my answer below, you don't need to removephp7.0– Postadelmaga Apr 25 '16 at 03:00