How to install XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux

Hosting a website on a Linux system usually involves multiple software packages that operate together to deliver a web browsing experience to potential viewers. For example, it’s common for PHP to dynamically render web content but retrieve data from a database. These are two separate components and they must both be installed to present a website as intended.

XAMPP is a software stack that can run on Ubuntu Linux and make your life a little easier when it comes to web hosting. XAMPP stands for cross-platform (X), Apache (A), MariaDB (M), PHP (P), and Perl (P). These are all common components used in web hosting, and combining them into a single installation makes the initial setup less complicated. XAMPP also comes with Bitnami, which allows you to install content managements systems, such as WordPress, as well as other apps on top of your XAMPP installation if you choose.

In this guide, we’ll cover the installation of XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux. Follow along with our step by step instructions to get it setup on your own system.

In this tutorial you will learn:

  • How to install XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux
  • How to manage your XAMPP installation
Installing XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux

Installing XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux

Software Requirements and Linux Command Line Conventions
Category Requirements, Conventions or Software Version Used
System Ubuntu Linux
Software XAMPP
Other Privileged access to your Linux system as root or via the sudo command.
Conventions # – requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either directly as a root user or by use of sudo command
$ – requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Install XAMPP on Ubuntu

Open a command line terminal and type the following commands to download and install XAMPP on your system.

  1. Start by navigating to XAMPP’s offical website and downloading the latest version for Linux.
  2. Once it’s downloaded, add execute permissions to the installation file, then execute it.
    $ chmod +x xampp-linux-*-installer.run
    $ sudo ./xampp-linux-*-installer.run
    


  3. The installation menu will launch, and you can begin clicking through the prompts.
    Click next on the welcome prompt to get started

    Click next on the welcome prompt to get started

  4. It’s recommended to install the developer docs along with the core components of XAMPP, as this will include documentation and other helpful info.
    Install core components and developer files

    Install core components and developer files

  5. XAMPP will now be installed in the /opt/lampp directory (the “L” is for “Linux” and has replaced the “X”). Click next on this prompt and the next couple to confirm installation.
    XAMPP is installed in the /opt/lampp directory

    XAMPP is installed in the /opt/lampp directory

  6. When XAMPP is done, you can launch it to control the installed components.
    Launch XAMPP when installation completes

    Launch XAMPP when installation completes



Manage XAMPP Installation

Now that XAMPP is done installing, you can use the program to start and stop any of the installed components, such as Apache and MariaDB.

Manage Servers tab inside XAMPP

Manage Servers tab inside XAMPP

To further manage your web server and install additional apps like content management systems, navigate to http://localhost/dashboard in your browser.

The components of XAMPP as well as additional apps can be controlled from the web panel

The components of XAMPP as well as additional apps can be controlled from the web panel

This is XAMPP’s web control panel. Use it to browse documentation, install applications, access your database through phpMyAdmin, etc.

Conclusion

XAMPP is a convenient software stack that allows you to get your site up and running faster than installing individual components. In this guide, we saw how to install XAMPP on Ubuntu Linux. From here, you can use its convenient web interface to configure your site.



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