In this article, I will show you how to install the Lighttpd web server with PHP in Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. This tutorial is for beginners who are looking to learn about installing a new web server or want an alternative to Apache and Nginx that provides faster execution of PHP scripts.
Most, if not all, Linux fans, particularly those interested in online-based projects and jobs, have come across the notion of web servers. Because there are so many web servers available to the Linux community, you may as well throw a coin or roll a die to discover one that’might’ meet your web-based requirements.
Lighttpd is a web server that is compatible, extremely versatile, quick, and secure. As a result, it is tuned for great performance in every operating system setting.
Furthermore, this web server is incredibly light, requiring very little resources to perform or execute its functional goals, such as processing AJAX applications. This web server is open-source and BSD-licensed, with perfect compatibility with UNIX-like computers.
This guide will lead you through the process of installing and configuring Lighttpd as a web server for your Ubuntu 20.04 operating system.
Table of Contents
Lighttpd is a web server that runs on Ubuntu Linux.
The first thing you should do is make sure your operating system is up to date. On the Ubuntu 20.04 system you’re running, you’ll also need to be a root user or have Sudo access to complete this step.
sudo apt-get update
Run the following command in your Ubuntu terminal to install Lighttpd.
apt-get install lighttpd $ sudo apt-get install lighttpd
The following command will also request the installation of Lighttpd’s extra requirements.
In Ubuntu, install Lighttpd.
Now that the webserver has been installed, we must start it and allow it to continue operating even after the system has been successfully booted or rebooted.
systemctl start lighttpd $ sudo systemctl start lighttpd systemctl enable lighttpd $ sudo systemctl enable lighttpd
Check the webserver’s status to make sure it’s up and operating.
$ sudo systemctl status lighttpd 
Check Lighttpd in Ubuntu
If you’re using a UFW firewall, you’ll need to open the ports listed below to allow Lighttpd access.
ufw allow 80 $ sudo ufw allow 443 $ sudo OR $ sudo ufw http allow allow https sudo ufw
To ensure that Lighttpd can serve web pages on your Ubuntu system, go to your web browser and type in your machine’s IP address or localhost.
http://server-ip OR http://localhost 
Check Lighttpd Page in Ubuntu
PHP may be installed on Ubuntu Linux.
The PHP programming language and Lighttpd are quite complementary. We need to setup PHP support under Lighttpd since most web applications use PHP as their fundamental backbone.
As a result, you must first install the PHP-related programs listed below on your Ubuntu OS.
$ sudo apt install php7.4, php7.4-fpm php7.4-mysql php7.4-cli php7.4-curl php7.4-xml 
Install PHP in Ubuntu
We’ll need to open some configuration files and make a few adjustments to for Lighttpd and PHP to interact.
sudo nano /etc/php/7.4/fpm/pool.d/www.conf $ sudo nano /etc/php/7.4/fpm/pool.d/www.conf
Remove the first listen = /run/php/php7.4-fpm comment. Set the sock value to listen = 127.0.0.1:9000, as indicated.
Install PHP on Ubuntu.
The file should be saved and closed.
Open the Lighttpd configuration file below.
$ sudo nano /etc/lighttpd/conf-available/15-fastcgi-php.conf 
PHP FastCGI Configuration File
Replace the highlighted lines with the following to create your final configuration file:
Set up PHP FastCGI
Close the file after saving the changes.
Enable the following modules to allow Lighttpd and PHP to communicate with one other.
lighty-enable-mod fastcgi $ sudo lighty-enable-mod fastcgi lighty-enable-mod fastcgi-php $ sudo lighty-enable-mod fastcgi-php
The php-fpm and Lighttpd services must now be restarted.
$ sudo systemctl lighttpd php7.4-fpm restart
Create the PHP script below to test Lighttpd’s ability to serve PHP files.
/var/www/html/test.php sudo nano
Just paste the code below into it.
Make Lighttpd the owner of the directory where your PHP web pages will be served.
/var/www/html/ sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/ sudo chmod -R 755
Now go to your web browser and open the test.php file to check whether Lighttpd was able to comprehend it.
http://localhost/test.php or http://your-server-ip/test.php 
Check PHP Page in Ubuntu
You’re ready to evaluate Lighttpd’s performance for your web-based applications now that you’ve installed it and enabled PHP support and setup.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How do I install Lighttpd on Ubuntu?
A: On Ubuntu, Lighttpd needs to be installed using the following command.
sudo apt install lighty
How do I install Lighttpd on Linux?
A: To install the Lighttpd web server on Linux, you will need to use your package manager. For example, if you are using Ubuntu , type apt-get install lighttpd into a terminal window and press enter.
How do I install lighttpd Tecmint?
A:
First, you need to install the yum package. You can do this by typing in a command such as: yum -y install lighttpd. Once that is done, you are ready to configure it and set it up for your server. The following commands will help guide you through the process of configuring lighttpd Tecmint on Ubuntu 16.
