Use Joomla! on Your Own Computer - Joomla! Documentation

7/31/2019 Use Joomla! on Your Own Computer - Joomla! Documentation

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Contents

1 Who is it written for?

2 Summary

3 Download and install XAMPP

3.1 Before download3.2 Download XAMPP

3.3 Install XAMPP - version 1.7.3

3.4 Now test localhost

4 Download and install Joomla!

4.1 Before download and installation

4.2 Download files for Joomla!

4.3 Install the files for Joomla! in the correct folder

5 Configure Joomla! and install the sample data

5.1 The sample data

5.2 To use the site and the administration pages

6 How to install another instance of Joomla! on localhost7 How to uninstall Joomla! and XAMPP

7.1 1. Use the uninstall script

7.2 OR . .2. Manually delete the files

8 Where Next?

9 Further information

10 Index to other documents in this series

Use Joomla! on your own computer

From Joomla! Documentation

This is a article which:needs editing. You can help the

Joomla! Documentation Wiki by contributing to it

(http://docs.joomla.org

/index.php?title=Use_Joomla!_on_your_own_computer&

action=edit) . More pages that need help similar to this one

are here.

If you feel the need is satistified, please remove this notice.While

actively editing, consider adding {{inuse}} to reduce edit conflicts.

Reason: This article should be written from a Multiversion

point of view since it describes methods of installing software

on a local computer for use as a local server. Any version ofJoomla! will work on a local server as long as it meets the

requirements of the specific version.

This is one of a

series of documents introducing

Joomla!.

It is very useful to be able to learn and

experiment on your own machine. The

aim of this document is to help you to

download a sample Joomla! site to your

own computer, known as a 'localhost'

installation. It has some helpful sample

content that allows you to become

familiar with the way that a Joomla! site

is put together. You can also install an

empty copy of Joomla! for creating a

new site.

Who is it written for?

Not everyone using this Manual will

have enough experience to feel

comfortable doing this. You need to

know a little about computing, for

example:-

Know where to find files

on your computer and be

able to create folders

Be able to download something from a Web site and save it in an appropriate placeYou will not panic if you do not understand a concept!

Experienced developers and people with programming experience will be fine.

Joomla! on your own computer - Joomla! Documentation http://docs.joomla.org/Use_Joomla!_on_your_own_computer

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If in doubt - follow the instructions and try it!

Summary

There are three basic stages in doing this:-

Downloading and installing some software that Joomla! needs to use to run locally, that is to say

on your own desktop or laptop computer. This is a web server called Apache

(http://httpd.apache.org/) , a database called MySQL (http://dev.mysql.com/) and a scripting

language called PHP (http://php.net/) . There are a few other things as well - which are

downloaded together as one package called XAMPP.

1.

Downloading and installing Joomla!2.

Configuring Joomla!3.

Download and install XAMPP

Important note on versions of XAMPP - as at March 4th 2011. This

section covers installation of the older version 1.7.3. There is a newerversion, 1.7.4, which became available the end of January 2011.

Link to instructions for the newer version - 1.7.4

There have been some problems reported with 1.7.4. These are

discussed but not resolved in one of the XAMPP forums

(http://www.apachefriends.org/f/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=44320)

In the meantime, you can continue to download and use the older

version which is reported to be more stable.

The point of this to to configure your own machine to behave as if it were a server with the difference beingthat the result is not visible over the internet and is thus confined to your own computer. This is very useful

for learning new things and even developing a new web site.

Before download

Make sure you have a separate folder for downloads.

Use Windows Explorer

Create a folder (called something meaningful like Downloads) beneath the top level of the

directory. (Depending on how your computer is set up - this will be C:\Downloads)

Download XAMPP

Download sites for using a Mac or Linux (http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp.html) with

documentation.

For installation instructions of Xampp and Joomla on Linux see also Installing_Joomla_on_Debian_Linux

Warning: If you are not familiar with downloading software - don't be put off by unfamiliar vocabulary on

the download Web site!

The site for Windows download (http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp-windows.html) . This is a page

with links to downloads as well as instructions for installation.


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This is what you do to get the stable 1.7.3 version:-

Find this in the first part of the screen - Download older versions of XAMPP (even the "old"

WAMPP) directly from Sourceforge

Go to Sourceforge link - which is at http://sourceforge.net/projects/xampp/files/

Click XAMPP Windows choice

This lists previous versions

Choose xampp-win32-1.7.3.exe

In the window that opens

Click Save File

In the Save In box - find the Download folder on your conmputer

Click Save

A file with the XAMPP logo is saved to the Download folder. In Windows Explorer Details view, the file

type will be Application.

Install XAMPP - version 1.7.3

Extracting the software and installing the files:-

Run the file

Double-click the file name

You may be asked to confirm that you want to run the file - if so - Click Run.

The next window gives on-screen instructions.

The XAMPP installation screen. Note that it gives on-screen

instructions.

Use the top level of the C: drive - so leave the C: as it is. (If you want it elsewhere, Browse for

the folder where you want it)

Click Install

Installation Progress is indicated on the screen. When the files are extracted, a Windows command screen

asks a few questions to configure the installation.


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Respond to these with the defaults.

A Windows command screen. This may be unfamiliar - just respond to it as suggested in

the text

The files are placed in the correct locations and you are then prompted to press to continue and to

confirm the timezone.

Finally the screen presents 7 choices.

Choose 1 to start the Control Panel and press Return

Choose x to Exit the install process

You should see a XAMPP Control Panel on the desktop. To open it is it is not already open:-

Double-click the Control Panel icon on the desktop.

This is the Control panel with the services running.


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The Control panel with the services running.

Apache and MySQL need to run as Services (indicated by a tick against Svc in the Control Panel). Make

sure the following are set:-

Apache Svc is ticked

Apache is Running (Click Start to run it)

MySQL Svc is tickedMySQL is Running (Click Start to run it)

Now test localhost

Type in your local home page's address in your browser - which is http://localhost/

If it has not been successful - you will get a message saying 'Unable to Connect'. This may happen if:

The most likely cause is that Apache or mySQL are not running. Use the Control Panel to check

these.

The VOIP software Skype may in some cases interfere with network settings. If you are usingXAMPP or MAMP on a Mac OSX computer which also has Skype installed, ensure that Skype

is turned off, then quit and re-start MAMP or XAMPP.

If it has been successful - there will be a splash page with a choice of languages.

Choose your language

You now see a Welcome page which says 'You have successfully installed XAMPP on this system!'. There

are also various links to documentation and other things to the left.

You can move on to downloading and installing Joomla! itself.

Download and install Joomla!


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Before download and installation

Create a folder for the Joomla! installation with a suitable name

Under the XAMPP folder (for example C:\XAMPP\) there is a folder called htdocs (C:\XAMPP\htdocs ).

This is the folder under which all content that will be seen on the localhost Web site is located. (There are

already files there - such as index.html which displays the logo for XAMPP)

Open the htdocs folder

Create a folder under htdocs to contain the Joomla! files. (It can have any name but joomlaXX is

often used for sample sites, where XX denotes the version number). In this example we will use

joomla16

Some of the files under

C:\XAMPP. Here the

Joomla! instance lives and

there are in this example

two Joomla! installations,one for 1.5 and one for

1.6

Download files for Joomla!

Go to the main Joomla! site - http://www.joomla.org/

Click the Download button. It links to the latest stable release of Joomla!

Click on the ZIP for the Full Package for the latest version.

Save the file to the Download folder on your computer

It will be called a Compressed(zipped) Folder in the Details list in Windows Explorer

Install the files for Joomla! in the correct folder

Right-click the downloaded zip file

Choose Extract All

The Extraction Wizard prompts for where you want the files to be located. This is in the folder created

above - for example C:\xampp\htdocs\Joomla16

Click Browse to find the folder you have created for the installation of Joonmla! 1.6Click OK

Check that the 'Files will be extracted to this Directory' box has the right folder displayed.

Click Next


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The extraction Wizard at work. Make sure the files go to the right

folder.

Progress is indicated by the blue bar. When completed an Extraction Complete screen displays.

Click Finish

The files are now in the right place and you are ready to set Joomla! up for use.

Configure Joomla! and install the sample data

Create database Joomla16 using PHPMYADMIN

Open the Joomla! site in your browser

If you called the folder for the Joomla! files 'joomla16, then enter the URL in your browser:-

http://localhost/joomla16

If you called the file something else - then use the name of that file instead of 'joomla16'.

The Joomla! Installation screen displays. Here you are stepped through seven choices in order to set up the

site, the database and a few other things. Your progress is indicated to the left of the screen.

1. Select the language and press the Next button

2. Look at the Pre-installation check. There should not be any red items, apart from Display Errors,

which can read On. Press Next to continue.

3. Read the GNU General Public License page and press Next


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The database configuration screen illustrates the layout of the display and shows the answers for the d

there is a fair amount of on-screen help.

4. The database configuration page.

This sets up and configures the database, where all the content for the site is stored.

Enter the details into the form:-

Leave database Type as mysql

Host name is localhost

User Name is root

Set a password for the user name for the database. Use something you will remember!

Database name - this is the name of this instance of Joomla! - in the example here use joomla16.If you used a different name - use that here for the database name.

Press Next when all the entries are done

5. Skip the FTP configuration - so press Next

6. Site name and sample data.

In the form:-

Give it a name - such as 'Sample'.

Enter an email

Enter a password - and remember this as it lets you use the site!

The rubric explains why you need this.

The sample data

There is some information on the side panel about why you should install the sample data.


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Why install the sample data?

It is a useful resource

It is helpful in showing how a Joomla! site hangs together.

You can edit articles

You can observe different ways of doing things.

It is used in this series of documents

If you want both a site with sample data and a site with no data - you can install

another instance of Joomla! on the same computer as explained in the last part of this

document.

Click the button that says - Install Sample Data.

The button will then read 'Sample data installed successfully'. It is slightly confusing as you

might expect it to take longer.

The Main configuration page showing some of the choices, including the selection to install the

Note:


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Sometimes there is a message that the database won't connect. The fix -

Click Previous and remove the password. Check that the other settings are

the same as you originally entered and then continue.

Press Next to continue when all is done

The Finish screen has helpful advice.

You need to do one more thing - remove the installation directory. In this example it is at:-

C:\xampp\htdoc\joomla16\installation

If you try to go on to use the site without doing this, you will be prompted to do it. You are only allowed to

continue when it has been deleted.

To use the site and the administration pages

There are separate web addresses for the main Site and for the administrator Back-end Assuming the site is

'Joomla15':-

The site (also known as the Front-end) is http://localhost/joomla16/

The administration page - (known also as the Back-end) is http://localhost/joomla16

/administrator

If you have used a different name - put that in instead of 'Joomla16'

How to install another instance of Joomla! on localhost

You can install and configure another instance of Joomla! using a different name. You do need to download

it again as you removed the installation directory as a security measure.

Create a new folder under htdoc - with a different name from the first installation. For example -

development16

Extract the files from the Joomla! download in exactly the same way - but Browse for the new

folder name.

Configuring Joomla!

The set up stages are the same, except:-

the database will need the name of the site (such as development16)

do not enter a password for mySQL root if there is a database error.

And - of course - do not install the sample data if you want a clean site.

This time the addresses are different:-

Open the Joomla! site - assuming the folder was called is 'development16':-The site is http://localhost/development16/

The administration page is http://localhost/development16/administrator


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If you have used a different name - put that in instead of 'development16'

How to uninstall Joomla! and XAMPP

You may want to uninstall Joomla! and XAMPP. If you do this - make sure you have copies of anything you

may need, such as configuration files.

There are two possibilities.

1. Use the uninstall script

The easy way - you can use the uninstall script.

Find the script:-

\XAMPP\uninstall_xampp.bat

(It appears on the Details list in Windows Explorer as a MS-DOS Batch File).

Run this script (Double-click on the file name)

This opens a command window and asks if you want the htdocs directory deleted.

If you choose 'n' - it does not delete the folders \XAMPP\htdocs and \XAMPP\mysql\data - so

you will need to do this yourself.

If you choose 'y' - it deletes these folders as well

The services are then stopped and the control panel removed from the desktop. The next message is that it

will delete the files. Your response should be y for uninstalling the package.

OR . .

2. Manually delete the files

The installation can be uninstalled by deleting all the files under the \XAMPP\ folder, but there may be

errors if you do not stop the services and check that nothing is running first.

Stop the services using XAMPP Control Panel

Untick the Svr button - so that mySQL and Apache are no longer running as services

Ensure that no other file is being used

Highlight the folder name and press Delete

There is also documentation on the XAMPP site (http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp-windows.html)

about uninstalling.

Where Next?

You now have a Joomla! site to work with and some documentation to go with it.

Become familiar with Joomla! by altering and adding content.

Hands-on editing an article: Joomla! 1.6|Hands-on how to begin to edit an Article.

and

Hands-on adding a new article: Joomla! 1.6|Hands-on how to create a new Article.


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Further information

Make use of the on-line Help for detailed information

Using the sample data. There is some documentation on the sample data on the sample website

created on localhost.

Documentation about installing and using XAMPP (http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp-windows.html) . This is the documentation for XAMPP and also has links to help about xampp.

Index to other documents in this series

Documents will be linked here when they have been updated to include material appropriate for version

Index to the other documents in this series

Start Here: Introduction to Getting Started with Joomla! for version 1.6

Hands-on a Joomla! site:

Use a site that has already been set up.

Install a copy of Joomla! 1.6 on your own computer, known as

localhost

References: Books, links and helpful resources

Lorna Scammell February 2011

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