Configuration of PHP Excel Class - PHP

According to the developers of this class, the following requirements must be met for this application to work properly:

1. At least PHP Version 5.2.0
   
2. php_zip enabled
   
3. php_xml enabled
   
4. php_gd2 enabled

If you are still new to these functions (which most new developers are), then you might have some difficulty in checking whether these requirements are met by your existing XAMPP local web server.

So let's go through the procedures one by one for how to check for the minimum requirements.

First, let's check the PHP version of your XAMPP local host web server.

Step 1. Using your browser, go to http://localhost/

Step 2. Log in using your XAMPP administrator credentials.

Step 3. In the sidebar navigation menu, click phpinfo()

The PHP version can be clearly seen as the H1 header element (for example, PHP Version 5.2.8) at the top portion of the page.

Next, let's check to see if php_zip is enabled.

Using the result/output of the phpinfo (), you need to find out if you have this entry:

If you do not have that entry, then php_zip has been disabled. You need enable it by following the steps below:

1. Using the output of your phpinfo() provided above, find the path of your php.ini file by looking at the value of Loaded Configuration File

An example path could be: C:xamppapachebinphp.ini

2. Navigate through that directory where your php.ini resides; double click on it, and it will open in notepad.

3. Since there are a lot of entries in php.ini, using your notepad, go to Edit à Find, and then type:

php_zip.dll

4. If php_zip has been disabled, you should see a semicolon before the file name, for example:

;extension=php_zip.dll

5. To enable php_zip, simply remove the semicolon and then save your php.ini file (File à Save)  

extension=php_zip.dll

6. In Windows, go to Start à All programs à Apache friends à XAMPP à XAMPP Control Panel.

7. In the control panel, stop the Apache module by clicking "Stop." Wait for around 10 seconds and then click "Start" again.

This process will restart your local Apache server to implement the changes you have made to your php.ini file.

8. Try viewing your phpinfo again and you should see the php zip entry in your phpinfo result (refer to screen shot shown previously).

Now, let's check to see if php_xml has been enabled.

Using your phpinfo() result, you should see the results shown in the screen shot below:

These functions are enabled by default during the PHP installation along with XAMPP.  

Finally, we'll check to see if php_gd2 has been enabled.

You should check your php.ini to see if php_gd2.dll has been uncommented (semi-colon removed):

extension=php_gd2.dll