There are three ways to run PHP files on Windows. First, download the Windows version of PHP and configure environment variables: download the non-thread-safe version from php.net, decompress it to a fixed path (such as C:\php), add it to the system PATH, enter php -v on the command line to display the version number, and then install it successfully. Then use php test.php to run the file. Second, use an integrated development environment such as XAMPP or WAMP: Download XAMPP and select the Apache PHP component installation, start Apache and put the PHP file into the http://localhost/yourfile.php through the browser to run. Third, run PHP in VS Code: Install the PHP Debug plug-in to ensure that PHP is installed correctly and available on the command line, create .vscode/launch.json to configure debugging parameters, press F5 to start debugging and set breakpoints. In addition, you need to pay attention to the PHP file ending with .php, the output is echo, and the path contains Chinese or spaces.

Running PHP files is actually not difficult on Windows, as long as you prepare the environment. PHP itself is a server-side language and cannot be opened directly in a browser like HTML. It requires a local server environment to parse and execute.

Install the PHP interpreter

The most basic way is to directly download the Windows version of PHP and configure the environment variables.

• Go to php.net to download the non-thread safe (NTS) or thread safe (TS) version under "Windows binaries" (NTS is usually recommended)
• Unzip to a fixed path, such as C:\php
• Add this directory to the system PATH environment variable
• Open the command line and enter php -v , see the version number and the installation is successful

At this time, you can run the .php file on the command line, such as entering php test.php , provided that the file exists in the current directory.

Using an Integrated Development Environment (XAMPP/WAMP)

If you don't want to configure step by step, an easier way is to use integrated environment tools such as XAMPP or WAMP.

These tools come with Apache, MySQL and PHP, and can be run after one-click installation:

• Download XAMPP
• Select the components you need during installation (usually, Apache PHP is enough)
• Start Apache after installation is complete
• Put your PHP file in htdocs directory
• Visit http://localhost/yourfile.php by browser

This method is more suitable for beginners or when doing project development, saving the hassle of manually configuring various dependencies.

Run PHP in VS Code

If you use Visual Studio Code to write code, you can also run and debug PHP files directly inside.

• Install the PHP Debug plugin
• Make sure that PHP is installed and can be called via the command line
• Create a .vscode/launch.json file in the project root directory and configure debugging parameters
• Press F5 to start debugging, set breakpoints to view variable values

In this way, you can write and test while writing code, which will be much more efficient.

Don't ignore small details

• PHP files must end in .php , otherwise they will not be parsed
• Remember to use echo instead of JavaScript's console.log
• If an error "not internal or external command" occurs, it means that the environment variable is not properly matched
• Try not to bring Chinese or spaces to avoid strange problems

Basically that's it. As long as you set up the basic environment, it is actually very fast to run a PHP file.

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