Learn how to change the PHP version for a server with Plesk. This tutorial includes in­struc­tions on how to find the PHP version your Plesk server is using, change to a different PHP version, and install a different PHP version if necessary.

For any server with Plesk, ap­plic­a­tions like PHP should always be upgraded and managed through the Plesk interface. Follow the in­struc­tions in this tutorial to learn how to update PHP, or switch to a different version of PHP than the one you are currently using.

Re­quire­ments

  • A server with Plesk (any operating system) and PHP installed.

PHP is installed and running on a Standard Linux in­stall­a­tion by default. If your server was created with a Minimal in­stall­a­tion, you will need to install and configure PHP before you proceed.

Tip

This tutorial uses the Power User view. You can change the Plesk view by clicking Change View at the bottom of the column on the left.

Check the current PHP version

To view the current version of PHP being used by the domain, click Websites and Domains then find the domain you want to check.

Image: Plesk - Websites & Domains
Plesk - Websites & Domains

The PHP version is shown in the domain’s details.

Image: Plesk - PHP Settings
Plesk - PHP Settings
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Change the PHP version

Click on PHP Settings for the domain you wish to change.

Image: Plesk - Domain PHP Settings
Plesk - Domain PHP Settings

This will take you to the PHP Settings page for the domain. Click the drop-down menu to see which PHP versions are available.

Image: Plesk - PHP Settings Dropdown
Plesk - PHP Settings Dropdown

In this case, the server has PHP versions 7.0.22, 5.6.30, 7.0.19, and 7.1.5 available.

Image: Plesk - PHP Version
Plesk - PHP Version

If the PHP version you want is listed on the drop-down menu, select it. Then scroll to the bottom of the page and click Apply to save the change.

Image: Plesk - Apply PHP Version
Plesk - Apply PHP Version

If the PHP version you want is not listed, follow the in­struc­tions in the next section to install it.

Install a different PHP version

To change the PHP version, go to Tools and Settings.

Image: Plesk - Tools & Settings
Plesk - Tools & Settings

Click Plesk > Updates and Upgrades.

Image: Plesk - Updates and Upgrades
Plesk - Updates and Upgrades

Click Add/Remove Com­pon­ents.

Image: Plesk - Add/Remove Components
Plesk - Add/Remove Com­pon­ents

Click to expand the + Web Hosting menu.

Image: Plesk - Web Hosting
Plesk - Web Hosting

Click to expand the + PHP in­ter­pret­er versions menu.

Image: PHP interpreter versions
PHP in­ter­pret­er versions

Choose the PHP version you wish to install. For this example we will upgrade to version PHP 5.5.

Image: Plesk - PHP 5.5
Plesk - PHP 5.5

Click the drop-down menu, then click Install to select this version.

Image: Plesk - Install PHP
Plesk - Install PHP

Now that the version has been added to the install list, scroll down and click Continue.

Image: Plesk - click continue
Plesk - click continue

Plesk will begin in­stalling the new version. This process can take a while, depending on the size and number of packages to be installed/upgraded.

Image: Plesk - install
Plesk - install

When the install process is complete, click OK.

Image: Plesk - completed
Plesk - completed
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Reviewer

  • Christian Heldmaier

    Christian Heldmaier

    Christian Heldmaier is an ex­per­i­enced online marketing and SEO spe­cial­ist from Karlsruhe. He has been working as an SEO Manager at IONOS since July 2020.

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