This guide explains how to change the PHP version used in the command line (PHP CLI) on an Infomaniak web hosting plan.

Introduction

• Useful for configuring a specific script or a PHP session in the command-line interface (CLI).
• To change the PHP version of the web server (FPM/Apache) via the Manager, please refer to this other guide.

Default PHP CLI Version

The php command uses the server's default version. Check the active version with this command:

# Check current PHP version
php -v

To ensure the stability of your scripts, use an explicit path (e.g., php8.2) or modify your PATH variable.

Change the PHP version in CLI

You can configure the PHP version loaded automatically in your SSH session via two main files.

1. Using .bashrc (Recommended)

The ~/.bashrc file is read when an interactive shell is opened.

1. Open the file (or create it if it doesn't exist):

   touch ~/.bashrc
   nano ~/.bashrc

2. Add this line to define the desired version (example with PHP 8.3):

   export PATH="/opt/php8.3/bin:$PATH"

3. Update the configuration:

   source ~/.bashrc

4. Check the change:

   php -v
   which php

2. Using .profile (Alternative)

The ~/.profile file is read during an SSH connection (login mode).

1. Edit the file:

   nano ~/.profile

2. Add the export line:

   export PATH="/opt/php8.3/bin:$PATH"

3. Load .bashrc systematically

To apply the configuration to all session types, add this code to your ~/.bash_profile or ~/.profile files:

# Load .bashrc if it exists
if [ -f ~/.bashrc ]; then . ~/.bashrc; fi

Run a specific version temporarily

To run a script with a specific version without changing your global environment, call the binary directly:

# Execute with a specific version
/opt/php8.2/bin/php my_script.php
/opt/php8.3/bin/php -v

Once these steps are completed, your SSH sessions and CLI scripts will use the selected PHP version by default.