LAMP Stack Development Container

A single-container LAMP stack (Linux, Apache, MariaDB, PHP) for development in VS Code and GitHub Codespaces. Perfect for introductory web development courses in PHP and HTML.

Features

• Single Container: Everything runs in one container for simplicity
• Full LAMP Stack:
  • Linux (Ubuntu 22.04)
  • Apache 2.4 Web Server
  • MariaDB 10.6 Database
  • PHP 8.1 with common extensions
• Multiple Projects: Organize projects in subdirectories
• Auto-configured: Services start automatically
• Development-ready: Includes error reporting and helpful PHP settings

Getting Started

Using GitHub Codespaces

1. Click the Code button on this repository
2. Select Create codespace on main
3. Wait for the container to build and start
4. Access your web server at the forwarded port 80

Using VS Code with Dev Containers

1. Install Docker Desktop
2. Install the Dev Containers extension for VS Code
3. Clone this repository
4. Open the folder in VS Code
5. When prompted, click "Reopen in Container" (or use Command Palette: "Dev Containers: Reopen in Container")
6. Wait for the container to build and start
7. Access your web server at http://localhost

Usage

Creating PHP Files

Simply create PHP files in the workspace root or any subdirectory:

<?php
// hello.php
echo "Hello, World!";
?>

Access at: http://localhost/hello.php

Multiple Projects

Organize multiple projects in subdirectories:

/workspace
  ├── project1/
  │   ├── index.php
  │   └── about.php
  ├── project2/
  │   └── index.html
  └── shared/
      └── config.php

• Project 1: http://localhost/project1/
• Project 2: http://localhost/project2/

Database Access

Connection Details:

• Host: localhost
• Username: root
• Password: (empty)
• Port: 3306

Example PHP Connection:

<?php
$conn = new mysqli("localhost", "root", "");

if ($conn->connect_error) {
    die("Connection failed: " . $conn->connect_error);
}

echo "Connected successfully";
$conn->close();
?>

Using MySQL Command Line:

mysql -u root

Testing the Installation

Visit these pages to verify everything is working:

• http://localhost/welcome.html - Welcome page with info
• http://localhost/index.php - PHP info page
• http://localhost/test-db.php - Database connection test

Configuration

PHP Settings

PHP is configured for development with:

• Error reporting enabled
• Display errors enabled
• 64MB upload limit
• Short open tags enabled

To modify PHP settings, edit /etc/php/8.1/apache2/php.ini inside the container.

Apache Configuration

Apache is configured to:

• Serve files from /workspace (your repository root)
• Allow .htaccess overrides
• Enable mod_rewrite for clean URLs
• Support multiple directories

The Apache configuration is located at /etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf.

Managing Services

Services start automatically, but you can also control them manually:

# Restart Apache
sudo service apache2 restart

# Restart MariaDB
sudo service mariadb restart

# Check service status
sudo service apache2 status
sudo service mariadb status

Common Tasks

Creating a Database

mysql -u root -e "CREATE DATABASE myapp;"

Or in PHP:

<?php
$conn = new mysqli("localhost", "root", "");
$conn->query("CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS myapp");
$conn->close();
?>

Importing SQL Files

mysql -u root database_name < backup.sql

Installing PHP Packages with Composer

Composer is not included by default. Install it if needed:

curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer | php
sudo mv composer.phar /usr/local/bin/composer

Troubleshooting

Services Not Running

If services aren't running, start them manually:

bash /usr/local/bin/start-services.sh

Port Already in Use

If port 80 or 3306 is already in use on your host machine, you can modify the port forwarding in .devcontainer/devcontainer.json.

Permission Issues

The container runs as the vscode user with sudo access. If you encounter permission issues:

sudo chown -R vscode:vscode /workspace

Technical Details

• Base Image: Ubuntu 22.04
• User: vscode (non-root with sudo)
• Apache Version: 2.4
• PHP Version: 8.1
• MariaDB Version: 10.6
• Document Root: /workspace (your repository directory)

Educational Use

This container is designed for teaching introductory web development with PHP. It provides:

• A simple, single-container setup (no Docker Compose complexity)
• Immediate feedback with error reporting enabled
• Easy database access without authentication barriers
• Support for multiple student projects in one workspace
• Real-world LAMP stack experience

Security Note

⚠️ This configuration is for DEVELOPMENT ONLY. It includes:

• No database password
• Permissive Apache settings
• Enabled error display
• Root MySQL access from anywhere

Never use this configuration in production environments.

License

MIT License - Feel free to use this for educational purposes.