Getting Started with Joolma Kick Starter Guide
Joomla Kick-Starter Guide Series - Part 3
Now, we are on the third part of our Kick-Starter Guide Series and we are going to discuss about Joomla Installation. Just like any other software or apps, Joomla needs to be installed first before we can take advantage of all the perks that it offers. First off, let me provide you with your
Joomla installation options.
Joomla Installation Options
Joomla has an option that allows installation on a local computer instead of a web hosting server. This can be used by beginners in order to learn Joomla by creating or tinkering offline websites/webpages. This is possible through what is called XAMPP. XAMPP is a free and open source cross-platform web server solution stack package, consisting mainly of the Apache HTTP Server, MySQL database, and interpreters for scripts written in the PHP and Perl programming languages. The web provides a lot of resources regarding installation and other stuff about XAMPP.
Alternatively, most web hosting companies offer Auto Installers or One Click Installs. This really makes Joomla be installed in an instant and takes away all the hassles. The method might vary from host to host but they are technically simple and similar.
In situations where your web host does not provide this Auto Installers, you may then need to do installation manually. This requires you to copy the Joomla zip file to your hosting account, unzip, create a database, and then run the installation.
We provided you three installation options above namely, local host/local computer utilizing XAMPP, web host – Auto installation, and web host – manual installation. Let us now converse about hosting requirements, preparation, database configuration and other important things to consider for a successful Joomla installation. Please take note that below are installation notes for Joomla 3.2, the latest version as of the moment.
Things to Consider for a Successful Joomla Installation
- Hosting Requirements
|
Software |
Recommended |
Minimum |
|
PHP (Magic Quotes GPC off) |
5.4 + |
5.3.1 + |
|
Supported Databases: |
||
|
MySQL[1] (InnoDB support required) |
5.1 + |
5.1 + |
|
MSSQL |
10.50.1600.1 + |
10.50.1600.1 + |
|
PostgreSQL |
8.3.18 + |
8.3.18 + |
|
Supported Web Servers: |
||
|
2.x+ |
2.x+ |
|
|
Nginx |
1.1 |
1.0 |
|
Microsoft IIS |
7 |
7 |
Source: http://docs.joomla.org/J3.2:Installing_Joomla#tab=Requirements
2. Preparation (for Manual Install)
- Download Joomla 3.2 package
- Upload the downloaded package to your server (web host)
- You may use FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Client software.
- You may need to create a database. Here is a guide on how to create a database in Joomla
- You need to take note of the database information such as:
- Database name
- Database username
- Database password
3. Installing Joomla using an Auto Installer
- There is no need to create a database, upload files or configure the programs for use. All things are done by these "Auto Installers" with a small amount of interaction.
As always, we hope that we have provided you with relevant and helpful information. Again, we want to remind you that one prerequisite for a successful Joomla website is a reliable Joomla Web Host Provider. An ideal web host for your Joomla website(s) should be cost-effective, offers pro-active security and it should make your day-to-day Joomla Management simple and stress-free.