How To Change PHP Settings or Parameter Manually Through Plesk Obsidian?

Plesk Obsidian is a robust web hosting control panel. It enables users to control their hosting environment, including PHP settings. While it streamlines PHP configuration through its user-friendly interface, there are occasions when manual adjustments become imperative for fine-tuning specific parameters. 

In this guide, we'll explore how to change PHP settings or parameters through Plesk Obsidian manually.

Understanding PHP Settings in Plesk Obsidian

PHP settings control various aspects of PHP's behavior, such as: 

- Memory limit

- Execution time

- Error reporting

These settings affect: 

- How do PHP-based applications on your server perform?

- How secure are they?

- How well will they work with other software applications?

Accessing PHP Settings in Plesk Obsidian

Plesk Obsidian simplifies the management of PHP settings through its intuitive interface. To access settings:

Login to Plesk

Launch your web browser.

Enter your credentials to sign in into your Plesk Obsidian control panel   

Navigate to PHP Settings

Once logged in, locate the "PHP Settings" option either under the "Domains" tab or the specific domain you want to manage.

Adjust Settings

Within the PHP settings interface, you can adjust various parameters, such as:

- PHP version

- Memory limit

- Max execution time

- Error reporting level

While this method suits most users' needs, there are situations where you may need to manually edit PHP settings, especially when dealing with advanced configurations or specific requirements.

Manually Changing PHP Settings Through Plesk Obsidian

To manually change PHP settings through Plesk Obsidian, follow these steps:

Access the Server via SSH  (Secure Shell)  or FTP (File Transfer Protocol) 

Connect to your server using SSH or FTP client. 

You'll need administrative access to the server to make changes to configuration files.

Locate PHP Configuration Files

PHP configuration files are typically located in the `/etc/php` directory. 

Depending on the version and configuration, you'll edit a specific file. 

Edit PHP Configuration File

Use a text editor such as Nano or Vim to open the desired PHP configuration file.

Make Changes

Locate the parameter you wish to alter. 

Change the values according to your requirements.

Save Changes

Save the file.

Exit the text editor.

Apply Changes

Restart the web server to apply the changes. 

The command will vary depending on the server software you're using. 

For Apache, you can use:

   Sudo service apache2 restart

   For Nginx, you would use:

   sudo service nginx restart

Verify Changes

Once the server has been restarted, verify that the changes have taken effect by accessing your website and checking the PHP settings using tools like phpinfo().

To Sum it Up!

PHP configuration is one of the critical tasks in web hosting. It plays a significant role in the security and performance of the server. Although Plesk Obsidian makes it easy to tweak PHP settings via the command center, some circumstances require direct changes. With this guide, you will be able to safely and effectively alter the PHP settings by utilizing Plesk Obsidian for all your PHP applications.