Incorporatring PHP into Xara website

**ewraysure** · 05 April 2021, 09:38 AM

Being bullied by my web-server to use PHP on my Xara-created websites.
Would sks tell me how to do this or direct me to a post(s) that explains this, please.

**RKissane** · 05 April 2021, 01:28 PM

PHP is something that the web-server enables if the server supports it. If you have something like a form or a widget that use PHP then that is the only reason to be using PHP.

Basically you would run a Placeholder with links to the PHP files on your website for any widget.

If you are not currently running anything that requires PHP then the web server can enable PHP and it should not effect your site.

Ray

**Acorn** · 05 April 2021, 07:22 PM

eraysure, when you say "web-server", do you means an automated message or a communication from your service provider?

In a Xara design, name the first page index.php; all new pages gain the .php extension.
Now change a blank one to just index and put it as the first page; Xara requires this.

On your web server, the .htaccess file should be set up to handle .php files and the blank index.htm is ignored.

On any page, create a Placeholder shape and give it a special Name <html>.
In the Placeholder HTML code (body), if you then include <php> Tagged detail, it precedes everything else on the page.
Omit the <html> and the <php> details is added in the position that the Placeholder is in the layer hierarchy.

Acorn

**ewraysure** · 05 April 2021, 09:53 PM

Excellent.
Thanks.
It was a communication asking for £6+ a month to provide PHP cover. "Our records indicate that you have at least one Windows hosted website with an old version of PHP enabled, either 5.2, 5.4, 5.6, 7.0 or 7.2. All of these versions have reached end-of-support with their developers meaning there will be no new updates from the PHP community. We recommend that you upgrade to a newer version of PHP (at least 7.4). If you choose not to upgrade to a newer version of PHP, your sites may be at risk to any new security vulnerabilities, as the PHP Community developers will not be providing patches to outdated versions.

However, from 22nd April 2021 our developers will provide an Extended Support service for these outdated versions. As part of this service, if any new significant security vulnerabilities are discovered in these versions, our developers will release patches that will keep your websites safe.

For this Extended Support service, from 22nd April 2021 you will be charged £5.28 (£6.34 inc. VAT) per month for each PHP version 5.6 and above you are using, and £6.28 (£7.54 inc. VAT) per month for each PHP version 5.4 and below you are using. To avoid this charge, we recommend you upgrade to a newer version of PHP (at least 7.4). "

**Acorn** · 05 April 2021, 10:14 PM

So you need to know if you have any sites using PHP. Can they be upgraded to v7.4? If so, do so as your supplier is not charging for its coverage, only lower versions.
Have you installed any PHP programs?

Acorn

**ewraysure** · 06 April 2021, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by Acorn

So you need to know if you have any sites using PHP. Can they be upgraded to v7.4? If so, do so as your supplier is not charging for its coverage, only lower versions.
Have you installed any PHP programs? Acorn

Thanks for your reply.

The two websites to which they are referring did have PHP, but the version appears to now be out of date.
They were created using WebPlus.
I am in the process of converting them both to Xara, but was unaware that there was potentially an issue with PHP when constructing websites using Xara. Nor that Xara did not support PHP.
Since then I read Robert Turners article 'Can I insert PHP into Xara' - which frankly I didn't understand. (insert what code. You go into far more detail etc)
Fasthosts have generously allowed me an extra month to incorporate PHP into the websites, but I have been tied up with another project until now.
So I am left grappling with a problem that I didn't know existed when I bought Xara.

**ewraysure** · 07 April 2021, 09:12 AM

Please bear with me. I'm old, dull and find it difficult to assimilate stuff.
After trying to grips with this, may I raise the following stupid question:

"If you are not currently running anything that requires PHP then the web server can enable PHP and it should not effect your site."
I'm not running any widgets on the site.
Are Fasthosts in effect saying that "you may not have any widgets, but WebPlus has incorporated old versions of PHP into your website anyway and we are reacting to this".
If this is the case, if I recreate the website using Xara, and don't use any widgets, do I still need to bother with PHP?

**Chris M** · 07 April 2021, 09:38 AM

First step:
Does Fasthost allow access to cPanel? - No. Skip the rest and wait for a different answer.

Does Fasthost allow access to cPanel? - Yes. Login and find the section that says 'Select PHP Version' under the software tab.
Under Current PHP Version, use the drop down box and choose 7.3 or 7.4. Don't worry about all the tick boxes underneath. Repeat on both your sites.

Go and check that your sites still work.

**pauland** · 07 April 2021, 09:41 AM

Originally Posted by ewraysure

Please bear with me. I'm old, dull and find it difficult to assimilate stuff.
After trying to grips with this, may I raise the following stupid question:

"If you are not currently running anything that requires PHP then the web server can enable PHP and it should not effect your site."
I'm not running any widgets on the site.
Are Fasthosts in effect saying that "you may not have any widgets, but WebPlus has incorporated old versions of PHP into your website anyway and we are reacting to this".
If this is the case, if I recreate the website using Xara, and don't use any widgets, do I still need to bother with PHP?

What fasthosts are saying is (in essence)..

Your web hosting includes PHP. It includes PHP whether you use it or not. We will not check if you use it, we don't care if you use it but it is there for your use as part of your hosting package.

Your web hosting settings include a section about the PHP that is included in your hosting. It says what version of PHP is to be used by any PHP code that is run. The current setting on your web hosting is for an old version of PHP that no longer has free support. If you do not go to your web host settings and change that setting to a more modern version that has free support we will support the old version for you and charge you whether you use it or not. PLEASE GO NOW AND CHANGE THE PHP VERSION or we will charge you.

I have attached below what I see on my hosting dashboard for IONOS. Your hosting will have something similar in function. I can control which version is used on each domain.