How to resolve some common issues after a PHP upgrade

Newer versions of PHP offer greater stability, security, and features. However, you may experience problems with your web site after a PHP version upgrade. This article discusses some ways to resolve them.

Reverting to the previous version

If you experience problems after a PHP upgrade, you can always revert to an earlier version. To do this, use the PHP version tool in cPanel. For more information about how to change the PHP version for your web site, please see this article.

Copying an updated version of php.ini

If you use a custom php.ini file, make sure you use the correct file for your PHP version. For example:

• If you are using PHP 5.3, copy the php.ini file located at /usr/local/lib/php.ini. This is the default php.ini file.
• If you are using PHP 5.2.17, copy the php.ini file located at /opt/php/php-5.2.17/lib/php.ini.
• You can find additional PHP versions in the /opt/php directory.

To copy the updated php.ini file to your public_html directory, log in to your account using SSH and then use the cp command. For example, the following command copies the default php.ini file to a user's public_html directory. Replace USERNAME with your own account username:

cp /usr/local/lib/php.ini /home/USERNAME/public_html/php.ini

To make the php.ini settings apply to all subdirectories, add the following line to your .htaccess file. Replace USERNAME with your own account username:

SuPHP_ConfigPath /home/USERNAME/public_html/

For more information about how to use custom php.ini files, please see this article.

“500 Internal Server Error” messages after changing the PHP version

If you receive “500 Internal Server Error” messages after changing the PHP version on your web site, check the .htaccess file in your public_html directory. At the end of the .htaccess file you should see text similar to the following:

# Start A2 Switcher Block
# Do not remove or modify this block! Added by PHP Switcher from cPanel to use an alternate PHP version. Contact Support for details.
<IfModule mod_suphp.c>
  AddHandler application/x-httpd-php-5.4.13 .php
</IfModule>
# End A2 Switcher Block

The AddHandler value determines the PHP version for your site. Make sure that the correct version is specified, and that the line formatting is correct. Depending on how the .htaccess file was previously configured, you may find that lines of text have been merged, which could cause problems.

You may also see php_flag values configured in the .htaccess file. Any php_flag values should now be configured directly in a custom php.ini file. For more information about how to use custom php.ini files, please see this article.

Zend Optimizer and Zend Guard

In PHP 5.3, Zend Optimizer changed to Zend Guard Loader. If you already have a custom php.ini file that calls the old Zend Optimizer libraries, you may receive the following error message:

Fatal error: Incompatible file format: The encoded file has format major ID 2, whereas the Loader expects 4

To resolve this issue, you must invoke the correct Zend libraries for your PHP version:

• For PHP 5.3, add the following line to your php.ini file:

  zend_extension="/usr/local/Zend/lib/Guard-5.5.0/php-5.3.x/ZendGuardLoader.so"

• For PHP 5.2.17, add the following lines to your php.ini file:
  

  zend_extension=/opt/php/build/ZendOptimizer-3.3.9-linux-glibc23-x86_64/data/5_2_x_comp/ZendOptimizer.so
  zend_loader.enable=1

zend_extension="/usr/local/IonCube/ioncube_loader_lin_5.2.so"

To make the php.ini settings apply to all subdirectories, add the following line to your .htaccess file. Replace USERNAME with your own account username:

SuPHP_ConfigPath /home/USERNAME/public_html/

Using cron with PHP version 5.2.17

If you experience problems using cron with PHP version 5.2.17, make sure you set the path to PHP to /opt/php/php-5.2.17/bin/php.

The libraries for PHP version 5.2.17 are located in the /opt/php/php-5.2.17/include/php directory.

Still not working?

If you encounter problems using any of these methods, or are still experiencing issues, please open a support ticket on the A2 Hosting Customer Portal at https://my.a2hosting.com.