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Set up a PHP hosting stack in aaPanel Free Edition using Nginx, MariaDB, PHP and optional phpMyAdmin. This is the second tutorial, following panel installation on Ubuntu 22.04.

Tested on 10 October 2026 with aaPanel Free 8.0.6, Ubuntu 22.04.5, 2 vCPU and 4 GB RAM. The screenshots below are our original lab captures with numbered AdminsForum annotations.

Individual installation tutorials
Use this overview to choose the stack, then follow the separate service guides:

• Install Nginx in aaPanel Free Edition
  
• Install PHP 8.4 in aaPanel Free Edition
  
• Install MariaDB in aaPanel Free Edition
  
• Install phpMyAdmin in aaPanel Free Edition
  
• Install FTP Server in aaPanel Free Edition
  

Each guide includes its own original annotated screenshot, checks and troubleshooting. phpMyAdmin and FTP are optional; their guides identify the access/transfer checks that are still pending.



1. Choose Single WebServer model
After the first login, aaPanel offers a software-installation screen. In the screenshot, use the Single WebServer model on the right. This keeps the initial setup straightforward.

Select Nginx. We chose the 1.30 branch; the installer delivered Nginx 1.30.5. Choose one web server for this walkthrough. A multi-server configuration is a different deployment choice.

2. Choose your database and PHP
The second numbered box shows the supporting components:

• MariaDB 10.11: shown under the MySQL selector as mariadb_10.11. It stores application data.
  
• PHP 8.4: runs PHP applications. Check your application's PHP compatibility before choosing a version.
  
• phpMyAdmin 5.2: optional browser-based database administration.
  
• Pure-FTPd: optional FTP service. It was installed in our lab for a later file-transfer exercise. You can leave it unchecked if you use SFTP or File Manager.
  

A static HTML site only needs a web server. WordPress and many other PHP applications need PHP plus a database. Installing phpMyAdmin does not create an application database for you.

3. Leave DNS and Mail Server unchecked
The third box highlights DNS and mail options. We left both unchecked. You can manage your website's DNS through your domain or DNS provider without running a DNS server on this VPS. Mail hosting needs its own planning and configuration.

4. Start the installation
In the right-hand panel, select Quick install, then click that panel's One-click button. The fourth box highlights these controls.

Wait for the installation queue to complete. Avoid launching another package update or repeatedly starting the same task. If a task fails, inspect its log and fix the reported error before retrying that component.

5. Confirm the installed components
Open App Store → Installed. This is what our completed installation showed:



The numbered boxes highlight the Installed filter, installed software names, running-status indicators and Free Edition/version label.

• Nginx 1.30.5
  
• MariaDB 10.11.10
  
• PHP 8.4 — CLI verification reported 8.4.26
  
• phpMyAdmin 5.2
  
• Pure-FTPd 1.0.49
  

Actual patch versions can differ when you follow this guide. The green running indicators and installed list are useful checks, but test the services too.

6. Verify from SSH
These commands apply to the paths and PHP branch used in our lab:

Code:Copy

sudo /www/server/nginx/sbin/nginx -t /www/server/nginx/sbin/nginx -v /www/server/mysql/bin/mysql --version /www/server/php/84/bin/php -v systemctl is-active mysqld sudo /etc/init.d/php-fpm-84 status curl -I http://127.0.0.1/

Expected results: a successful Nginx configuration test, version information, an active database service, a running PHP-FPM service and an HTTP response from Nginx. Our default local page returned HTTP 200. Change 84 and php-fpm-84 if you installed a different PHP branch.

We rebooted the lab and verified that Nginx, MariaDB and PHP-FPM recovered. These checks confirm the base stack; they do not prove that a PHP website or phpMyAdmin login works. Those application checks belong to the website/database tutorials.

Before hosting a real website
Review panel and phpMyAdmin access, firewall rules, HTTPS and backups. Do not expose the database port just because MariaDB is installed. Use a separate application database and user when creating the website.

FTP is optional. Prefer SFTP or a properly secured file-transfer configuration; installing an FTP server alone does not establish encrypted transfers.

Frequently asked questions
Should I install Nginx and Apache together?
This walkthrough uses a single Nginx server. Select a different architecture only when your application or deployment requires it.

Which PHP version should I choose?
Use a version supported by your application and required extensions. Our PHP 8.4 selection is a tested example, not a compatibility guarantee for every application.

Do I need phpMyAdmin and FTP?
Both are optional administration tools. The web server, PHP runtime and database serve different roles from those tools.

Next: Secure panel/server access, then add your first website, domain, HTTPS certificate and database.

Source: aaPanel official Quick Start.