Apache configuration

Apache, on Windows, installs in c:\Program files 64\Apache foundation\Apache2\. Ubuntu Linux installs Apache from the Ubuntu Software Centre. The installation is described in Apache.

For Windows, the Apache configuration is in c:\Program files 64\Apache foundation\Apache2\httpd.conf.
For Windows, your web sites are defined in c:\Program files 64\Apache foundation\Apache2\httpd-vhosts.conf.

Here is a way to configure the use of h:.

Create:
h:\home\httpd-vhosts.conf by copying c:\Program files 64\Apache foundation\Apache2\httpd-vhosts.conf.

Create the following file.
h:\home\httpd.conf

Insert the following line as the only line in h:\home\httpd.conf.
includes h:\home\httpd-vhosts.conf

Insert the following line as the last line in c:\Program files 64\Apache foundation\Apache2\httpd.conf.
includes h:\home\httpd.conf

Now you can create web sites of the form h:\home\example.com\public_html and place the Web site definition in h:\home\httpd-vhosts.conf.

MySQL is installed whatever way works for your operating system.

PHP is installed whatever way works for your operating system. PHP picks up MySQL based on a port address. You do not have to tell PHP where you find MySQL.

Your Web pages have to find PHP. You tell Apache the connection between Web pages and PHP as shown in the httpd.conf page. You tell Apache to pass web pages through PHP using instructions in the httpd.conf file. If you place the instructions in the h:\home\httpd.conf file, the instruction will survive a rebuild of the system disk.

You can configure individual Web sites using the httpd-vhosts.conf file or .htaccess files. The .htaccess files slow down your Web server because the files have to be read for every web page access. If you move the configuration from .htaccess to the httpd-vhosts.conf, your web site will react faster.

The one disadvantage of httpd-vhosts.conf is the need to restart Apache when you change the configuration. httpd-vhosts.conf is read only at startup. If you install a Web application like Drupal, there will be a .htaccess file supplied with the application. You have to merge the settins from the .htaccess file into the .conf file.