ServBay Multi-Environment Configuration Guide: PHP Version Management for Command Line and Web Services

1. Command Line Environment: Deep Application of .servbay.config

Through the project-level configuration file .servbay.config, developers can precisely control the PHP version in the command line environment, enabling parallel development across multiple projects and version isolation.

1. Core Features and Principles

• Multi-Version Coexistence: ServBay natively supports coexistence of all versions from PHP 5.6 to 8.5-dev, with each project specifying the required version through an independent configuration file.
• Non-Intrusive Switching: When executing commands, ServBay automatically detects the .servbay.config in the project directory, dynamically loading the corresponding PHP environment to avoid global configuration conflicts.

2. Configuration Method

Create a .servbay.config file in the project root directory and add the following content:

# Specify PHP version (example: PHP 8.5-dev)
PHP_VERSION=8.5

Verification of Effectiveness:

$ php -v  # The output version should be 8.5
$ composer install  # Dependency resolution is based on the current PHP version

3. Advanced Tips and Limitations

• Version Compatibility Check: If you encounter errors like "Class not found," verify the compatibility of the dependency packages with the specified PHP version (e.g., the mcrypt extension removed in PHP 8.x).
• Global Default Value: If not configured, use the ServBay global default version (which can be modified in ServBay's settings).
• Multi-Service Collaboration: Combine with Node.js version configuration (NODE_VERSION=20) to achieve dual environment control involving PHP and Node.js.

4. Running Example

The following provides a practical example demonstrating the operational mechanism of .servbay.config.

2. Web Service Environment: Website-Level Management of Multi-Version PHP

ServBay's Graphical Website Configuration Interface provides PHP version management capabilities for web services, operating independently from the command line environment.

1. Configuration Process

1. Add/Edit Website:
   • Open ServBay and navigate to the Hosts tab.
   • Click + to create a new website or edit an existing one.
   • Select the desired version from the PHP Version dropdown menu (e.g., 8.3, 8.5-dev, etc.).

2. Path and Domain Binding:
   • Root Directory: Specify the project's public directory (e.g., Laravel's /Applications/ServBay/www/laravel-app/public).
   • Domain: Set a custom domain (e.g., laravel.host), supporting automatic HTTPS provision.

2. Technical Implementation and Optimization

• Service Isolation: Each PHP version runs in an independent process, avoiding memory leaks across versions.
• Performance Tuning: Optimizations for ARM64/X86_64 architecture.
• Error Troubleshooting:
• Check logs: /Applications/ServBay/var/log/php/php_error.log
• Use servbayctl status php 8.5 to view process status.

3. Multi-Server Expansion

• Apache/Nginx/Caddy Support: Ability to switch web servers in ServBay 1.7.0+.
• Database Integration: Combine with multiple versions of MySQL/MariaDB/PostgreSQL (e.g., adapting Laravel projects to MariaDB 11.5).

3. Best Practices for Cross-Environment Collaboration

Scenario	Command Line Configuration	Web Service Configuration
Legacy System Maintenance	Set PHP 5.6 in .servbay.config	Choose PHP 5.6 in website config
Laravel 11 Development	Configure PHP 8.3 + Node 20	Bind domain and enable HTTPS
New Version Testing	Use PHP 8.5-dev	Pair with Redis 7.x for caching optimization

Notes:
• PHP modules for command line and web services may differ (e.g., opcache is disabled by default in CLI mode).
• Upgrade ServBay Runtime to 1.0.20/1.1.20+ to access the latest PHP features.

Through the above scenario-based management, developers can fully utilize ServBay's multi-version control capabilities, balancing development flexibility with production environment consistency.