How to configure php 7.4+ on Linux Ubuntu 20.04+

Configuring php can be confusing. PHP uses multiple configuration files, but the main ones are both named php.ini. You see with php you can have separate configurations for the app and the command line aka cli.

This may sound stupid at first but it is due to the fact that your command line is a different environment from your app environment.  In Linux for example each user of the cli has their own environmental variables. These variables get passed to the php cli. This can drive you insane on linux. You think you set the configurations correctly, app works, try command line and BOOM all messed up.

The two main files are located at

1. /etc/php/7.4/cli/php.ini
2. /etc/php/7.4/fpm/php.ini

Yes they have the same exact name. Yes they contain the same thing. However, one is used for the command line (cli) and the other is for apps (fpm). So you must set the settings in both. If you wanted to use 1 file for both you might be able to remove/rename 1 file such as the cli, set the fpm file. Then use a symlink from the fpm file to the cli directory. It would require some testing but it will probably work.

P.S. The php configuration file is the largest you will ever in your life see. I’m guessing a few thousand lines, it feels like that, but there is a ton of commenting and documentation to help you complete with links.