WAMP stands for Windows Apache MySQL and PHP. When you need to develop websites in Windows operating system you need a Web Server. By default Windows comes with a Web Server called IIS. But if you want to run your website in Apache Server then you need to install it in your Windows Operating System machine. In this write up you will be guided through the steps to follow for installing WAMP.
MySQL is the open source RDBMS which is used to create database to be used in a website and manage its data. PHP is Hypertext Preprocessor used for server-side scripting for making interactive and data intensive websites.
To get the required environment in which you can create and test your interactive web projects, you need to install LAMP(Linux)/WAMP(Windows)/XAMPP(Any Operating System). All these are open source packages available online to be downloaded and installed with easy to follow instructions.
Download WAMP/XAMPP/LAMP
You can follow these links to download the required package. Before deciding which package to download, know about your operating system by opening the properties of your system.
Right click on “My Computer” icon on your desktop and click “Properties” option. You will get the following window displaying the operating system for which you have to download the WAMP/XAMPP package
Download the installer file suitable for your system and save the file on your computer
WAMP- http://www.wampserver.com/en/#download-wrapper
XAMPP- https://www.apachefriends.org/index.html
LAMP- https://bitnami.com/stack/lamp/installer
The most preferred one is XAMPP due to its handy and user friendly control panel.
Installing WAMP
Open the folder where you have saved the WAMP downloader file. To start the installation process of WAMP server double click this file. The installation process of WAMP begins by displaying of Security Warning Window asking you that whether you want to install WAMP. You have to Run button if you are sure!
Now select the language
When you give your permission to run the installer you will get this Welcome window informing you about the WAMP stack components you are going to install. Click the “Next” button to proceed.
After taking some time to read and understand the terms and conditions, check the “I agree” radio button and Press the “Next” Button
Now the next step is to select the destination folder where you want to install the WAMP server. By default you get “c:\wamp”. You can change this location to another drive if you don’t have enough space in your c drive. Click Next to let the installation process begin.
Clicking on the “Next” Button the installation process will begin. In between the installation process on WAMP you will be asked to select the browser of your choice. If you are happy to work with Internet Explorer continue, else by opening the “Program Files” where your favorite browser is installed, select the required .exe file from the browser folder.
When the installing WAMP process is completed you will be able to see this window asking you to launch Wampserver. All you need to do is click on the Finish Button. You can see the WampServer icon visible in the systray at the rightmost end of the taskbar
The Wampserver icon should be green. An orange Wampserver icon indicates that the services are not running properly. If Apache and MySQL are not working then the wampserver icon will remain red. These issues need to be resolved before you begin creating web applications using PHP. This can happen if the ports that Wamp is using for running its services are being used by other applications.
A very common solution of this issue is that you stop the services of IIS by opening the IIS control panel and clicking the “Stop” button as in this image.
Testing WAMP
Open the browser that you have chosen while installing WAMP and in the address bar type http://localhost and you will get this displayed in the browser window
This indicates successful installation of WAMP on your system.
