Lightweight PHP server to bundle with application?

Question

Does there exist some sort of PHP server that can be bundled with a locally-deployed application? It sounds wonky, but the end result is I can't use a remote web server to do anything. Clients will be downloading a package, and the plan is to use a Java backend that reads from a flat file. The flat file contains settings and is modified through a GUI written in HTML/JS, and this is where the server would come in. The forms in HTML should be able to submit to the server, which does a simple file write to the flat file.

Is there any simple, lightweight server that has that simple feature? When running the executable for the application, it would start the installation process for the server before moving the web GUI files to the appropriate locations.

Note that I'm doing this for a client, so I can't quite change the reqs and would rather not discuss their effectiveness. I would be ever thankful if people had suggestions for the server though!

Answer 1

If you have a java backend, what do you need php for?

You could simply bundle a small java based webserver.
http://java-source.net/open-source/web-servers

Answer 2

A while ago I created a small web interface for Transmission (mac/linux bittorrent client) that needed to run a local web server with a custom PHP setup. I used lighttpd + php w/ fastcgi. When zipped up, I believe, it weighted in at <3MBs. If you don't need to run any PHP lighttpd is only a few MB's (and light on resources) and offers a very flexible configuration.

Source: http://svn.recurser.com/transmission/trunk/cocoa/

Answer 3

If you're already using Java, you may want to look at Quercus, an implementation of PHP and many common extensions in Java. It's a bit restrictive, but it may fit your needs.

Answer 4

Like unomi, I don't really understand the situation, but I'll assume you do...

Apache is by far the most popular and best-tested platform on which to run PHP, but in theory it should run on any web server that supports CGI/FastCGI. Alternatives include Lighttpd, nginx, and a few dozen others.

Whatever you choose, the key is to pre-configure it and keep it self-contained in its own folder. I think Apache would easily work here. Set it to port 43948 or something; remove all unnecessary modules; pare down the httpd.conf to its most basic requirements; allow only local connections; and write clickable scripts (.bat or .sh or what have you) to start and stop it.

Answer 5

You should check out roadsend php. It can compile php scripts into a binary with its own build in server. http://www.roadsend.com

Answer 6

Nanoweb might do the trick for you, it's an HTTP server written in PHP. So long as the client has a PHP install you should be able to package things up nicely. In fact with a little extra effort you should be able to package up the PHP binary along with your code.

Nanoweb: http://nanoweb.si.kz/