XAMPP is still a familiar option for people who want a quick local PHP stack without assembling Apache, MariaDB, and PHP one package at a time.
On Linux, XAMPP is installed from the official Apache Friends installer rather than from Ubuntu’s main package repositories.
If you searched for install XAMPP on Ubuntu, XAMPP Ubuntu setup, or run XAMPP on Linux, this guide is aimed at that workflow.
Official source:
Download the XAMPP installer
Go to the Apache Friends download page and grab the Linux installer for the version you want.
The file usually looks like this:
xampp-linux-x64-<version>-installer.runMake the installer executable
Move into the directory where the installer was downloaded, then run:
chmod 755 xampp-linux-*-installer.runRun the installer
sudo ./xampp-linux-*-installer.runThis opens the installer wizard. By default, XAMPP is installed under:
/opt/lamppStart, stop, and restart XAMPP
sudo /opt/lampp/lampp start
sudo /opt/lampp/lampp stop
sudo /opt/lampp/lampp restartOpen the XAMPP manager
If you prefer a GUI:
sudo /opt/lampp/manager-linux-x64.runVerify the installation
After starting XAMPP, open:
http://localhostIf the XAMPP dashboard loads, the install is working.
You can also confirm Apache is responding locally by visiting:
http://127.0.0.1Common note about permissions
Because XAMPP lives under /opt/lampp, some operations require sudo. That is normal for this installer-based setup. If you want a stack that feels more native to Ubuntu packaging, a Docker setup or a regular LAMP install may be a better long-term fit.
Remove XAMPP
sudo /opt/lampp/uninstallIf your version does not include that script, stop the stack first and then remove /opt/lampp manually.
Final note
XAMPP is convenient, but many Linux developers eventually move to Docker or a more native LAMP setup. If you want the quickest path to a working local PHP stack, though, XAMPP still does the job.
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