Whenever possible, the script will try to self-correct any problems (like permissions or missing directory); but in order for the script to do this the files/directories must be setup by you so that the server has permissions to do these things as per our instructions below.

Before installing PhotoPost PHP, you need to verify that your server is properly configured to support it. PhotoPost PHP requires PHP 4.0.2 or greater, MySQL 3.22 or greater, and ImageMagick 5.3.8 or greater. Verify these requirements with your web host if unsure.

If you're using PhotoPost with an existing forum, you can either use the MySQL database that you're presently using for your forum for both PhotoPost and your forum, or you can create a separate database for PhotoPost (in either case, your forum user database will still be used by PhotoPost). If you choose to, or if you are using PhotoPost by itself, create a MySQL database for PhotoPost and record the database name and the username and password needed to access it. Be sure to consult http://www.mysql.com and your web host if you have questions about installing MySQL or setting up a MySQL database.

If you plan to use PhotoPost with an existing forum, we recommend that you backup your database before proceeding. PhotoPost is designed to work with the "stock"/unaltered versions of the various supported forums, not hacked versions. Most hacks should not affect PhotoPost's use of your forum user database table and usergroups table(s), but backing up is the safest way to go.

New Installations can specify a table "prefix" if you need to install all your tables into a single database. Entering a unique prefix will allow PhotoPost to exist in the same database as other applications without risk of sharing table names.

Download PhotoPost from our members area. You will need the username and password that we email to you upon purchase of a PhotoPost license in order to login to the members area.

Unzip PhotoPost into a directory on your local machine, making sure that you maintain the directory structure of the zip file. The zip file contains several .php and .sql files as well as three main directories called "images", "uploads", "help", "languages", "stylesheets" and "data".

You can either edit your config-inc.php in a text editor (like NotePad) or you can wait until you run the install.php program which will let you review your config-inc.php options and set them there.

If you choose to edit the config-inc.php manually: Edit the values between the quotes on each line of the config-inc.php file to match your server's settings and your own personal preferences. Use the comments within the file as a guide to each setting. Be careful to only edit the text between the quotes: don't remove the semicolon from the end of any line or any quotation marks. If you plan to use PhotoPost's internal user registration system rather than interfacing with a forum user database, make sure that $database and $database_bb are both set to the same PhotoPost database.

Before you run Install

ImageMagick Users

You will need to know the path to your server's "mogrify" ImageMagick binary executable if you plan to use ImageMagick. If you don't know the location, run the following command from the command prompt to find it:

locate mogrify

If you are editting the config-inc.php manually, set $mogrify_command in config-inc.php as:

$mogrify_command = "/your/path/to/mogrify";

or, for NT users:

$mogrify_command = "c:/path/mogrify.exe";

(Note the use of forward slashes, this prevents PHP from confusing paths).

If you are going to run the install.php to set your configuration, take note of the path for the install process.

GD / GD2 Graphics Users

Some PHP installations include support for GD/GD2 graphic extensions. You can verify your server's setup by checking your phpinfo. See our requirements page for instructions on how to check your server configuration in the "Testing Your Web Server for Compatibility" section.

If you plan to use the GD Graphics Library instead of ImageMagick, you will need to set $usegd = 1 in config-inc.php for GD 1.x.x or set $usegd = 2 in config-inc.php for GD 2.x.x, or choose GD1 or GD2 from the dropdown during the install process (see below).

Now create a directory on your web server for PhotoPost. The directory needs to be accessible via the web. FTP PhotoPost's directories and files from your local machine to your server. The directory structure on your server should be as follows:

photopost
  images (chmod 755)
  uploads (chmod 777)
  help (chmod 755)
  data (chmod 777)
     1 (chmod 777 - including subdirectories)
     2 (chmod 777 - including subdirectories)
     500 (chmod 777 - including subdirectories)
  languages (chmod 755) (a
  stylesheets (chmod 777)
  templates (chmod 777)
  forums (chmod 755)

Be sure to FTP all .php and .sql files into the photopost directory. All permissions for .php and .sql files should be set to chmod 644.