If you ever encounter problems with the way your server handles PHP packages, it may be helpful to view and/or modify your server’s PHP configuration. For example, if your site uses an older script that is incompatible with a newer PHP version, you may want to configure the site to use an older version of PHP; otherwise, you should be sure that your site’s scripts are updated to the latest version available to avoid any issues with PHP updates.

Update PHP Version for a Site

The PHP Configuration plugin in cPanel allows users on Shared and Reseller servers to easily enable a specific PHP version for a site without having to manually add a handler to the .htaccess file. To update the PHP version for a site:

1. Log into cPanel.
2. In the Advanced section, click on the PHP Configuration icon.
   
3. Navigate to the directory for which you’d like to update the PHP version.
4. From the drop-down menu, select a specific version of PHP or one of the following options:
   
   • No custom PHP Handler (Sys Default) – This option will process the .php file extension using the server default, which is not necessarily the latest version of PHP. (The PHP System Default is displayed at the top of the plugin page.)
   • PHP Cur – This option will automatically process the .php file extension using the latest stable version of PHP on the server.
     Caution: If your site’s scripts rely on older functions of PHP which are no longer available in the latest stable version being used on the server, you may encounter compatibility issues when PHP Cur is automatically updated.
5. Click Update.

When using the PHP Configuration plugin, updates are applied recursively. This means any update you apply to a directory will also apply to all sub-directories, unless you apply a different directive to one of those sub-directories. Therefore, to use a different PHP version for an addon domain, you would need to navigate to the document root for the addon domain and select the appropriate version of PHP.