Installing Composer on Ubuntu 20.04: Quickstart Guide

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Introduction: In this guide, we will provide a step-by-step process for installing Composer on an Ubuntu 20.04 server. Composer is a dependency management tool for PHP development, allowing developers to easily manage and install packages required for their projects.

Prerequisites: To follow this guide, you will need access to an Ubuntu 20.04 server with sudo user privileges. Ensure that you have a terminal or SSH connection to the server.

Step 1 — Install Dependencies: Begin by updating the package manager cache and installing the necessary dependencies, including php-cli. Run the following commands:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install php-cli unzip

Step 2 — Download and Install Composer: Navigate to your home directory and retrieve the Composer installer using the curl command:

cd ~
curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer -o /tmp/composer-setup.php

Next, verify the integrity of the downloaded installer by comparing its SHA-384 hash with the latest installer’s hash found on the Composer Public Keys / Signatures page. Retrieve the latest signature and store it in a shell variable using curl:

HASH=`curl -sS https://composer.github.io/installer.sig`

Execute the following PHP code to ensure that the installation script is safe to run:

php -r "if (hash_file('SHA384', '/tmp/composer-setup.php') === '$HASH') { echo 'Installer verified'; } else { echo 'Installer corrupt'; unlink('/tmp/composer-setup.php'); } echo PHP_EOL;"

If the output states “Installer verified,” proceed with the installation. The following command will download and install Composer as a system-wide command named “composer,” located in the directory /usr/local/bin:

sudo php /tmp/composer-setup.php --install-dir=/usr/local/bin --filename=composer

Upon successful installation, you will see output similar to the following:

All settings correct for using Composer
Downloading...

Composer (version X.X.X) successfully installed to: /usr/local/bin/composer
Use it: php /usr/local/bin/composer

Step 3 — Test the Installation: To confirm that Composer is installed correctly, run the following command:

composer

You should see output displaying the Composer logo, version number, and a list of available commands. This confirms that Composer is installed and accessible system-wide.

Conclusion: By following these steps, you have successfully installed Composer on your Ubuntu 20.04 server. Composer provides powerful dependency management capabilities, enabling you to easily manage packages for your PHP projects.

What is Composer and why is it useful for PHP development?

What are the system requirements for installing Composer on Ubuntu 20.04?

How can I check if Composer is already installed on my Ubuntu 20.04 system?

What are the steps to install Composer on Ubuntu 20.04 using the command-line interface?

Are there any alternative methods to install Composer on Ubuntu 20.04?

How can I verify the installation of Composer on Ubuntu 20.04?

How can I update Composer to the latest version on Ubuntu 20.04?

What are some common troubleshooting steps if I encounter issues during the Composer installation on Ubuntu 20.04?

How can I uninstall Composer from my Ubuntu 20.04 system?

Are there any recommended best practices for using Composer in PHP projects?