Complete Guide on How to Install phpMyAdmin using LAMP Stack on AlmaLinux 8
Managing a MySQL or MariaDB database often requires an easy-to-use graphical interface. One of the most popular tools is phpMyAdmin, which can be accessed through a browser to simplify database administration. This guide will detail how to install phpMyAdmin on AlmaLinux 8 using the LAMP Stack.
phpMyAdmin is a PHP-based application used to manage MySQL/MariaDB databases through a browser. Its advantage lies in its intuitive graphical display, so users do not need to always rely on manual SQL commands. While AlmaLinux 8 is a Linux distribution based on RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) designed for long-term stability, making it very suitable for production servers. When combined with LAMP Stack (Linux, Apache, MySQL/MariaDB, PHP), phpMyAdmin will be a very powerful tool for managing website and application databases.
By following these steps, your server will be ready to use to manage databases safely, quickly, and efficiently.
Prerequisites
- Full root access
- Domain (optional)
- Basic Linux Command Line
Preparation
Make sure the firewall and SELinux have been adjusted or temporarily disabled if you want to avoid problems during the initial installation.
Before starting the Shopware installation, make sure your AlmaLinux 8 server is up to date and ready to install the LAMP Stack (Linux, Apache, MariaDB, PHP).
dnf update -y
dnf install epel-release -y
Install Apache
Apache is a reliable web server and is widely used in production environments. To install it, run the following command:
dnf install httpd -y
Once the installation is complete, enable and start the Apache service with the following command:
systemctl enable --now httpd
To allow access to the server via HTTP and HTTPS, allow the firewall:
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service={http,https}
firewall-cmd --reload
Install PHP
PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) is a server-side programming language that is crucial in this stack. We will install PHP 8 from the Remi Repository to use the latest version of PHP.
Run the following command to install the Remi Repository:
dnf install -y https://rpms.remirepo.net/enterprise/remi-release-8.rpm
Then list the available PHP using the following command:
dnf module list php
Output example:
AlmaLinux 8 - AppStream
Name Stream Profiles Summary
php 7.2 [d] common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php 7.3 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php 7.4 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php 8.0 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php 8.2 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
Remi's Modular repository for Enterprise Linux 8 - x86_64
Name Stream Profiles Summary
php remi-7.2 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-7.3 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-7.4 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-8.0 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-8.1 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-8.2 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-8.3 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
php remi-8.4 common [d], devel, minimal PHP scripting language
Hint: [d]efault, [e]nabled, [x]disabled, [i]nstalled
Enable the desired PHP module version. For example, for PHP 8.4, run the following command:
dnf module reset php -y
dnf module enable php:remi-8.4 -y
Once the repository is active, we can proceed with installing PHP along with the commonly used essential modules:
dnf install -y php php-cli php-common php-mysqlnd php-fpm php-opcache php-gd php-curl php-mbstring php-xml php-json php-soap php-bcmath php-zip php-intl php-posix php-imap
Check the installed PHP version with the following command:
php -v
Install MariaDB
MariaDB is a replacement for MySQL and is compatible with MySQL-based applications. Run the following command to install it:
dnf module list mariadb
Output example:
AlmaLinux 8 - AppStream
Name Stream Profiles Summary
mariadb 10.3 [d] client, galera, server [d] MariaDB Module
mariadb 10.5 client, galera, server [d] MariaDB Module
mariadb 10.11 client, galera, server [d] MariaDB Module
Hint: [d]efault, [e]nabled, [x]disabled, [i]nstalled
The output above shows that the default version of MariaDB is 10.11 (the latest version from the OS). However, we'll use MariaDB version 11.4.7 using the official repository at https://mariadb.org/download/ and then reset MariaDB to remove it from the OS's default repository:
dnf module reset mariadb
Run the following command to add the MariaDB version 11.4.7 repository:
nano /etc/yum.repos.d/MariaDB.repo
Add the following parameters:
# MariaDB 11.4 RedHatEnterpriseLinux repository list - created 2025-07-31 14:04 UTC
# https://mariadb.org/download/
[mariadb]
name = MariaDB
# rpm.mariadb.org is a dynamic mirror if your preferred mirror goes offline. See https://mariadb.org/mirrorbits/ for details.
# baseurl = https://rpm.mariadb.org/11.4/rhel/$releasever/$basearch
baseurl = https://mirror.its.dal.ca/mariadb/yum/11.4/rhel/$releasever/$basearch
module_hotfixes = 1
# gpgkey = https://rpm.mariadb.org/RPM-GPG-KEY-MariaDB
gpgkey = https://mirror.its.dal.ca/mariadb/yum/RPM-GPG-KEY-MariaDB
gpgcheck = 1
Then run the following command to install MariaDB:
dnf install MariaDB-server MariaDB-client
Enable and activate the MariaDB service:
systemctl enable --now mariadb
systemctl status mariadb
Before using it for production or testing, it is best to secure the MariaDB installation first by running the following command:
mariadb-secure-installation
Then follow the instructions that appear:
- Enter current password for root (enter for none) → [ENTER]
- Switch to unix_socket authentication → Y
- Change the root password? → Y
- Remove anonymous users? → Y
- Disallow root login remotely? Y
- Remove test database and access to it? Y
- Reload privilege tables now? Y
Install phpMyAdmin
Make sure you use a valid domain (FQDN) and also that the DNS A record is directed or pointed according to the server IP used on the server.
To install phpMyAdmin we will use the repository from Remi using the following command:
dnf --enablerepo=remi install phpmyadmin
Then configure the phpMyAdmin virtualhost:
nano /etc/httpd/conf.d/phpMyAdmin.conf
Change the following parameters to allow all IP addresses to access phpMyAdmin:
Once in production, be sure to allow only certain IP addresses. Here's an example configuration:
<Directory /usr/share/phpMyAdmin/>
AddDefaultCharset UTF-8
Require ip 192.168.2.3
Require ip 192.168.5.0/24
</Directory>
<Directory /usr/share/phpMyAdmin/>
AddDefaultCharset UTF-8
# Require local
Require all granted
</Directory>
Restart Apache to save changes:
apachectl configtest
systemctl restart httpd
The following is a view of phpMyAdmin, which can be accessed via http://$DOMAIN/phpmyadmin or http://$IP-ADDRESS/phpmyadmin
You can use the root password or the user that has been created in the Mariadb database above.
Troubleshooting
- Error 403 Forbidden
This is usually because the Apache configuration still restricts access to localhost only. Double-check the /etc/httpd/conf.d/phpMyAdmin.conf configuration to allow the IP you're using.
- Login fails even though the password is correct
This could be because the auth_socket plugin is active in MariaDB. Change the authentication method to mysql_native_password.
ALTER USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password-change-2025';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
- Blank page after login
Make sure PHP extensions such as php-mbstring and php-xml are installed.
Conclusion
By following the guide above, you have now successfully installed phpMyAdmin using the LAMP Stack on AlmaLinux 8. phpMyAdmin simplifies visual management of MySQL/MariaDB databases, eliminating the need for constant command-line access.
Q: Is phpMyAdmin safe to use on a production server?
A: Yes, it is safe if configured correctly. Make sure to use HTTPS, restrict access to specific IP addresses, and change the default URL to /phpMyAdmin to prevent it from being easily guessed.
Q: What if I forget my MariaDB root password?
A: Use the following command to reset it:
systemctl stop mariadb
mysqld_safe --skip-grant-tables &
mysql -u root
Then run:
ALTER USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password-new-2025';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
Restart MariaDB:
systemctl restart mariadb
Q: Can I use MySQL instead of MariaDB on AlmaLinux 8?
A: Yes. AlmaLinux uses MariaDB by default, but MySQL can still be installed from the official Oracle repositories or third-party repositories
Q: Is it necessary to grant write access to the /usr/share/phpMyAdmin/ directory?
A: No. This directory should remain with owner root and read-only permissions for Apache. This keeps it safe from exploits.
Further References: