How to use the command `phpdismod` (with examples)

The phpdismod command is used to disable PHP extensions on Debian-based operating systems. It is a utility provided by the PHP team in the php-defaults package. By disabling specific PHP extensions, you can customize the PHP environment based on your specific requirements.

Use case 1: Disable the JSON extension for every SAPI of every PHP version

Code:

sudo phpdismod json

Motivation:

The motivation for disabling the JSON extension is to prevent the use of JSON-related functions in PHP. This can be useful when you want to restrict the usage of JSON functionality in a PHP application or if the JSON extension is causing conflicts with other extensions or functionalities.

Explanation:

• sudo: This command is used to run the phpdismod command with administrative privileges. It allows you to make changes to the PHP configuration on your system.
• phpdismod: This is the command itself. It is used to disable PHP extensions.
• json: The argument json specifies the name of the PHP extension that you want to disable.

Example output:

WARNING: Module json ini file doesn't exist under /etc/php/7.4/mods-available

In this example, the JSON extension is disabled for every SAPI of every PHP version. The output shows a warning message indicating that the JSON extension’s ini file doesn’t exist under the /etc/php/7.4/mods-available directory. This means that the extension is successfully disabled.

Use case 2: Disable the JSON extension for PHP 7.3 with the cli SAPI

Code:

sudo phpdismod -v 7.3 -s cli json

Motivation:

The motivation for disabling the JSON extension specifically for PHP 7.3 with the cli SAPI is to remove JSON functionality only for the command-line interface (CLI) usage of PHP 7.3. This can be useful if you want to restrict the usage of JSON-related functions in CLI scripts or if the JSON extension is causing issues specifically with the cli SAPI.

Explanation:

• -v 7.3: The -v option is used to specify the PHP version for which you want to disable the extension. In this case, the version is set to 7.3.
• -s cli: The -s option is used to specify the PHP SAPI (Server API) for which you want to disable the extension. In this case, the SAPI is set to cli, which refers to the command-line interface.
• json: The argument json specifies the name of the PHP extension that you want to disable.

Example output:

WARNING: Module json ini file doesn't exist under /etc/php/7.3/mods-available

In this example, the JSON extension is disabled specifically for PHP 7.3 with the cli SAPI. The output shows a warning message indicating that the JSON extension’s ini file doesn’t exist under the /etc/php/7.3/mods-available directory, confirming that the extension is successfully disabled.

Conclusion:

The phpdismod command is a handy utility for disabling PHP extensions on Debian-based OSes. It allows you to customize your PHP environment by selectively disabling specific extensions. This can be helpful in managing conflicting extensions, restricting functionality, or resolving issues with specific PHP versions or SAPIs.