PHP Script installer

Neil Morgan · 01-10-2009, 06:34 PM

Hi Guys

I'm looking for a Windows installer for PHP scripts.

The user downloads a single EXE, runs it on their PC, asks them for FTP login info then uploads a series of PHP scripts to their website.

Any recommendations for this?

Cheers,

Neil

n7 Studios · 01-11-2009, 04:40 AM

Hi Neil,

I'm not aware of anything that does this (but I'm sure there's software out there - you'd be looking down the avenue of getting some source code for a basic FTP app and pre-defining which PHP scripts it uploads).

As a seperate thought, have you considered using a PHP script on your web host to do the same task i.e. users could log in with their username and password, provide their FTP details, and then your online script can upload the necessary PHP scripts to their FTP server, and even then execute them to run any installation routines etc.

I'm currently working on something similar for a CMS-style project, so if you need any more advice, feel free to drop me a PM.

Tim.

Neil Morgan · 01-11-2009, 05:45 AM

Hi Tim

Thanks - I hadn't thought of doing it that way.

Doing it as a server-based thing is cool idea because it gives me full control over the process, updates, licensing etc.

I'll have a think about how I could best implement it.

Cheers,

Neil

Valdor Kiebach · 01-11-2009, 07:18 AM

Let me know how you get on with this as I would be interested in this sort of thing. If you cant find any script already to do this then maybe we can get together and create one.
I have seen a couple of windows exe's that do this, 1 was for the youtube video site creator thing and the other was for a membership site script.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neil Morgan

Hi Tim

Thanks - I hadn't thought of doing it that way.

Doing it as a server-based thing is cool idea because it gives me full control over the process, updates, licensing etc.

I'll have a think about how I could best implement it.

Cheers,

Neil

Jeff Hope · 01-11-2009, 08:59 AM

Neil,

You might check with Sam Stephens. DLGuard is (optionally) installed with a Windows installer.

Jeff

Neil Morgan · 01-11-2009, 10:50 AM

Thanks Guys

Thanks to Tim's suggestion I'm now leaning towards a server-based solution so that it can be used cross-platform (Windows, Mac and Linux).

Jeff- thanks for the tip about Sam - I'll get onto him to find out what he does.

It does sound like there could be an opportunity to develop a solution - so many opportunities, so little time!

Cheers,

Neil

n7 Studios · 01-11-2009, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neil Morgan

Thanks Guys

Thanks to Tim's suggestion I'm now leaning towards a server-based solution so that it can be used cross-platform (Windows, Mac and Linux).

Jeff- thanks for the tip about Sam - I'll get onto him to find out what he does.

It does sound like there could be an opportunity to develop a solution - so many opportunities, so little time!

Cheers,

Neil

Glad to hear my suggestion helped

One thing to note for even better compatibility: when you're connecting to an FTP host, some use an active connection, and others use a passive one. There are ways and means to determine which a host will support, and your PHP FTP functions have options for choosing either connection method (I mention this from experience, when connecting to a server that only supports a passive connection when using an active one can result in really weird PHP errors that make no sense at all).

Neil Morgan · 01-11-2009, 05:00 PM

Thanks for the tip about active/passive connections. I'll make sure I keep it in mind.

Cheers,

Neil

Darren Mothersele · 01-11-2009, 06:10 PM

Great thread! I've played around with server based FTP and it's a lot of fun. Obviously you have to be very careful with security so make sure you're validating any user input carefully and filter for XSS and SQL injection.

If you've not seen it already, the documentation for PHP FTP functions could be useful:

PHP: FTP - Manual

Michael D Price · 01-17-2009, 08:58 PM

Dear Neil,

Since your thinking of doing this via server side processing,
I think the best approach, though I personally haven't looked into doing this, is to use some of the new clientside/servers side 'mini-browser' applications out there like

Adobe Air

Quote:

Adobe AIR is a cross-platform runtime environment for building rich Internet applications using Adobe Flash, Adobe Flex, HTML, or Ajax, that can be deployed as a desktop application.

]

or

Mozilla Prism.Mozilla Labs Blog Archive Prism

Quote:

Prism
From MozillaWiki

Prism is a simple XULRunner based browser that hosts web applications without the normal web browser user interface. Prism is based on a concept called Site Specific Browsers (SSB). An SSB is an application with an embedded browser designed to work exclusively with a single web application. It doesn’t have the menus, toolbars and accoutrements of a normal web browser. Some people have called it a "distraction free browser" because none of the typical browser chrome is used. An SSB also has a tighter integration with the OS and desktop than a typical web application running through a web browser.

If you want to go the client side processing, i know this can be done by using a JAVA program.

Mike Fuqua · 01-17-2009, 11:27 PM

Personally, if I needed something like this (and it's a good idea) I would use something like Auto Media Studio to create my simple desktop application that ties into my website's database. Then I would allow users to login from the desktop app, that queries the database, and if they have access, it then allows them to login, and set some settings for their ftp, and it would then execute (on the server side) some php scripts to make a connection via server ftp and install the scripting.

You could even take that further as long as the person had proper permissions on their database, to allow outside access, to do the installs of of the sql.

But I guess with enough 'trickery' of the php and installations, you could literally do an install via your own site on another person's site.

Example:

User registers on your site
Downloads the app
logins in via the app
sets the settings for their site
hits submit
your server then executes a set of scripts
that ftp's to their site
installs the necessary files
and uses the cURL method to call the 'install' script
that that install script has all the sql commands
in the php to do the install on their server as a localhost!

severt · 01-19-2009, 10:40 AM

Guys, the answer is very simple!
PHP Encoder, protection, installer and performance tools from ionCube: ionCube Package Foundry does exactly what you guys want.

Cheers!

Dennis

stevenh512 · 03-12-2009, 06:06 AM

severt has it right.

IonCube has an EXE script installer that does exactly what you're thinking of. I'm not sure on the price, but if you have a script you're selling and you want a good quality installer it might be worth paying for. IonCube also has a PHP Encoder to optimze and encrypt your PHP files (makes them load a little faster through the IonCube loader, and protects your source code) and I think they even have a module to handle licensing through their loader.

intromaster · 10-25-2009, 10:21 PM

It's called ionCube Package Foundry... it's $197 and is very good. I am now in the process of testing it for one of my scripts.

Makes it a breeze for customers to install your php scripts. They just need to know their ftp details.

01-10-2009, 06:34 PM	#1
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 1,753 Thanks: 52 Thanked 109 Times in 89 Posts Social Networking	PHP Script installer Hi Guys I'm looking for a Windows installer for PHP scripts. The user downloads a single EXE, runs it on their PC, asks them for FTP login info then uploads a series of PHP scripts to their website. Any recommendations for this? Cheers, Neil
	AutoResponse Plus ~ The selling season is upon us - are you ready?

01-11-2009, 04:40 AM	#2
n7 Studios Web Developer, IT Support War Room Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Birmingham, UK Posts: 291 Thanks: 7 Thanked 38 Times in 36 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP Script installer Hi Neil, I'm not aware of anything that does this (but I'm sure there's software out there - you'd be looking down the avenue of getting some source code for a basic FTP app and pre-defining which PHP scripts it uploads). As a seperate thought, have you considered using a PHP script on your web host to do the same task i.e. users could log in with their username and password, provide their FTP details, and then your online script can upload the necessary PHP scripts to their FTP server, and even then execute them to run any installation routines etc. I'm currently working on something similar for a CMS-style project, so if you need any more advice, feel free to drop me a PM. Tim.
	n7 Studios - Web Development, Design and IT Support Need a Web Site? Hire Me!

01-11-2009, 05:45 AM	#3
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 1,753 Thanks: 52 Thanked 109 Times in 89 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Script installer Hi Tim Thanks - I hadn't thought of doing it that way. Doing it as a server-based thing is cool idea because it gives me full control over the process, updates, licensing etc. I'll have a think about how I could best implement it. Cheers, Neil
	AutoResponse Plus ~ The selling season is upon us - are you ready?

01-11-2009, 08:59 AM	#5
Jeff Hope Jeff the Web Guy War Room Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Pottsboro, TX, USA Posts: 1,880 Thanks: 45 Thanked 64 Times in 57 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP Script installer Neil, You might check with Sam Stephens. DLGuard is (optionally) installed with a Windows installer. Jeff

01-11-2009, 10:50 AM	#6
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 1,753 Thanks: 52 Thanked 109 Times in 89 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Script installer Thanks Guys Thanks to Tim's suggestion I'm now leaning towards a server-based solution so that it can be used cross-platform (Windows, Mac and Linux). Jeff- thanks for the tip about Sam - I'll get onto him to find out what he does. It does sound like there could be an opportunity to develop a solution - so many opportunities, so little time! Cheers, Neil
	AutoResponse Plus ~ The selling season is upon us - are you ready?

01-11-2009, 05:00 PM	#8
Neil Morgan Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Lanarkshire UK Posts: 1,753 Thanks: 52 Thanked 109 Times in 89 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Script installer Thanks for the tip about active/passive connections. I'll make sure I keep it in mind. Cheers, Neil
	AutoResponse Plus ~ The selling season is upon us - are you ready?

01-11-2009, 06:10 PM	#9
Darren Mothersele PHP & Drupal Ninja Join Date: May 2007 Location: London, United Kingdom. Posts: 105 Thanks: 11 Thanked 15 Times in 12 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP Script installer Great thread! I've played around with server based FTP and it's a lot of fun. Obviously you have to be very careful with security so make sure you're validating any user input carefully and filter for XSS and SQL injection. If you've not seen it already, the documentation for PHP FTP functions could be useful: PHP: FTP - Manual
	Drupal Developer

01-17-2009, 11:27 PM	#11
Mike Fuqua Warrior Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: , , USA. Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP Script installer Personally, if I needed something like this (and it's a good idea) I would use something like Auto Media Studio to create my simple desktop application that ties into my website's database. Then I would allow users to login from the desktop app, that queries the database, and if they have access, it then allows them to login, and set some settings for their ftp, and it would then execute (on the server side) some php scripts to make a connection via server ftp and install the scripting. You could even take that further as long as the person had proper permissions on their database, to allow outside access, to do the installs of of the sql. But I guess with enough 'trickery' of the php and installations, you could literally do an install via your own site on another person's site. Example: User registers on your site Downloads the app logins in via the app sets the settings for their site hits submit your server then executes a set of scripts that ftp's to their site installs the necessary files and uses the cURL method to call the 'install' script that that install script has all the sql commands in the php to do the install on their server as a localhost!

01-19-2009, 10:40 AM	#12
severt HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: , , Netherlands. Posts: 228 Thanks: 19 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: PHP Script installer Guys, the answer is very simple! PHP Encoder, protection, installer and performance tools from ionCube: ionCube Package Foundry does exactly what you guys want. Cheers! Dennis
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03-12-2009, 06:06 AM	#13
stevenh512 HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Landers, CA, USA Posts: 335 Thanks: 30 Thanked 26 Times in 25 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Script installer severt has it right. IonCube has an EXE script installer that does exactly what you're thinking of. I'm not sure on the price, but if you have a script you're selling and you want a good quality installer it might be worth paying for. IonCube also has a PHP Encoder to optimze and encrypt your PHP files (makes them load a little faster through the IonCube loader, and protects your source code) and I think they even have a module to handle licensing through their loader.

10-25-2009, 10:21 PM	#14
intromaster HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New York Posts: 108 Thanks: 4 Thanked 88 Times in 11 Posts	Re: PHP Script installer It's called ionCube Package Foundry... it's $197 and is very good. I am now in the process of testing it for one of my scripts. Makes it a breeze for customers to install your php scripts. They just need to know their ftp details.
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