Enabling GD Library in Ubuntu Nginx

2 min read 09-11-2024

The GD Library is a crucial PHP extension used for creating and manipulating images dynamically. If you're running an Nginx server on Ubuntu and need to enable the GD Library, follow the steps below to ensure it's set up correctly.

Prerequisites

Ubuntu Server: Ensure you have a running instance of Ubuntu.
Nginx: Nginx should already be installed and configured on your server.
PHP: Ensure PHP is installed. You can check by running php -v in the terminal.

Step 1: Install GD Library

To enable the GD Library, you first need to install it. Open your terminal and execute the following command:

sudo apt-get install php-gd

This command will install the GD Library for your PHP version.

Step 2: Restart PHP and Nginx

After the installation is complete, you need to restart both PHP and Nginx to load the new extension.

If you're using PHP-FPM (which is common with Nginx), restart it using:

sudo systemctl restart php7.x-fpm

Replace 7.x with your installed PHP version.

Then, restart Nginx with:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Step 3: Verify GD Library Installation

To ensure that the GD Library is successfully enabled, you can create a PHP info file.

Navigate to your web root directory, typically found in /var/www/html/:
```
cd /var/www/html/
```
Create a new file named info.php:
```
sudo nano info.php
```
Add the following content to the file:
```
<?php
phpinfo();
?>
```
Save and exit the file (in Nano, press CTRL + X, then Y, and hit Enter).
Open your web browser and go to http://your-server-ip/info.php.
Look for the gd section in the output. If you see it, then the GD Library is successfully enabled.

Step 4: Secure Your Server

After confirming that the GD Library is enabled, it’s essential to delete the info.php file to prevent unauthorized users from accessing sensitive information about your PHP setup:

sudo rm /var/www/html/info.php

Conclusion

You've now successfully enabled the GD Library on your Ubuntu server with Nginx. This library will allow you to create and manipulate images in your web applications. Always ensure that your server is secure and up to date with the latest packages.