Install Apache Macos Catalina
- Install Apache Macos Catalina Download
- Install Apache Macos Catalina Operating System
- Install Apache Macos Catalina Update
If you install macOS on an additional volume of your startup disk, you can switch between that macOS and the macOS on your other volume, as if each were on a separate disk. And because storage space is shared across APFS volumes, you don't need to reserve space for the new volume. Its size automatically adjusts to fit your content.
Install and Configure Apache. MacOS 10.13 High Sierra and 10.14 Mojave come with Apache pre-installed. However, instead of using the delivered version we’re going to install Apache via Homebrew. Can you install macOS Catalina on an external SSD connected to your Mac? Yes, it's definitely possible. However, since Apple initiated a relatively new partition scheme (APFS) with macOS High Sierra, the process is slightly different than with older versions of macOS.
What you need
Your Mac must already be using macOS High Sierra or later on an APFS-formatted startup disk. Find out which format your startup disk is using.
You don't need to reserve storage space for the new volume, but macOS needs as much as 20GB of available space to install, depending on the version of macOS. If you don't have enough space, the installer will let you know.
About This Mac includes a storage overview: Choose Apple () menu > About This Mac, then click Storage.
Back up your Mac
It's a good idea to back up your Mac first, especially if you're installing a beta version of macOS. Beta software is software that is still in development, so some apps and services might not work as expected.
Add an APFS volume
- Open Disk Utility, which is in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder.
- In the sidebar, select your existing APFS volume.
- Choose Edit > Add APFS Volume from the menu bar, or click in the Disk Utility toolbar. These options are available only when an APFS volume is selected.
- Type any name for the new APFS volume, then click Add:
- Disk Utility should now show the new volume in the sidebar. The new volume will also appear in the Finder, as if it were a separate disk. You can now quit Disk Utility.
Install macOS on the volume
Choose an installation method:
- To install a beta (prerelease) version of macOS, enroll in the Apple Beta Software Program and follow the installation instructions on the program website.
- To install a release version of macOS, you can use macOS Recovery. The keys you press at startup determine which macOS is installed.
When the installer opens and you're asked to choose where to install, click Show All Disks, then select the new volume.
Switch between macOS versions
After installation is complete, you can use Startup Disk preferences or Startup Manager to quickly switch between each macOS:
- Choose Apple () menu > Startup Disk, then click and enter your administrator password. Select the volume that you want to use, then click Restart.
- Or press and hold the Option key during startup. When prompted, choose the volume that you want to start up from.
Install Apache Macos Catalina Download
Keep the macOS on each volume up to date
To find the latest updates for each version of macOS, check for software updates, then start up from the other volume and check for software updates again.
Learn more
If your Mac is using macOS Sierra or earlier, or the startup disk is formatted as Mac OS Extended instead of APFS, you can create a new partition instead. The space it occupies doesn't automatically adjust to fit your content, so you must manually size the partition. Learn how to add a volume to a device formatted as Mac OS Extended.
Recommend switching to Docker
I finally switched to using Docker for local development on macOS. While the following tutorial works for macOS Catalina, it has limitations. I recommend following my latest tutorial on installing Apache, MySQL, and PHP on macOS using Docker.
Install Apache Macos Catalina Operating System
Note: This post assumes you followed installing Apache, PHP, and MySQL on Mac OS X Mojave and have since upgraded to macOS Catalina. If you did not follow the original post, you should follow installing Apache, PHP, and MySQL on macOS Catalina.
When Mac OS X upgrades it overwrites previous configuration files. However, before doing so it will make backups. For Catalina the original versions may have a suffix of mojave or be copied to a backup folder on the Desktop. Most of the time, configuring your system after updating Mac OS X is simply a matter of comparing the new and old configurations.
This post will look at the differences in Apache, PHP, and MySQL between Mac OS X Mojave and macOS Catalina.
Updating Apache
Mac OS X Mojave and macOS Catalina both come with Apache pre-installed. As noted above, your Apache configuration file is overwritten me when you upgrade to macOS Catalina.
There were a few differences in the configuration files. However, since both Mojave and Catalina run Apache 2.4, you could simply backup the configuration file from Catalina and overwrite it with your Mojave version.
However, I encourage you to stay up-to-date. As such, you should take the time to update Catalina's Apache configuration. First, create a backup and compare the two configuration files for differences.
Now edit the Apache configuration. Feel free to use a different editor if you are not familiar with vi.
Uncomment the following line (remove #):
In addition, uncomment or add any lines you noticed from the diff above that may be needed. For example, I uncommented the following lines:
Finally, I cleaned up some of the backups that were created during the macOS Catalina upgrade. This will help avoid confusion in the future.
Note: These files were not changed between versions. However, if you changed them, you should compare the files before running the commands.
Restart Apache:
Updating PHP
Mac OS X Mojave came with PHP version 7.1 pre-installed. This PHP version has reached its end of life. macOS Catalina comes with PHP 7.3 pre-installed. If you added any extensions to PHP you will need to recompile them.
Also, if you changed the core PHP INI file it will have been overwritten when upgrading to macOS Catalina. You can compare the two files by running the following command:
Note: Your original file may note be named something else. You can see which PHP core files exist by running ls /etc/php.ini*.
I would encourage you not to change the PHP INI file directly. Instead, you should overwrite PHP configurations in a custom PHP INI file. This will prevent Mac OS X upgrades from overwriting your PHP configuration in the future. To determine the right path to add your custom PHP INI, run the following command:
Note: It appears Catalina does not include the PHP Zip extension. This is a popular extension used by many packages. This was one of the reasons I switched to using Docker.
Updating MySQL
Install Apache Macos Catalina Update
MySQL is not pre-installed with Mac OS X. It is something you downloaded when following the original post. As such, the macOS Catalina upgrade should not have changed your MySQL configuration.
Find this interesting? Let's continue the conversation on Twitter.