Apache Setup Guide Beginner

This guide walks you through setting up the Billiard Scoreboard on an Apache web server, step by step. No prior server experience required.

1 Linux (Ubuntu / Debian)

This section covers setup on Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04 or Debian 12. If you're using a Raspberry Pi with Raspberry Pi OS, these steps also apply.

1.1 — Open the Terminal

On your server or desktop, open a terminal window:

• Ubuntu Desktop: Press Ctrl + Alt + T
• Remote server: Connect via SSH: ssh username@your-server-ip

1.2 — Update the system

First, make sure your system is up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

1.3 — Install Apache, PHP and SQLite

sudo apt install apache2 php libapache2-mod-php php-sqlite3 -y

This installs:

Package	What it does
apache2	The Apache web server
php	PHP programming language
libapache2-mod-php	Connects PHP to Apache
php-sqlite3	PHP extension for SQLite databases

1.4 — Verify the installation

Check that everything was installed correctly:

apache2 -v
php -v
php -m | grep sqlite3

You should see version numbers for Apache and PHP, and sqlite3 in the module list.

1.5 — Copy the scoreboard files

Apache serves files from /var/www/html/ by default. Copy all scoreboard files there:

# Remove the default Apache test page
sudo rm /var/www/html/index.html

# Copy all scoreboard files to the web directory
sudo cp -r /path/to/your/scoreboard-files/* /var/www/html/

Alternatively, if you want the scoreboard in a subfolder:

# Create a subfolder
sudo mkdir -p /var/www/html/billard

# Copy files into the subfolder
sudo cp -r /path/to/your/scoreboard-files/* /var/www/html/billard/

1.6 — Set file permissions

Apache runs as the user www-data. PHP needs permission to read and write files (for the database and OBS text files):

sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html
sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/html

1.7 — Restart Apache

sudo systemctl restart apache2

1.8 — Test it

Open a browser and navigate to:

• If files are in /var/www/html/: http://your-server-ip/
• If files are in /var/www/html/billard/: http://your-server-ip/billard/

You should see the Billiard Scoreboard application. If you see "403 Forbidden" or a blank page, check the troubleshooting section below.

1.9 — Enable Apache at startup (optional)

To make Apache start automatically when the server boots:

sudo systemctl enable apache2

2 Windows (XAMPP)

On Windows, the easiest way to run Apache + PHP is with XAMPP, a free all-in-one package.

2.1 — Download XAMPP

1. Go to https://www.apachefriends.org
2. Download the Windows version (choose the latest PHP 8.x version)
3. Run the installer

2.2 — Install XAMPP

1. Run the downloaded installer
2. When asked which components to install, make sure Apache and PHP are checked (you can uncheck MySQL, FileZilla, Mercury, Tomcat — they are not needed)
3. Install to the default location: C:\xampp
4. Finish the installation

2.3 — Copy the scoreboard files

XAMPP serves files from C:\xampp\htdocs\. Copy the scoreboard files there:

1. Open C:\xampp\htdocs\ in File Explorer
2. Delete the existing files (index.php, etc.) — these are XAMPP's default test pages
3. Copy all scoreboard files into C:\xampp\htdocs\

Your folder should look like this:

2.4 — Enable SQLite in PHP

SQLite should be enabled by default in XAMPP. To verify:

1. Open C:\xampp\php\php.ini in a text editor (e.g. Notepad)
2. Press Ctrl + F and search for sqlite3
3. Find the line ;extension=sqlite3
4. If there is a semicolon (;) at the beginning, remove it to enable the extension:

   ;extension=sqlite3    ← disabled (has semicolon)
   extension=sqlite3     ← enabled (no semicolon)

5. Also check that extension=pdo_sqlite is enabled (no semicolon)
6. Save the file

2.5 — Start Apache

1. Open the XAMPP Control Panel (search for "XAMPP" in the Start Menu)
2. Click Start next to Apache
3. The status should turn green

2.6 — Test it

Open your browser and go to:

• http://localhost/ (if files are directly in htdocs)
• http://localhost/billard/ (if you used a subfolder)

2.7 — Auto-start XAMPP (optional)

To have Apache start automatically with Windows:

1. Open the XAMPP Control Panel
2. Click Config (top right)
3. Check "Autostart of modules: Apache"
4. Save

To start XAMPP itself on login, place a shortcut to C:\xampp\xampp-control.exe in your Windows Startup folder (Win + R, type shell:startup, press Enter).

3 macOS (XAMPP or MAMP)

Option A: XAMPP for macOS

1. Download XAMPP from https://www.apachefriends.org (macOS version)
2. Install and open the XAMPP application (it installs to /Applications/XAMPP/)
3. Copy scoreboard files to /Applications/XAMPP/htdocs/
4. Open the XAMPP manager and start Apache
5. Open http://localhost/ in your browser

Option B: Built-in Apache (advanced)

macOS has Apache pre-installed. To use it:

# Start Apache
sudo apachectl start

# Enable PHP (edit the Apache config)
sudo nano /etc/apache2/httpd.conf

Find and uncomment (remove the #) this line:

#LoadModule php_module /usr/local/opt/php/lib/httpd/modules/libphp.so

Copy scoreboard files to /Library/WebServer/Documents/ and restart Apache:

sudo apachectl restart

4 Raspberry Pi

A Raspberry Pi makes an excellent dedicated scoreboard server. Follow the Linux (Ubuntu/Debian) steps above — Raspberry Pi OS is Debian-based, so all commands are identical.

Recommended Pi models

Model	Suitability
Raspberry Pi 4/5	Excellent — plenty of power
Raspberry Pi 3	Good — works fine for a few tables
Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W	Acceptable — may be slow with many simultaneous users

5 Configuration

After the files are in place, open config.php in a text editor to customize the settings:

Setting	Default	Description
MASTER_PIN	'123456'	PIN for admin actions (manage players, delete stats)
OBS_INTERVAL	15	How often OBS text files are updated (seconds)
MAX_HISTORY	100	Maximum number of game history entries
ICON_STYLE	'square'	Button style: 'round' or 'square'
ICON_3D	true	3D shadow effect on buttons
SHOW_LEGAL	true	Show legal notice / privacy policy in sidebar
REQUIRE_LOGIN	false	Require login on the start page
LOGIN_USER	'admin'	Admin username (only if login is enabled)
LOGIN_PASS	'billard'	Admin password (only if login is enabled)

6 URL Overview

Once the server is running, these URLs are available (replace [IP] with your server's IP address):

Page	URL	Description
Scoreboard	http://[IP]/	Main application
Monitor (DE)	http://[IP]/monitor_de.php	Live display of all tables (German)
Monitor (EN)	http://[IP]/monitor_en.php	Live display of all tables (English)
OBS Overlays	http://[IP]/obs_big.php?Tisch=1	OBS browser source overlays
Help (DE)	http://[IP]/help_de.html	Full documentation (German)
Help (EN)	http://[IP]/help_en.html	Full documentation (English)

7 Network Access & Firewall

To access the scoreboard from other devices (phones, tablets, other PCs), the web server port must be open.

Linux (UFW Firewall)

# Allow HTTP traffic (port 80)
sudo ufw allow 80/tcp

# Check firewall status
sudo ufw status

Windows Firewall

XAMPP usually configures the firewall automatically. If other devices cannot connect:

1. Open Windows Defender Firewall (search in Start Menu)
2. Click "Allow an app through firewall"
3. Click "Change settings", then "Allow another app"
4. Browse to C:\xampp\apache\bin\httpd.exe
5. Check both Private and Public
6. Click OK

8 Troubleshooting

Problem	Cause	Solution
HTTP 500 Internal Server Error	PHP cannot write to the database or OBS folder	Linux: Run sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html && sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/html Windows: Make sure the htdocs folder is not read-only (right-click → Properties → uncheck "Read-only")
403 Forbidden	Apache cannot read the files	Check file permissions and make sure index.php exists in the correct directory
Blank white page	PHP error (often missing SQLite extension)	Linux: Run sudo apt install php-sqlite3 and restart Apache Windows: Enable extension=sqlite3 in php.ini (see step 2.4)
Page shows PHP code as text	PHP module not loaded in Apache	Linux: Run sudo apt install libapache2-mod-php and restart Apache Windows: Reinstall XAMPP
Cannot access from other devices	Firewall blocking port 80	See step 7 (Firewall) above
Apache won't start (port in use)	Another program using port 80	Windows: Open cmd as admin, run netstat -ano | findstr :80 to find the process. Common culprits: Skype, IIS, World Wide Web Publishing Service Alternative: Change Apache port to 8080
OBS text files not generated	Write permissions on /obs/ folder	Linux: sudo chmod -R 775 /var/www/html/obs Windows: The obs folder will be created automatically; ensure htdocs is writable

Checking the Apache error log

Error logs are the best way to diagnose issues:

# Linux
sudo tail -f /var/log/apache2/error.log

# Windows (XAMPP)
# Open: C:\xampp\apache\logs\error.log

Test PHP manually

Create a test file to verify PHP is working:

# Linux
echo "<?php phpinfo(); ?>" | sudo tee /var/www/html/test.php

# Windows: Create C:\xampp\htdocs\test.php with content: <?php phpinfo(); ?>

Then open http://localhost/test.php. You should see a purple PHP information page. Check that SQLite3 and PDO SQLite appear in the list.

9 Apache vs. Nginx

The main documentation (help_en.html) describes setup with Nginx. Here are the key differences:

Aspect	Apache	Nginx
Config file	/etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf	/etc/nginx/sites-available/default
Web root	/var/www/html/	/var/www/html/ (same)
PHP integration	Built-in module (libapache2-mod-php)	Separate PHP-FPM process
Restart command	sudo systemctl restart apache2	sudo systemctl restart nginx
Beginner-friendly	Easier — PHP works out of the box	Requires additional PHP-FPM setup

10 Quick Reference (Cheat Sheet)

Linux Commands

Action	Command
Start Apache	sudo systemctl start apache2
Stop Apache	sudo systemctl stop apache2
Restart Apache	sudo systemctl restart apache2
Check status	sudo systemctl status apache2
View error log	sudo tail -f /var/log/apache2/error.log
Find server IP	hostname -I
Fix permissions	sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html

Windows (XAMPP) Paths

Item	Path
Web files	C:\xampp\htdocs\
PHP config	C:\xampp\php\php.ini
Apache config	C:\xampp\apache\conf\httpd.conf
Error log	C:\xampp\apache\logs\error.log
Control Panel	C:\xampp\xampp-control.exe

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Pro Billiard Scoreboard System v4.5 | Apache Setup Guide

For full feature documentation, see help_en.html | help_de.html (German)