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LAMP

Definition

What is LAMP?

Also known as LAMP stack, LAMP is a collection of open-source tools used by developers to build, launch, host, and manage all sorts of web applications.

If you want a more in-depth understanding of this topic, check out the FAQ section below:

Question #1: What does LAMP stand for?

LAMP stands for Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP. Let us go over each one in more detail.

Linux is an operating system just like Windows and MacOS. The only difference is that it is open source and more configurable than both. And while it does not have as big a user base as Windows and MacOS, it is used extensively for all sorts of industry applications. In fact, even the Android OS is built on it.

Apache, on the other hand, is the web server used by the LAMP stack. It is designed to manage the traffic that a web application or website receives. It handles client requests and takes care of delivering all sorts of web assets to users from a database via HTTP.

Speaking of databases, the LAMP stack uses MySQL, an open-source relational database management system (RDBMS), as its database. It is the top free tool for application data storage.

Finally, PHP is the main programming language used by the LAMP stack to create dynamic web content, tools, applications, and processes.

In addition to PHP, however, the LAMP stack also uses Python and Perl.

Question #2: How does it work?

The LAMP stack follows four simple steps in fulfilling client requests:

  1. Apache receives the requests and processes it.
  2. If it is for a PHP file, Apache executes the request using PHP. If it is for other types of data, Apache executes it by fetching data from the MySQL database.
  3. Apache receives the requested resources from either PHP or MySQL.
  4. Apache processes these resources and presents it in HTML format to the user.

Question #3: What are the benefits of LAMP?

The main benefits of LAMP are as follows:

  1. It is highly capable and efficient. You can use the LAMP stack to not only build robust web applications, but also add dynamic features to your websites and apps and manage web content and application data.
  2. It is 100% free. Yes. You read that right. Since the LAMP stack is completely open-source, you do not have to pay a single cent to build things with it. And, as a bonus, when you use it, you also get access to pre-written code, community support, and other handy tools.
  3. It is extremely flexible. This stack has been reiterated several times for use in other environments. Popular examples include:
  • WAMP which uses Windows instead of Linux
  • WIMP which uses Windows instead of Linux and IIS instead of Apache
  • MAMP which uses MacOS instead of Linux

Question #4: What is the difference between LAMP and LEMP?

The main difference between LAMP and LEMP is the webserver used. Instead of Apache, LEMP uses the Engine-X NGINX webserver to further boost the efficiency of the stack. This is because NGINX web servers are known for their low memory requirements and top-notch concurrency and performance. They also function as a load balancer, proxy server, and HTTP cache.

Websites that use a NGINX server include WordPress, Instagram, Netflix, and GitHub.

Question #5: What are the disadvantages of using it?

The biggest disadvantages of using LAMP are as follows:

  1. It only runs on Linux. This means that you either have to set up a dedicated Linux machine for it or switch to an iteration that is designed for your particular operating system
  2. It uses a different programming language on the server side. Since the LAMP stack uses PHP, Perl, or Python on the server side, switching over to the client side, which, in most cases, uses JavaScript requires more work.

This is why in some cases, the tech stack MEAN—which uses MongoDB, ExpressJS, AngularJS, and NodeJS—is the better option. Not only is it not OS-specific, but it also uses JavaScript throughout.