Q: How do I create subdomains using PHP?

Automatically when an user signs up.

[Daemon]

I would like to know how do I create subdomains using PHP?

Basically, I want a new user that signs up to my website to have a homepage: username.domain.com
as well as sub directories as: username.domain.com/journal

If anyone knows, please let me know, I couldn't find the solution.

Thanks!

[RonPK]

Let's assume that you're not talking about real subdomains in DNS. Let's also assume your webserver software is something like Apache 1.3.x. If so, what needs to be done:

1. create the appropriate web root directory, for example /home/sites/username/web , and any subdirectories you wish
2. edit httpd.conf, add a new virtual host section
3. final step: restart httpd

In a normal Linux server setup, PHP/Apache does not have the necessary permissions to do all this. You'll probably need some shell voodoo like sudo to make it work.

[Daemon]

hmmm.......perhaps what I have heard of in other places, could mod_rewrite be used to fake a subdomain?

Liek the PHP script would simply create the user, create a subdir with the username, open .htaccess append a line, close.

Would that work? How would I do a mod_rewrite for that?

Thanks!

[moltar]

you can have wildcard subdomains. Meaning that anything before the .yourname.com would always work. Then you could catch it with mod_rewrite.

[jdMorgan]

Daemon,

This thread [webmasterworld.com] about rewriting subdomain requests to subdirectories might be useful to you.

Jim