2.1 System Requirements
2.1.1. Minimum Hosting Server Requirements
To run Bistro the web server hosting your site must meet a few requirements. These requirements are the minimum required. Running Bistro on a system that only meets these requirements may result in some features being disabled.
- Any web server that properly supports PHP, such as Apache or Internet Information Services (IIS)
- PHP 5.2 or higher. The following directives are required to be set correctly in php.ini
- the session.save_path directive must be set to a valid directory
- the file_uploads directive must be On
- the upload_tmp_dir must be set to a valid directory
- the safe_mode directive must be Off
- MySQL 3.23 or higher
- 1 megabyte of storage space in the database
- 5.5 megabytes of storage space on the web server
The web host must allow PHP scripts to create outgoing connections to allow for license verification and to make use of several Bistro features including the Help Desk, site monitoring, automatic Updates, and automated News & Alerts.
2.1.2. Recommended Hosting Server Requirements
For better performance when running Bistro we recommend additional system resources and settings.
- Linux or another Unix based operating system
- Apache web server with the following configuration
- mod_rewrite for search-engine-friendly URL's
- mod_gzip for compressed website output
- AllowOverride All in httpd.conf for search-engine-friendly URL's
- PHP 5.2 or higher with the same directives as above
- MySQL 4.1 or higher
- GD Graphics Library 2.0 or higher or ImageMagick 6.2.6
2.1.3. End User System Requirements
For public visitors to a Bistro powered website, the technical requirements of the visitors will depend on the design of the Theme. If the theme is very CSS-intensive, it may need a more modern browser. Similarly, if it is very simple, it will be compliant with a larger number of old browsers.
To use Bistro as an Administrator to its fullest feature set, the following browsers, which have undergone extensive testing, are strongly recommended; although any standards-compliant browser should be fine.
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher
- Netscape 6.0 or higher
- Mozilla Firefox 1.5 or higher
- Opera 7.5 or higher
Additionally, the user environment must meet the following configuration options
- JavaScript and Cookies must be enabled
- Minimum resolution of 1024 by 768 pixels