Understanding the Difference in PHP Versions between PhpStorm Terminal and OS Terminal

Описание: Discover why the PHP version differs in your PhpStorm Terminal compared to your macOS terminal and learn how to fix it easily.
---
This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/64964243/ asked by the user 'Erfan Atp' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/5053050/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/65000246/ provided by the user 'Erfan Atp' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/5053050/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

Visit these links for original content and any more details, such as alternate solutions, latest updates/developments on topic, comments, revision history etc. For example, the original title of the Question was: PhpStorm Terminal result is different with OS terminal result

Also, Content (except music) licensed under CC BY-SA https://meta.stackexchange.com/help/l...
The original Question post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license, and the original Answer post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license.

If anything seems off to you, please feel free to write me at vlogize [AT] gmail [DOT] com.
---
Resolving PHP Version Discrepancies Between PhpStorm Terminal and OS Terminal

When working with PHP, many developers rely on their IDEs to streamline development tasks. However, sometimes you may encounter unexpected behavior between your PhpStorm Terminal and your macOS terminal. A common issue arises when different versions of PHP seem to be loaded when running the same command in different environments.

The Problem at Hand

Imagine this scenario: You are working on a PHP project and run the command php -v in both your macOS terminal and the PhpStorm Terminal. You expect the output to be the same, showing the PHP version that you have installed. Instead, you notice a discrepancy:

In your macOS terminal, typing php -v shows:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

However, in the PhpStorm Terminal, the same command outputs:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

What Causes the Version Discrepancy?

This issue typically arises because PhpStorm might not be using the same PHP configuration as your OS terminal. Here's a breakdown of why this happens:

Path Differences: The terminal inside PhpStorm may be set up to use a different PHP binary than the one in your macOS terminal.

Installation Locations: If you have multiple versions of PHP installed, the system may be pointing to an older version in PhpStorm compared to what you have configured or installed on your system.

How to Fix the Issue

You can resolve the PHP version discrepancy by ensuring PhpStorm is launched correctly, pointing it to your main OS terminal's configuration. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1: Launch PhpStorm from the Terminal

Open your macOS terminal.

Type the following command and hit Enter:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

By opening PhpStorm this way, you ensure it inherits the environment variables and configurations (like PATH) from your active terminal session, which allows it to access the correct PHP version.

Final Thoughts

Using different versions of PHP in your development environment can lead to confusion and bugs. By ensuring that PhpStorm recognizes the correct version of PHP, you can streamline your workflow and reduce errors in your PHP projects.

If you encounter additional discrepancies in the future, consider checking the PATH configurations and ensuring you are consistent in how you launch development tools!

With these simple steps, you can work confidently knowing that you’re using the same PHP environment across your different terminals.