Ramic's Zero PHP

About

Ramic's Zero PHP — Full PHP Development Environment in Your Browser

Write, run and preview PHP directly in your browser. No server required. No Docker. No XAMPP. No terminal. Just install the extension and start coding.

Ramic's Zero PHP runs a complete Linux virtual machine (Alpine Linux + PHP 8.3 + lighttpd) entirely inside your browser using x86 emulation. Everything happens locally on your machine — your code never leaves your computer.


🔧 WHAT IT DOES

• Full PHP 8.3 runtime with extensions (curl, json, mbstring, openssl, and more)
• Built-in code editor with multi-file support, folders, drag-and-drop
• Live preview panel — edit PHP, hit Save, see the result instantly
• Virtual networking — your PHP scripts can make real HTTP requests via curl
• HTTPS support — curl works with both HTTP and HTTPS URLs
• Multi-file projects — CSS, JS, images are automatically inlined in the preview
• Offline capable — once loaded, everything runs locally without internet
• Pre-loaded demo files to get started immediately


⚡ HOW IT WORKS

1. Click the extension icon
2. The VM boots in seconds (uses a pre-built snapshot for fast startup)
3. Write PHP in the editor, save, and see the output in the preview panel

Under the hood, the extension runs:
— Alpine Linux as the guest operating system
— lighttpd as the web server
— PHP 8.3 CGI for script execution
— A virtual TCP/IP stack (tcpip.js) for networking
— An HTTP/HTTPS proxy so PHP curl() can reach the internet through your browser

All of this is emulated in WebAssembly via v86 — no native code, no background servers, no external connections except those your PHP code explicitly requests.


👥 WHO IS IT FOR

• Students learning PHP without setting up a local server
• Developers who need a quick PHP scratchpad
• Teachers demonstrating PHP concepts in class
• Anyone who wants to experiment with PHP on a locked-down machine (Chromebook, work laptop, library computer)
• Developers prototyping PHP snippets on the go


🔒 PRIVACY & PERMISSIONS

This extension requests broad host permissions (access to all URLs) for one specific reason: to act as a CORS-free proxy for PHP curl() requests. When your PHP script calls curl("https://api.example.com"), the extension fetches that URL on behalf of the VM.

Important:
— No data is collected, stored, or transmitted to any server
— No analytics, no tracking, no telemetry
— All code runs locally in your browser
— Network requests only happen when YOUR PHP code explicitly calls curl()
— The extension never makes requests on its own
— Source code is unobfuscated and auditable

The declarativeNetRequest permission is used solely to strip browser-added CORS headers from outgoing requests, so that PHP curl() works correctly with third-party APIs.


📁 INCLUDED DEMOS

The extension comes with demo files pre-loaded:
— demo.php: A single-file showcase that calls 4 live APIs (geolocation, quotes, random users, crypto prices) to demonstrate PHP curl() working inside the browser
— demo/ folder: A multi-file project (PHP + CSS + SVG) showing how the preview engine handles separate assets


🖥️ TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Emulation: v86 (x86 in WebAssembly)
• Guest OS: Alpine Linux 3.21
• PHP: 8.3 with CGI
• Web server: lighttpd
• Memory: 256 MB
• Network: Virtual TCP/IP stack with HTTP/HTTPS proxy
• Storage: Files saved in IndexedDB, persist across sessions
• Snapshot: Pre-built VM state for instant boot (~22 MB compressed)


💡 TIPS

• Use Ctrl+S to save and refresh the preview
• Click "Editor" in the top-right to toggle between preview-only and split view
• Create folders to organize multi-file projects
• PHP curl() works out of the box — try fetching any public API
• Your files are saved in the browser and persist across sessions