XDebug won't run in PHPStorm 2024.1.1 on Mac M2 when installed/configured

It sounds like there are a few issues at play here, primarily related to the PHP version being used by your web server versus the CLI. Here’s a step-by-step guide to ensure that your web server is using the correct PHP version and that XDebug is properly configured.

Step 1: Verify PHP Version for CLI

First, ensure that your CLI is using the correct PHP version:

php --version

This should show PHP 8.2.

Step 2: Verify PHP Version for Web Server

Your web server (likely Apache or Nginx) might still be using PHP 8.3. To check this, create a phpinfo.php file in your web server's root directory with the following content:

<?php phpinfo(); ?>

Access this file via your web browser and check the PHP version displayed.

Step 3: Configure Web Server to Use PHP 8.2

If the web server is using PHP 8.3, you need to configure it to use PHP 8.2. Here’s how you can do it for both Apache and Nginx.

For Apache:

1. Disable PHP 8.3 Module:

   sudo a2dismod php8.3
   

2. Enable PHP 8.2 Module:

   sudo a2enmod php8.2
   

3. Restart Apache:

   sudo service apache2 restart
   

For Nginx:

1. Update Nginx Configuration: Open your Nginx configuration file (usually located at /etc/nginx/sites-available/default or similar) and update the fastcgi_pass directive to point to the PHP 8.2 FPM socket. It might look something like this:

   location ~ \.php$ {
       include snippets/fastcgi-php.conf;
       fastcgi_pass unix:/var/run/php/php8.2-fpm.sock;
   }
   

2. Restart Nginx:

   sudo service nginx restart
   

Step 4: Verify XDebug Configuration

Ensure that XDebug is correctly configured in your php.ini or xdebug.ini file. Here’s a basic configuration:

[xdebug]
zend_extension="xdebug.so"
xdebug.mode=debug
xdebug.start_with_request=yes
xdebug.client_host=127.0.0.1
xdebug.client_port=9003

Step 5: Verify XDebug in PHPStorm

1. Check PHPStorm Settings:

   • Go to Preferences > Languages & Frameworks > PHP > Debug.
   • Ensure the Debug port matches the one in your xdebug.ini (default is 9003).

2. Check CLI Interpreter:

   • Go to Preferences > Languages & Frameworks > PHP.
   • Ensure the CLI Interpreter is set to PHP 8.2 and that XDebug is listed as an installed extension.

3. Set Breakpoints and Start Listening:

   • Set breakpoints in your code.
   • Click the "Start Listening for PHP Debug Connections" button in PHPStorm.

Step 6: Restart Services

Finally, restart all related services to ensure changes take effect:

brew services restart [email protected]
sudo service apache2 restart  # or sudo service nginx restart

Step 7: Test Debugging

Access your web application in the browser and trigger the code that should hit your breakpoints. PHPStorm should now catch the XDebug connection and allow you to debug.

By following these steps, you should be able to ensure that your web server is using PHP 8.2 and that XDebug is properly configured and working in PHPStorm.