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Run PHP Server Monitor on Docker

What is PHP Server Monitor?​

PHP Server Monitor is a small, self-hosted tool for keeping an eye on servers and websites: it checks hosts and URLs on a schedule and sends an alert by email or SMS when one goes down. A PHP Server Monitor instance is a lightweight PHP application backed by a MySQL database, served through a web server, with a browser-based install.php script handling first-time setup and cron handling the recurring checks afterward.

Why run PHP Server Monitor in Docker?​

Docker packages each of those pieces (NGINX, PHP-FPM, MySQL) into isolated containers that run the same on every machine. Instead of installing PHP and MySQL onto your laptop or a spare server, where versions collide between projects and "works on my machine" starts, you run disposable containers that mirror production and vanish cleanly when you delete them. Even a small tool like this benefits: one monitoring instance can sit on an older, pinned PHP version while everything else on the machine runs current.

The catch: wiring those containers together yourself (base images, PHP extensions, networking, permissions) is a week of fiddly Docker work, out of proportion for a tool this small. That is exactly what Laradock removes.

Why Laradock is the best fit for PHP Server Monitor​

PHP Server Monitor has no official Docker image maintained by the core project; a few small community images exist, but they see the same modest activity as the project itself. Here is why Laradock is the best fit:

  • You are never locked into one ecosystem. Laradock is framework-agnostic. Run PHP Server Monitor next to a Laravel app or a WordPress site, all in the same environment with the same commands.
  • Far more flexibility. 100+ ready services and any PHP version from 5.6 to 8.5, more than a tool this size will ever need, but it means one environment covers this and everything else you run.
  • Nothing is hidden and you own everything. No generated files, no magic, no wrapper binary between you and Docker. Every Dockerfile and compose file is right there for you to read and edit.
  • Nothing new to learn. What you use is plain docker compose, knowledge that transfers straight to production and to every other project. Our CLI is an optional nicety, never a requirement.

Concretely, for PHP Server Monitor it gives you a production-style NGINX + PHP-FPM stack, MySQL already wired, and a workspace container to run the install script and cron job from.

Run PHP Server Monitor on Docker with Laradock​

1. Add Laradock to your project​

cd my-phpservermon-instance
git clone https://github.com/laradock/laradock.git
cd laradock && cp .env.example .env

(No PHP Server Monitor codebase yet? Clone Laradock first, then pull one down from the workspace container in the next steps.)

2. Pick the services your instance needs​

PHP Server Monitor needs a web server and a database. The web server pulls in PHP-FPM automatically:

docker compose up -d nginx mysql workspace

The full catalog is here.

Prefer to be asked? The optional CLI walks you through the choices: ./laradock setup, then ./laradock up. It prints every real command it runs.

3. Point PHP Server Monitor at the containers​

Copy config.php.sample to config.php (or let install.php write it for you) and use the service name as the host:

$pdo_dsn = 'mysql:host=mysql;dbname=default';
$pdo_user = 'default';
$pdo_pass = 'secret';

The default database, user and password live in Laradock's mysql/defaults.env; override any of them by adding the line to Laradock's .env (it always wins).

4. Install and run your instance​

Enter the workspace container, place the PHP Server Monitor codebase, and let the web installer create the config and database tables:

docker compose exec workspace bash
git clone https://github.com/phpservermon/phpservermon.git --single-branch .   # only if you have no codebase yet

Then open http://localhost/install.php and follow the wizard, which writes config.php and creates the database tables. Afterward, schedule the check script as a cron job (in the workspace container or on your host, hitting the container) so servers get checked on a schedule rather than only when someone opens the page.

Change the PHP version anytime​

This is where a native install hurts and Laradock shines. Set the version in Laradock's .env and rebuild:

PHP_VERSION=8.1
docker compose build php-fpm workspace

PHP Server Monitor is undemanding and runs on a wide range of PHP versions; Laradock covers anything from PHP 5.6 to 8.5, so you can pin whatever version matches the release you are running without touching anything else on the machine.

Frequently Asked Questions​

Do I need to install PHP or MySQL to run PHP Server Monitor with Laradock?​

No. Everything lives inside the containers. PHP and git are reachable from the workspace container; you never install PHP on your host.

Which services should I start for a typical PHP Server Monitor instance?​

nginx mysql workspace covers it: web server, database, and a shell to run the installer and cron checks from.

Does PHP Server Monitor need cron to actually check servers?​

Yes, and that is true regardless of how it is hosted. The status checks run from a script that needs to be scheduled (cron, in the workspace container or wherever you prefer), not just triggered by someone visiting the page.

Can I run multiple monitoring instances on different PHP versions?​

Yes. Give each its own Laradock with a unique COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME and DATA_PATH_HOST, set a different PHP_VERSION in each, and they run independently on the same machine.

Is this the same Docker setup I would use in production?​

The containers are production-style (real NGINX + PHP-FPM), so it is far closer to production than a native install. See Prepare Laradock for Production for the hardening steps.

Comparing environments? See the full Laradock vs Others breakdown. Ready to start? Getting Started takes about five minutes.