> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kb.hosting.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Using the ionCube PHP Loader

> Get help with the ionCube PHP Loader with this support guide from Hosting.com. Get specific information for Managed VPS, Dedicated Servers, and more.

This article discusses support for the ionCube PHP Loader on hosting.com servers. The ionCube Loader is a PHP extension that decodes and executes encoded files at run-time.

<Note>
  Information in this article about unmanaged dedicated servers is only for customers who purchased those plans before May 27, 2024. As of that date, unmanaged dedicated servers are no longer available.
</Note>

## Shared hosting and reseller servers

All shared hosting and reseller servers have the ionCube PHP Loader enabled by default. You can verify this yourself by viewing the server's PHP configuration settings. For more information about how to do this, please see [this article](/docs/view-php-settings).

<Note>
  On some shared and reseller hosting accounts, you must follow additional configuration steps to use ionCube Loader with non-default PHP versions. For more information, please see [this article](/docs/using-ioncube-loader-with-different-php-versions).
</Note>

## Managed VPS and managed Dedicated Servers

Managed VPS and managed Dedicated Servers have the ionCube PHP Loader enabled by default. You can verify this yourself by viewing the server's PHP configuration settings. For more information about how to do this, please see [this article](/docs/view-php-settings).

## Unmanaged VPS and unmanaged Dedicated Servers

If you use [Webuzo](/docs/accessing-and-using-webuzo-on-an-unmanaged-server) to install a LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP) stack, it installs and configures the ionCube Loader as well. No further configuration is required on your part.

If you install Apache and PHP yourself, however, then you must download and configure the ionCube Loader. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Log in to the VPS or dedicated server using SSH.

2. At the command prompt, type the following command:

   ```bash theme={null}
   wget http://downloads2.ioncube.com/loader_downloads/ioncube_loaders_lin_x86-64.tar.gz
   ```

3. To extract the files, type the following command:

   ```bash theme={null}
   tar xvzf ioncube_loaders_lin_x86-64.tar.gz
   ```

4. Move the *ioncube* directory to the */usr/local* directory by typing the following command:

   ```bash theme={null}
   mv ioncube /usr/local
   ```

5. Add the following line to the */etc/php.ini* file. Replace *x.y* with the PHP version number that you are running (for example, *5.4* ):

   ```
   zend_extension = /usr/local/ioncube/ioncube_loader_lin_x.y.so
   ```

6. Restart Apache. To do this, type the appropriate command for your Linux distribution:

   * For AlmaLinux and Fedora, type:

     ```bash theme={null}
     service httpd restart
     ```

   * For Debian and Ubuntu, type:

     ```bash theme={null}
     service apache2 restart
     ```

## More information

For more information about the ionCube PHP Loader, please visit [http://www.ioncube.com](http://www.ioncube.com).

## Related articles

* [Viewing PHP settings](/docs/view-php-settings)