Troubleshooting "No Input File Specified" Error in Anchor CMS

The "No input file specified" error in Anchor CMS during installation is a commonly encountered issue. This article aims to provide a comprehensive explanation and solution to this problem.

The error arises due to a mismatch between the PHP implementation on your server and the CMS's expectation of URL handling. Typically, this error occurs when the hosting provider uses a CGI implementation of PHP, which does not support the PATH_INFO variable.

To address this issue, several options are available:

• Modify PHP Settings: If possible, you can change the PHP configuration on your server to use a different implementation (e.g., FastCGI) that supports PATH_INFO. However, this may not be feasible on shared hosting platforms.
• Adjust CMS Core: As a temporary workaround, you can modify the Anchor CMS core file (system/uri.php) to support URI detection through the REQUEST_URI variable. This involves adding QUERY_STRING to the URI detection array on line 40 and changing your .htaccess file to pass the URI as a query string parameter:

RewriteRule ^(.*)$ index.php?/$1 [L]

While this solution allows the CMS to function, it compromises the integrity of the core files and may affect future updates.

• Alternative CMS: If the aforementioned solutions are impractical, consider switching to a CMS that supports URI detection methods more compatible with your hosting environment.

By understanding the root cause of the "No input file specified" error and implementing one of the outlined solutions, you can successfully install and use Anchor CMS on your website.