How to Create Own PHP Based IoT Webserver for ESP32 Arduino

You can create your PHP MySQL-based personal IoT web server, even use WordPress or some PHP-based admin panel, toggle button, gauges etc.

We can always send HTTP POST Request to a Secure Webpage with PHP, but that will need a web server which will support the protocol. You can do it with ThingsBoard, but that is not what we are talking about.

We are talking about a simple setup where you will have an IoT Webserver instead of Raspberry Pi. When we use Raspberry Pi to centrally manage the automation, that is usually dependent on WiFi, Bluetooth and wired connections. Our present topic is dependent on HTTP protocol. The advantage of HTTP over MQTT is that most of us are used to HTTP and WordPress or some PHP-based admin panel can be easily integrated.

Most of the commercial IoT solutions use a decoupled backend which supports API. That kind of thing was possible to build with IBM Watson IoT. But, some of such IoT platforms are going to be closed. Using AWS or Azure is again going to be a risky affair since they can also close their services. When few PaaS, some web hosting service has a free usage tier and today a VPS does not cost a huge, then it is practical to develop your solutions for a headache-free operation. If you already have a self-hosted WordPress site, then the total thing will not cost you anything. Here is an example project on GitHub that you can try to get started:

You can use Tasmota, but unfortunately, it has its drawbacks. If you want to control the GPIOs of ESP32, then this GitHub project is the best to get started:

The above is too basic but it can be integrated with any LAMP-based system.