Howto install a PHP FileInfo module in Linux?

The steps to install the PHP ‘Fileinfo’ module on a Linux server is as below:
1) Download and untar the package

# wget http://pecl.php.net/get/Fileinfo-1.0.4.tgz
# tar -zxf Fileinfo-1.0.4.tgz
# cd Fileinfo-1.0.4

2) Generate the extension for compiling

# phpize

3) Configure the module

# ./configure

4) generate the install files and install it

# make
# make install

5) Once done, the extension will be available under the /usr/lib64/php/modules directory.
You now need to add the extension somewhere in the php configuration file. Edit /etc/php.ini and add the following:

extension=fileinfo.so

6) Save the file and restart the webserver

# service httpd restart

To check if “fileinfo” is enabled on the server, execute:

# php -i | grep fileinfo
fileinfo
fileinfo support => enabled

Alternate method
Just an FYI, the module can also be installed using the PECL command i.e.

# pecl install fileinfo

Once done, just follow steps 5 and 6 mentioned above. That’s it.