Globe Bank (PHP / MySQL)

A small CMS-style PHP site with a public-facing navigation (Subjects → Pages) and a password-protected staff area for managing content and admins.

Tech stack

• PHP (uses mysqli)
• MySQL / MariaDB
• Server-side sessions for staff authentication

Project layout

• public/ – Web root (public site + staff area)
• private/ – App code, DB connection, shared templates (should not be web-accessible)
• setup_database.sql – Local/dev database schema + seed data
• index.php – Convenience redirect into public/

How routing/URLs work

The app computes WWW_ROOT dynamically in private/initialize.php by finding the /public segment in the current request path. This allows the site to run either:

• with your web server’s document root pointed at public/ (recommended), or
• with the project root served and relying on index.php to redirect into public/.

Local setup

1) Requirements

• PHP 8.x recommended (7.4+ likely works)
• MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.x
• A web server (Apache/Nginx), or PHP’s built-in server for quick testing

2) Configure the web root (recommended)

Configure your web server so the site’s document root points to the public/ directory.

This prevents direct web access to private/, which contains database credentials and internal code.

3) Create and seed the database

1. Create the schema and seed data by running:

   • setup_database.sql (creates database globe_bank and inserts sample Subjects/Pages)

2. The script also includes optional statements to create a MySQL user and grant privileges.

If you prefer to run commands manually, the minimum you need is:

• A database named globe_bank
• Tables: subjects, pages, admins
• Seed rows for subjects and pages (optional)

4) Configure database credentials

Edit:

• private/db_credentials.php

Defaults are:

• DB_SERVER: localhost
• DB_USER: globe_user
• DB_PASS: globe_password
• DB_NAME: globe_bank

The database connection is created in private/database.php and initialized via private/initialize.php.

Running the app

Option A: Web server (Apache/Nginx)

• Point the site’s document root to public/
• Visit the site using whatever URL your server is configured to serve (for example http://localhost/ or a local domain you set up)

Option B: PHP built-in server (quick dev)

From the project root:

php -S localhost:8000 -t public

Then browse to:

• http://localhost:8000/

Staff area

• Staff login: /staff/login.php
• Staff menu: /staff/index.php

Creating the first admin (important)

The Admin management pages require login, so on a fresh database there is no “first admin” account you can create through the UI.

To bootstrap the first admin, insert a row into the admins table with a bcrypt hash.

1. Generate a bcrypt hash with PHP:

php -r "echo password_hash('ChangeMe123!@#', PASSWORD_BCRYPT), PHP_EOL;"

2. Insert the admin (replace values as needed):

INSERT INTO admins (first_name, last_name, email, username, hashed_password)
VALUES ('First', 'Admin', 'admin@example.com', 'admin_user', '$2y$10$...');

Password rules enforced by the UI/validators:

• 12+ characters
• at least one uppercase letter
• at least one lowercase letter
• at least one number
• at least one special character

After creating the first admin, you can log in and create additional admins via:

• Staff → Admins → “Create New Admin” (/staff/admins/new.php)

Content editing

• Subjects and Pages are managed in the staff area.
• Public navigation shows only records marked visible.
• The public page renderer allows a limited set of HTML tags (see public/index.php).

Troubleshooting

• Blank page / redirect loops: Confirm your document root points to public/, or that you’re entering through the project index.php which redirects to public/index.php.
• Database connection failed: Verify private/db_credentials.php matches your MySQL host/user/password/database.
• Port issues (built-in server): Change 8000 to any free port.

Notes for deployment

• Use setup_database_production.sql only if you want to target a different database name.
• Never deploy private/db_credentials.php with development passwords.
• Ensure private/ is not web accessible in production.