Important Notes for FMS 19 and RESTfm
RESTfm is slowly working it's way towards being a Data API only solution, because the PHP API is now deprecated. In FMS 19 and later, it's actually either going away altogether ( FMS on Linux ) or new functionality in 19 is making it almost impossible to use ( FMS on Mac ) or the installers are breaking PHP ( FMS on Win ).
We still use a lot of RESTfm and we think a wrapper around the Data API with more functionality could be really useful. So we're continuing to develop RESTfm, if only for ourselves.
But if you're now using RESTfm and want to upgrade to 19, here are some pointers.
RESTfm and FMS for Linux
You can't currently connect RESTfm to FMS running on linux. There is weirdly what seems to be an internal port ( 16020 ) open showing the XML API, but the firewall rules don't allow it to connect from outside localhost. And the PHP is definitely not installed, so RESTfm can't connect at all to FMS on linux.
It could be possible to run RESTfm inside a second apache instance, on a different port. But that is complex and does risk interfering with FMS and it's own web server setup.
RESTfm and FMS for Mac OS
The Mac is getting more complex in terms of software requirements, and even though RESTfm is just php code, we've come to the conclusion that FMS 19.1 is the last version of FMS that you should run RESTfm in the built in FMS web server directly. You probably can run RESTfm on later versions of FMS, but the new optional HTTP/2 protocol is available in 19.2 and we recommend turning that on when available, and this disables the built in PHP.
However, the XML API still works and still can be connected to FMS on Mac, but it will be easier to setup a separate box for your web server which runs PHP and RESTfm, and then point it to the FMS/Mac box. Use the same instructions as the these Advanced Installations, refer to the section on "RESTfm on Linux with Apache".
RESTfm and FMS for Mac OS and Big Sur
It's very important to note that although FMS supports PHP on Mac up to version 19.1.2 : FMS does not support PHP on Big Sur. So it's going to be very difficult to make RESTfm work on Big Sur, and we've not been able to get this combination working.
RESTfm and FMS for Windows
RESTfm continues to run just fine on Windows OS. Although, the installer for FMS 19.2 has an issue that it deletes one of the required PHP folders. Following the release notes for 19.2, you need to locate the folder :
\FileMaker Server\Web Publishing\publishing-engine\php
This will need to be duplicated to another location, such as the desktop. Once 19.2 is installed replace the folder in its original location. Then restart the server, and RESTfm should "just work" as per the previous install.
I need help!!
We run FileMaker Server hosting with web access and RESTfm for clients. If you need a hosting provider, or support for an existing setup or install, we can help.