Installing Zend Framework is extremely simple. Once you have downloaded and extracted the framework, you should add the /library folder in the distribution to the beginning of your include path. You may also want to move the library folder to another �C possibly shared �C location on your file system.

• Download the latest stable release. This version, available in both .zip and .tar.gz formats, is a good choice for those who are new to Zend Framework.
• Download the latest nightly snapshot. For those who would brave the cutting edge, the nightly snapshots represent the latest progress of Zend Framework development. Snapshots are bundled with documentation either in English only or in all available languages. If you anticipate working with the latest Zend Framework developments, consider using a Subversion (SVN) client.
• Using a » Subversion (SVN) client. Zend Framework is open source software, and the Subversion repository used for its development is publicly available. Consider using SVN to get Zend Framework if you already use SVN for your application development, want to contribute back to the framework, or need to upgrade your framework version more often than releases occur.
• Exporting is useful if you want to get a particular framework revision without the .svn directories as created in a working copy.
• Check out a working copy if you want contribute to Zend Framework, a working copy can be updated any time with » svn update and changes can be commited to our SVN repository with the » svn commit command.
• An » externals definition is quite convenient for developers already using SVN to manage their application's working copies.
• The URL for the trunk of Zend Framework's SVN repository is: » http://framework.zend.com/svn/framework/standard/trunk

Once you have a copy of Zend Framework available, your application needs to be able to access the framework classes. Though there are » several ways to achieve this, your PHP » include_path needs to contain the path to Zend Framework's library.

Zend provides a » QuickStart to get you up and running as quickly as possible. This is an excellent way to begin learning about the framework with an emphasis on real world examples that you can build upon.

Since Zend Framework components are loosely coupled, you may use a somewhat unique combination of them in your own applications. The following chapters provide a comprehensive reference to Zend Framework on a component-by-component basis.

Zend recommends the most current release of PHP for critical security and performance enhancements, and currently supports PHP 5.2.4 or later.

Zend Framework has an extensive collection of unit tests, which you can run using PHPUnit 3.3.0 or later.

You will find a table listing all extensions typically found in PHP and how they are used in Zend Framework below. You should verify that the extensions on which Zend Framework components you'll be using in your application are available in your PHP environments. Many applications will not require every extension listed below.

A dependency of type "hard" indicates that the components or classes cannot function properly if the respective extension is not available, while a dependency of type "soft" indicates that the component may use the extension if it is available but will function properly if it is not. Many components will automatically use certain extensions if they are available to optimize performance but will execute code with similar functionality in the component itself if the extensions are unavailable.

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