I have not had time to go too deep into the engine yet but what I see at first glance is the 1.7.4 version is like stepping back in time a couple of years.
My second impression is that this 1.7.4 release is a total shambles and the lead developer should not have allowed this to be released in this broken state - the forums are already filling up with reports of broken content, the latest being Tomcat and so I advise not to install this version or 'downgrade' to this version unless you absolutely require the latest component versions.
To get an indication of what's in and what's out try and compare the readme_en.txt files of 1.7.3 and 1.7.4 versions and don't be surprised if you think you have become a time traveler just arriving back at the year 2008.
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1. If you download the 7z (7zip) or the zip archive versions
we are now back to this from being able to do that among other useful things in Wiedmann's setup_xammp.bat file.readme-en.txt file wrote:Please do not use the "setup_xampp.bat" for an USB stick installation!
2. No installing on a drive on your PC as a portable app. like you could with 1.7.3.
3. No port checker in 1.7.4 !!!
Use CurrPorts Utility that was the underlying app used in the xampp-portcheck.exe file:
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/cports.html
Or, copy the xampp-portcheck.exe from your 1.7.3 version to a temp folder then into the 1.7.4 folder after installation.
Works for me.
In fact I would not uninstall 1.7.3 but simply rename the folder to xampp173 and run the setup-xampp.bat file to relocate the installation. You will have the best of both worlds then.
4. The MySQL Admin button in the XAMPP Control Panel in 1.7.4 has been disabled.
In earlier versions it used to point to MySQLAdmin with often disastrous results and many support request - so it is back in the earlier version state of being made useless.
In 1.7.3 the MySQL Admin button used to open phpMyAdmin the preferred GUI for MySQL but alas no more - you will have to open it manually by typing http://localhost/phpmyadmin.
5. The New XAMPP security concept section in the apache\conf\extra\httpd-xampp.conf file has be changed and will now only allow access to the XAMPP files and folders from the local loop back address 127.0.0.1 - this will cause issues for those of you on a LAN and/or using local IPv6 addresses.
Again it would be possible to copy the section from a 1.7.3 httpd-xampp.conf and replace the entry in the 1.7.4 httpd-xampp.conf file to allow access from the LAN and/or local IPv6 addresses.
The Windows HOST file will have to include the entry 127.0.0.1 localhost or the IPv6 entry and requires checking for this manually as the setup-xampp.bat file no longer sets these values.
6. Most of the issues that were solved in 1.7.3 are back like those that were evident pre 1.7.3/1.7.2 releases - thanks Wiedmann.
7. No eaccelerator as it has been accidentally omitted.
8. There are no bells and whistles in the setup_xampp.bat file like there was in the copyright source code of the 1.7.3 version.
9. Tomcat is broken and will give an error when trying to start it as per the readme-en.txt file.
10. In this release MSMTP has gone and in it's place is the 2008 version of fake sendmail, so this alone will create the old issues to return here especially is you decide to downgrade to this 1.7.4 version.
You may be able to install and use MSMTP if you wish, info from this link:
http://msmtp.sourceforge.net/index.html
11. There is no Zend Optimizer as mentioned in the readme_en.txt file, is there even a Z O for php 5.3x yet?:
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If you want to add more retrograde differences here in this open topic then please feel free.
If you find any improvements you like then they too could be posted here - I don't expect many except for the component version upgrade improvements.
1. There are 3 source code folders in the \xampp\src folder that will please the XAMPP Control Panel hackers.
All I can see now is a massive increase in support issues in these forums from people who are stepping up from 1.7.3 and older versions to this 1.7.4 version plus the many absolute new users who come across the old issues - advanced forum searching will now become an absolute must do, as there are many solutions for the older issues already recorded and will relieve the expected and inevitable work load on our forum voluntary support providers.
It seems obvious that when developer and forum moderator Carsten Wiedmann left the XAMPP playground he took his new ball with him and now we are left to play with only the now shabby and well worn old one.
Or as we say here locally, "he childishly spat the dummy".
This 1.7.4 version is the result of allowing developers of open source offerings to slip in their own closed and copyright source content, then leave and take the source code and files away with them - it's akin to someone taking out the bottom card of a stack you just spent hours building, only to have them all come crashing down in a heap.