PEAR was historically promoted as a framework and distribution system for reusable PHP components. That historical relationship has become a liability for the PHP project. The current situation has several critical issues:
php.net domain.pear.php.net.php.net subdomain creates security risks.All this combined is a bad look, and a reputational risk for the PHP project. There were similar RFCs [4][5] in the past (last in 2025), but never brought to a vote. This RFC takes the concerns from earlier discussion into account: PHP internals cannot vote to stop independent maintainers from maintaining PEAR elsewhere. PHP internals can, however, decide what PHP bundles, what PHP domains serve, and what official websites endorse.
Since this RFC entered discussion, Chuck Burgess, long-time PEAR maintainer and member of the PEAR Group, contacted the RFC author and expressed support for sunsetting the PEAR website and removing PEAR from PHP source. The proposal can therefore proceed with explicit support and assistance from an PEAR representative.
This RFC proposes to end the PHP project's explicit endorsement for the independent PEAR project, to unbundle PEAR from PHP sources, and for the time being provide a static PEAR archive to keep legacy CLI clients working. It is proposed to take the following four actions.
All relevant, public pages of the current PEAR website will be served as a static archive. The infrastructure team will decide technical details. The archive includes package details, downloads, manuals, and public bug reports. The browsable archive, including PEAR CLI endpoints, will remain available until 2027-12-31 to not abruptly break legacy users. After that, the archive will be provided as a download.
PHP source will no longer install or bundle the PEAR installer. This proposal aligns with the pre-existing PR [1] by Jakub, which intends to remove PEAR (and related integration). This RFC formalises that direction.
References to PEAR will be removed from official PHP websites. Composer should be mentioned as the community package manager -- this recommendation does not make Composer a PHP project and does not change Composer governance.
The PEAR mailing lists under news-web.php.net will be moved to the “Inactive Lists” section, where they will be accessible like other inactive non-PEAR and PEAR lists.
The goal is not to take over the governance of the independent PEAR package ecosystem. If an independent PEAR team wants to continue PEAR as an active project, they remain free to do so under domains they control.
Users will no longer receive PEAR bundled with PHP itself, but can install it manually. Users of the 6 packages that are still publishing on PEAR must switch to their Composer-installable versions.
8.7 for the php-src unbundling.
Requires 2/3 Yes.