Migrating From MAMP

PortBay parses MAMP's Apache vhost config file and registers each defined site as a PortBay project. The importer reads ServerName and DocumentRoot from every <VirtualHost> block and writes matching projects to PortBay's registry. MAMP's config file is not modified.

What gets carried over: hostname, document root path (used directly as the project path), and whether the site is on port 443/HTTPS.

Before You Start

Check	Detail
MAMP vhosts config location	/Applications/MAMP/conf/apache/extra/httpd-vhosts.conf must exist. PortBay checks this exact path; MAMP Pro or non-default install locations are not probed.
PHP version	MAMP's Apache vhosts do not record the PHP version. Projects import without a pinned PHP version; set it in the project detail panel after import.
PortBay project cap	Free accounts: up to 6 projects total. Importing stops at the cap and lists skipped sites. Pro accounts have no cap.
Source app state	PortBay reads the config file only and never calls any MAMP binary. You do not need to quit MAMP first. However, both tools will compete for port 80/443 if run simultaneously.

Run the Import

In the app

1. Open Settings (sidebar or menu bar).
2. Select the Advanced tab.
3. Scroll to the Import from another tool card.
4. PortBay scans installed sources automatically. MAMP will appear with a site count if the vhosts file is found. A note reads "uses Apache httpd-vhosts.conf".
5. Click Preview sites next to the MAMP row.
6. A checklist shows every detected <VirtualHost> block. Rows flagged id taken or path in use already exist in PortBay and are unchecked by default.
7. Adjust the selection and click Import N sites.
8. PortBay writes the projects to the registry and refreshes the project list.

CLI alternative

# See what is installed and how many sites each source exposes.
portbay import sources

# Preview MAMP sites flagged for collisions.
portbay import preview mamp

# Import all MAMP sites.
portbay import projects mamp --all

# Import specific sites by id.
portbay import projects mamp myapp my-api

What Gets Imported

MAMP / Apache concept	PortBay field	Notes
ServerName	hostname	Used as-is. VirtualHost blocks without a ServerName are skipped.
DocumentRoot	path	The document root becomes the project path. Paths quoted with double quotes (common for paths with spaces) are unquoted automatically. Blocks without a DocumentRoot are skipped.
<VirtualHost *:443> or SSLEngine on	https: true	Either a :443 port in the opening tag or SSLEngine on inside the block sets HTTPS. PortBay issues a fresh mkcert certificate; MAMP's SSL certificates are not reused.
PHP version	Not imported	Apache vhost blocks do not contain the PHP version. PortBay falls back to the first PHP version it detects on the machine.
Project type	kind: custom (no PHP version heuristic available)	The MAMP importer does not set a PHP version, so kind defaults to custom. After import, open the project detail panel and set kind: php and the PHP version if the site is a PHP app.

The importer assigns Apache as the web server hint for all MAMP projects, consistent with MAMP's default setup.

Every imported project receives the tag source:mamp.

What Isn't Imported

• PHP version. Not stored in Apache vhost files. Set it manually in the project detail panel after import, and change the project type to PHP.
• Database contents or credentials. MAMP bundles its own MySQL/MariaDB. PortBay manages separate database containers; re-create databases and import data independently.
• Environment variables. Per-project .env files are not read during import; they remain in place and your application picks them up on start.
• MAMP ports configuration. MAMP defaults to port 8888/8889 when not running as root; the vhosts file may still show *:80/*:443. PortBay always serves on 80/443 through Caddy. Check your application's environment variables if it hard-codes a port number.
• MAMP Pro vhost features (aliases, redirects, custom log paths, per-vhost PHP settings, .htaccess directives). The importer reads only ServerName, DocumentRoot, and the HTTPS indicators; everything else is ignored.
• Mail catching configuration. Configure PortBay's built-in Mailpit sidecar separately.
• Non-standard install paths. Only /Applications/MAMP/ is probed. MAMP installations elsewhere on disk will not be detected.

After the Import

1. Open the Projects view and confirm imported sites show the correct hostname.
2. For PHP projects, open the project detail panel, set Project type to PHP, and set the PHP version explicitly.
3. Click Start. PortBay provisions a mkcert certificate and starts Caddy (and PHP-FPM for PHP projects).
4. Visit the project URL in a browser to verify it loads.
5. If you plan to use PortBay going forward, stop MAMP (or disable its autostart) to free ports 80 and 443.

If a project fails to start, the most common causes after a MAMP migration are: a missing PHP version (install via Settings → Languages), a document root mismatch (MAMP's DocumentRoot pointed at the PHP entry directory, which may differ from what PortBay expects — adjust document_root in the project detail panel), or a port conflict with MAMP still running.