Phorum is one of many forum scripts available that internet users can upload to their webspace. Started in 1999, it was designed to be as flexible as possible so as to meet the varying needs of different websites. It is extensively customisable, fast and stable, with a large ever-growing number of modules available to extend its functionality.

There are many forum scripts available for users to download, and while most of them focus on particular needs (some are feature packed, some are minimalistic, some are designed specifically to be lightweight and fast), most of them also adhere to the same basic forum system outlined in the opening section of this guide; they use a structure of multiple categories/sub forums, in each of which users can post and reply to threads.