diff --git a/php/EE/Requirements.php b/php/EE/Requirements.php
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8031c0b47
--- /dev/null
+++ b/php/EE/Requirements.php
@@ -0,0 +1,374 @@
+<?php
+
+namespace EE;
+
+/**
+ * The PHP extensions and functions EasyEngine needs from the PHP that runs it.
+ *
+ * PHP 8 removes the functions listed in `disable_functions`, so calling one is a fatal "Call to undefined function".
+ * This class only probes with function_exists(), extension_loaded() and guarded calls, so it can't hit one itself.
+ */
+class Requirements {
+
+	/**
+	 * Functions EasyEngine calls without a guard, by the extension that provides them.
+	 *
+	 * Without one of them a command fails part way, so a missing one refuses every command up front.
+	 * json isn't listed: the logger needs it while booting, before this check can run.
+	 */
+	const FUNCTIONS = [
+		'standard' => [ 'chgrp', 'chown', 'disk_free_space', 'escapeshellarg', 'exec', 'gethostname', 'getmypid', 'parse_ini_string', 'php_uname', 'proc_close', 'proc_open', 'stream_select', 'stream_set_blocking', 'symlink' ],
+		'curl'     => [ 'curl_close', 'curl_errno', 'curl_error', 'curl_exec', 'curl_getinfo', 'curl_init', 'curl_setopt', 'curl_version' ],
+		'openssl'  => [ 'openssl_pkey_get_private', 'openssl_x509_check_private_key', 'openssl_x509_parse' ],
+		'posix'    => [ 'posix_getegid', 'posix_geteuid', 'posix_getpwuid' ],
+		'zlib'     => [ 'gzclose', 'gzeof', 'gzgets', 'gzopen', 'gzwrite' ],
+	];
+
+	/**
+	 * Extensions used through classes (PDO, ZipArchive) rather than functions.
+	 */
+	const EXTENSIONS = [ 'pdo_sqlite', 'zip' ];
+
+	/**
+	 * What running external commands (EE::exec(), EE::launch()) needs.
+	 */
+	const PROCESS_FUNCTIONS = [ 'proc_close', 'proc_open', 'stream_select', 'stream_set_blocking' ];
+
+	/**
+	 * Functions EasyEngine uses only when available, with what is lost without them.
+	 */
+	const OPTIONAL_FUNCTIONS = [
+		'pcntl_signal'          => 'site commands interrupted by a signal (e.g. Ctrl+C) are not rolled back',
+		'pcntl_signal_dispatch' => 'Ctrl+C while waiting for another SSL operation takes effect only after the wait',
+		'shell_exec'            => '`ee site share` does not work',
+	];
+
+	/**
+	 * Debian/Ubuntu package suffixes (php<ver>-<suffix>) of extensions that aren't built into php-cli there.
+	 */
+	const DEB_PACKAGES = [
+		'curl'       => 'curl',
+		'mbstring'   => 'mbstring',
+		'pdo_sqlite' => 'sqlite3',
+		'posix'      => 'common',
+		'zip'        => 'zip',
+	];
+
+	/**
+	 * Find the required extensions and functions this PHP lacks.
+	 *
+	 * @param string[]|null $only Extension or function names to check, null for everything EasyEngine needs.
+	 *
+	 * @return array {
+	 *     @type string[] $extensions Extensions that aren't loaded.
+	 *     @type string[] $disabled   Functions listed in `disable_functions`.
+	 *     @type string[] $missing    Functions missing for another reason (e.g. a PHP build without them).
+	 * }
+	 */
+	public static function get_missing( $only = null ) {
+
+		$missing = [
+			'extensions' => [],
+			'disabled'   => [],
+			'missing'    => [],
+		];
+		$wanted  = function ( $name ) use ( $only ) {
+			return null === $only || in_array( $name, $only, true );
+		};
+
+		foreach ( self::FUNCTIONS as $extension => $functions ) {
+			if ( ! extension_loaded( $extension ) ) {
+				if ( $wanted( $extension ) || array_filter( $functions, $wanted ) ) {
+					$missing['extensions'][] = $extension;
+				}
+				continue;
+			}
+			foreach ( $functions as $function ) {
+				if ( ( $wanted( $function ) || $wanted( $extension ) ) && ! function_exists( $function ) ) {
+					$missing[ self::is_disabled( $function ) ? 'disabled' : 'missing' ][] = $function;
+				}
+			}
+		}
+
+		foreach ( self::EXTENSIONS as $extension ) {
+			if ( $wanted( $extension ) && ! extension_loaded( $extension ) ) {
+				$missing['extensions'][] = $extension;
+			}
+		}
+
+		// Symfony's mbstring polyfill, used for all table output, needs iconv.
+		if ( $wanted( 'mbstring' ) && ! extension_loaded( 'mbstring' ) && ! extension_loaded( 'iconv' ) ) {
+			$missing['extensions'][] = 'mbstring';
+		}
+
+		// Names this class doesn't list are checked as functions, so a caller can't get a false OK.
+		$known = array_merge( array_keys( self::FUNCTIONS ), self::EXTENSIONS, [ 'mbstring' ], call_user_func_array( 'array_merge', array_values( self::FUNCTIONS ) ) );
+		foreach ( array_diff( (array) $only, $known ) as $function ) {
+			if ( ! function_exists( $function ) ) {
+				$missing[ self::is_disabled( $function ) ? 'disabled' : 'missing' ][] = $function;
+			}
+		}
+
+		return $missing;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Whether get_missing() found anything.
+	 *
+	 * @param array $missing Result of get_missing().
+	 *
+	 * @return bool
+	 */
+	public static function has_missing( $missing ) {
+		return ! empty( $missing['extensions'] ) || ! empty( $missing['disabled'] ) || ! empty( $missing['missing'] );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Summarize what get_missing() found in one line, e.g. for `ee cli info`.
+	 *
+	 * @param array $missing Result of get_missing().
+	 *
+	 * @return string Empty when nothing is missing.
+	 */
+	public static function get_summary( $missing ) {
+		$labels = [
+			'extensions' => 'missing extensions',
+			'disabled'   => 'disabled functions',
+			'missing'    => 'missing functions',
+		];
+		$parts  = [];
+		foreach ( $labels as $key => $label ) {
+			if ( ! empty( $missing[ $key ] ) ) {
+				$parts[] = $label . ': ' . implode( ', ', $missing[ $key ] );
+			}
+		}
+
+		return ucfirst( implode( '; ', $parts ) );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Find the optional functions this PHP lacks.
+	 *
+	 * @return string[] What is lost without each, keyed by function name.
+	 */
+	public static function get_missing_optional() {
+		$missing = [];
+		foreach ( self::OPTIONAL_FUNCTIONS as $function => $impact ) {
+			// Without pcntl_signal() no handler waits to be dispatched, so Ctrl+C ends the wait at once.
+			if ( 'pcntl_signal_dispatch' === $function && ! function_exists( 'pcntl_signal' ) ) {
+				continue;
+			}
+			if ( ! function_exists( $function ) ) {
+				$missing[ $function ] = $impact;
+			}
+		}
+
+		return $missing;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get the functions listed in `disable_functions`.
+	 *
+	 * @return string[]
+	 */
+	public static function get_disabled_functions() {
+		if ( function_exists( 'ini_get' ) ) {
+			$value = ini_get( 'disable_functions' );
+		} elseif ( function_exists( 'get_cfg_var' ) ) {
+			$value = get_cfg_var( 'disable_functions' );
+		} else {
+			return [];
+		}
+
+		// PHP splits the list on spaces and commas only.
+		return array_values( array_filter( preg_split( '/[ ,]+/', (string) $value ) ) );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Whether a function is listed in `disable_functions`.
+	 *
+	 * @param string $function Function name.
+	 *
+	 * @return bool
+	 */
+	private static function is_disabled( $function ) {
+		return in_array( strtolower( $function ), array_map( 'strtolower', self::get_disabled_functions() ), true );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get the loaded ini files, in the order PHP reads them.
+	 *
+	 * @return string[]
+	 */
+	private static function get_ini_files() {
+		$files = [];
+		if ( function_exists( 'php_ini_loaded_file' ) ) {
+			$files[] = (string) php_ini_loaded_file();
+		}
+		if ( function_exists( 'php_ini_scanned_files' ) ) {
+			$files = array_merge( $files, explode( ',', (string) php_ini_scanned_files() ) );
+		}
+
+		return array_values( array_filter( array_map( 'trim', $files ) ) );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get the loaded ini files whose `disable_functions` lists any of the given functions.
+	 *
+	 * @param string[] $functions Function names.
+	 *
+	 * @return string[]
+	 */
+	public static function get_disabling_ini_files( $functions ) {
+		$functions = array_map( 'strtolower', $functions );
+		$disabling = [];
+		foreach ( self::get_ini_files() as $file ) {
+			$content = function_exists( 'file_get_contents' ) && is_readable( $file ) ? (string) file_get_contents( $file ) : '';
+			if ( ! preg_match_all( '/^[ \t]*disable_functions[ \t]*=(.*)$/m', $content, $matches ) ) {
+				continue;
+			}
+			// The last directive in a file is the one that counts; `;` starts a comment.
+			$value  = preg_replace( '/;.*$/', '', end( $matches[1] ) );
+			$listed = array_map( 'strtolower', preg_split( '/[ ,]+/', trim( $value, " \t\r\"'" ) ) );
+			if ( array_intersect( $functions, $listed ) ) {
+				$disabling[] = $file;
+			}
+		}
+
+		return $disabling;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Build the error message for what get_missing() found, with how to fix it.
+	 *
+	 * @param array $missing Result of get_missing().
+	 *
+	 * @return string
+	 */
+	public static function get_error_message( $missing ) {
+
+		$php      = sprintf( 'PHP %s (%s)', PHP_VERSION, PHP_BINARY );
+		$messages = [];
+
+		if ( ! empty( $missing['disabled'] ) ) {
+			$files      = self::get_disabling_ini_files( $missing['disabled'] );
+			$messages[] = sprintf(
+				'EasyEngine needs the PHP %s %s, which %s disables with disable_functions in %s.',
+				self::plural( $missing['disabled'], 'function', 'functions' ),
+				implode( ', ', $missing['disabled'] ),
+				$php,
+				empty( $files ) ? 'its configuration (see `php --ini`)' : implode( ', ', $files )
+			);
+			$messages[] = sprintf( 'Remove %s from disable_functions for the PHP CLI (if the web server\'s PHP has its own configuration, that can stay as it is).', self::plural( $missing['disabled'], 'it', 'them' ) ) . self::get_override_hint( $missing['disabled'], $files );
+		}
+
+		if ( ! empty( $missing['extensions'] ) ) {
+			$messages[] = sprintf(
+				'EasyEngine needs the PHP %s %s, which %s does not load. %s',
+				self::plural( $missing['extensions'], 'extension', 'extensions' ),
+				implode( ', ', $missing['extensions'] ),
+				$php,
+				self::get_extension_hint( $missing['extensions'] )
+			);
+		}
+
+		if ( ! empty( $missing['missing'] ) ) {
+			$messages[] = sprintf(
+				'EasyEngine needs the PHP %s %s, which %s lacks. Use a PHP build that includes %s.',
+				self::plural( $missing['missing'], 'function', 'functions' ),
+				implode( ', ', $missing['missing'] ),
+				$php,
+				self::plural( $missing['missing'], 'it', 'them' )
+			);
+		}
+
+		return implode( PHP_EOL, $messages );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Suggest an override file in the scan directory, which survives tools that rewrite php.ini.
+	 *
+	 * @param string[] $disabled Required functions that are disabled.
+	 * @param string[] $files    Ini files that disable them.
+	 *
+	 * @return string Empty when no override file would be read last.
+	 */
+	private static function get_override_hint( $disabled, $files ) {
+		$scanned  = array_slice( self::get_ini_files(), function_exists( 'php_ini_loaded_file' ) && php_ini_loaded_file() ? 1 : 0 );
+		$scan_dir = empty( $scanned ) ? self::get_scan_dir() : dirname( end( $scanned ) );
+		// Without a disabling ini file the value comes from `php -d`, which no ini file overrides.
+		if ( '' === $scan_dir || empty( $files ) ) {
+			return '';
+		}
+
+		$name = '99-easyengine.ini';
+		foreach ( $files as $file ) {
+			// A disabling file read after the override would win, so it has to be edited instead.
+			if ( in_array( $file, $scanned, true ) && strcmp( basename( $file ), $name ) > 0 ) {
+				return '';
+			}
+		}
+		$keep = array_diff( self::get_disabled_functions(), $disabled );
+
+		return sprintf(
+			' Tools that manage php.ini may rewrite it, so an override read after it keeps the change, e.g. %s/%s containing: disable_functions = %s',
+			rtrim( $scan_dir, '/' ),
+			$name,
+			empty( $keep ) ? '""' : implode( ',', $keep )
+		);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get the directory PHP scans last for ini files.
+	 *
+	 * @return string Empty when PHP scans none.
+	 */
+	private static function get_scan_dir() {
+		$builtin = defined( 'PHP_CONFIG_FILE_SCAN_DIR' ) ? PHP_CONFIG_FILE_SCAN_DIR : '';
+		$env     = function_exists( 'getenv' ) ? getenv( 'PHP_INI_SCAN_DIR' ) : ( isset( $_SERVER['PHP_INI_SCAN_DIR'] ) ? $_SERVER['PHP_INI_SCAN_DIR'] : false );
+		// PHP_INI_SCAN_DIR replaces the built-in directory: empty turns scanning off, an empty entry in a list stands for the built-in one.
+		if ( false === $env || '' === $env ) {
+			return false === $env ? $builtin : '';
+		}
+		$dirs = explode( PATH_SEPARATOR, $env );
+		$last = end( $dirs );
+
+		return '' === $last ? $builtin : $last;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get a hint on how to install missing extensions.
+	 *
+	 * @param string[] $extensions Missing extensions.
+	 *
+	 * @return string
+	 */
+	private static function get_extension_hint( $extensions ) {
+		$it = self::plural( $extensions, 'it', 'them' );
+		if ( 'Darwin' === PHP_OS ) {
+			return sprintf( 'Install or enable %s, or use a PHP that includes %s, e.g. Homebrew\'s (`brew install php`).', $it, $it );
+		}
+
+		$packages = [];
+		foreach ( $extensions as $extension ) {
+			if ( isset( self::DEB_PACKAGES[ $extension ] ) ) {
+				$packages[] = 'php' . PHP_MAJOR_VERSION . '.' . PHP_MINOR_VERSION . '-' . self::DEB_PACKAGES[ $extension ];
+			}
+		}
+
+		return sprintf( 'Install or enable %s for this PHP%s.', $it, empty( $packages ) ? '' : ', e.g. on Debian/Ubuntu: `apt-get install ' . implode( ' ', $packages ) . '`' );
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Pick the singular or plural word for a list.
+	 *
+	 * @param array  $items    List.
+	 * @param string $singular Word for one item.
+	 * @param string $plural   Word for more.
+	 *
+	 * @return string
+	 */
+	private static function plural( $items, $singular, $plural ) {
+		return 1 === count( $items ) ? $singular : $plural;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/php/EE/Runner.php b/php/EE/Runner.php
index 2b96b1c73..a3ea143a4 100644
--- a/php/EE/Runner.php
+++ b/php/EE/Runner.php
@@ -84,14 +84,29 @@ private function init_ee() {
 	/**
 	 * Check EE requirements for required commands.
 	 *
-	 * @param bool $show_error To display error or to retutn status.
+	 * @param bool          $show_error       To display error or to return status.
+	 * @param string[]|null $php_requirements PHP extensions or functions to require, null for all EasyEngine needs.
 	 */
-	public function check_requirements( $show_error = true ) {
+	public function check_requirements( $show_error = true, $php_requirements = null ) {
 
 		$docker_running = true;
 		$status         = true;
 		$error          = [];
 
+		// Before the Docker checks, which already need proc_open() and the stream functions.
+		$missing_php = Requirements::get_missing( $php_requirements );
+		if ( Requirements::has_missing( $missing_php ) ) {
+			if ( $show_error ) {
+				EE::error( Requirements::get_error_message( $missing_php ) );
+			}
+			return false;
+		}
+		if ( null === $php_requirements ) {
+			foreach ( Requirements::get_missing_optional() as $function => $impact ) {
+				EE::debug( sprintf( 'PHP function %s() is unavailable, so %s.', $function, $impact ), 'bootstrap' );
+			}
+		}
+
 		// Retry logic for Docker availability check to handle transient failures under system load.
 		$docker_running_cmd = 'docker ps > /dev/null 2>&1';
 		$max_retries        = 4;
@@ -137,7 +152,7 @@ public function check_requirements( $show_error = true ) {
 			if ( IS_DARWIN && ! $docker_running ) {
 				EE::log( 'For macOS docker can be installed using: `brew cask install docker`' );
 			}
-			die;
+			EE::halt( 1 );
 		}
 
 		return $status;
@@ -600,7 +615,7 @@ public function init_logger() {
 
 		// Create the config directory if not exist for file logger to initialize.
 		if ( ! is_dir( EE_ROOT_DIR ) ) {
-			shell_exec('mkdir -p ' . EE_ROOT_DIR);
+			@mkdir( EE_ROOT_DIR, 0777, true );
 		}
 
 		if ( ! is_writable( EE_ROOT_DIR ) ) {
diff --git a/php/commands/src/CLI_Command.php b/php/commands/src/CLI_Command.php
index 433821cdc..a7a2af1a5 100644
--- a/php/commands/src/CLI_Command.php
+++ b/php/commands/src/CLI_Command.php
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 use Composer\Semver\Comparator;
 use EE\Model\Site;
+use EE\Requirements;
 use EE\Utils;
 use Symfony\Component\Filesystem\Filesystem;
 
@@ -105,7 +106,7 @@ public function version() {
 	public function info( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 		$php_bin = Utils\get_php_binary();
 
-		$system_os = sprintf( '%s %s %s %s', php_uname( 's' ), php_uname( 'r' ), php_uname( 'v' ), php_uname( 'm' ) );
+		$system_os = function_exists( 'php_uname' ) ? sprintf( '%s %s %s %s', php_uname( 's' ), php_uname( 'r' ), php_uname( 'v' ), php_uname( 'm' ) ) : PHP_OS;
 		$shell     = getenv( 'SHELL' );
 		if ( ! $shell && Utils\is_windows() ) {
 			$shell = getenv( 'ComSpec' );
@@ -116,6 +117,15 @@ public function info( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 		if ( ! is_dir( $packages_dir ) ) {
 			$packages_dir = null;
 		}
+
+		// Informational only, so a host missing something can still diagnose and update.
+		$missing_php      = Requirements::get_missing();
+		$missing_optional = array_keys( Requirements::get_missing_optional() );
+		$php_requirements = Requirements::has_missing( $missing_php ) ? Requirements::get_summary( $missing_php ) : 'OK';
+		if ( ! empty( $missing_optional ) ) {
+			$php_requirements .= ' (optional, unavailable: ' . implode( ', ', $missing_optional ) . ')';
+		}
+
 		if ( \EE\Utils\get_flag_value( $assoc_args, 'format' ) === 'json' ) {
 			$info = array(
 				'php_binary_path'      => $php_bin,
@@ -126,6 +136,7 @@ public function info( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 				'ee_version'           => EE_VERSION,
 				'system_os'            => $system_os,
 				'shell'                => $shell,
+				'php_requirements'     => $php_requirements,
 			);
 
 			EE::line( json_encode( $info ) );
@@ -136,7 +147,8 @@ public function info( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 				array( 'Shell', $shell ),
 				array( 'PHP binary', $php_bin ),
 				array( 'PHP version', PHP_VERSION ),
-				array( 'php.ini used', get_cfg_var( 'cfg_file_path' ) ),
+				array( 'php.ini used', function_exists( 'get_cfg_var' ) ? get_cfg_var( 'cfg_file_path' ) : '' ),
+				array( 'PHP requirements', $php_requirements ),
 				array( 'EE root dir', EE_ROOT ),
 				array( 'EE vendor dir', EE_VENDOR_DIR ),
 				array( 'EE phar path', ( defined( 'EE_PHAR_PATH' ) ? EE_PHAR_PATH : '' ) ),
@@ -154,6 +166,10 @@ public function info( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 				\EE::line( $line );
 			}
 		}
+
+		if ( Requirements::has_missing( $missing_php ) ) {
+			EE::warning( Requirements::get_error_message( $missing_php ) );
+		}
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -290,7 +306,12 @@ public function update( $_, $assoc_args ) {
 			$download_url = $newest['package_url'];
 			$md5_url      = str_replace( '.phar', '.phar.md5', $download_url );
 		}
-		EE::get_runner()->check_requirements();
+		// Updating only needs to run the new phar; blocking it on the rest would keep a host off fixed releases.
+		EE::get_runner()->check_requirements( true, Requirements::PROCESS_FUNCTIONS );
+		$missing_php = Requirements::get_missing();
+		if ( Requirements::has_missing( $missing_php ) ) {
+			EE::warning( 'The update can go ahead, but other ee commands will not run until this is fixed:' . PHP_EOL . Requirements::get_error_message( $missing_php ) );
+		}
 		EE::log( sprintf( 'Downloading from %s...', $download_url ) );
 		$temp    = \EE\Utils\get_temp_dir() . uniqid( 'ee_', true ) . '.phar';
 		$headers = array();
@@ -500,9 +521,11 @@ public function cmd_dump() {
 	 */
 	public function self_uninstall( $args, $assoc_args ) {
 
-		if ( ! EE::get_runner()->check_requirements( false ) ) {
-			EE::error( 'Unable to proceed with uninstallation. Seems there is a dependency down.', false );
-			die;
+		// Uninstalling only runs docker and reads the site list.
+		$php_requirements = array_merge( Requirements::PROCESS_FUNCTIONS, [ 'pdo_sqlite' ] );
+		if ( ! EE::get_runner()->check_requirements( false, $php_requirements ) ) {
+			$missing_php = Requirements::get_missing( $php_requirements );
+			EE::error( 'Unable to proceed with uninstallation. Seems there is a dependency down.' . ( Requirements::has_missing( $missing_php ) ? PHP_EOL . Requirements::get_error_message( $missing_php ) : '' ) );
 		}
 
 		EE::confirm( "Are you sure you want to remove EasyEngine and all its sites(along with their data)?\nThis is an irreversible action. No backup will be kept.", $assoc_args );
@@ -512,7 +535,16 @@ public function self_uninstall( $args, $assoc_args ) {
 		EE::exec( 'docker volume rm -f $(docker volume ls -f "label=org.label-schema.vendor=EasyEngine" -q)' );
 		EE::exec( 'docker image rm $(docker image ls -f "label=org.label-schema.vendor=EasyEngine" -q)' );
 
-		$records = Site::all( [ 'site_fs_path' ] );
+		try {
+			$records = Site::all( [ 'site_fs_path' ] );
+		} catch ( \PDOException $e ) {
+			// No sites table yet: no command ran its migrations, e.g. while a PHP requirement was missing.
+			if ( false === stripos( $e->getMessage(), 'no such table' ) ) {
+				throw $e;
+			}
+			EE::debug( 'Could not read the site list: ' . $e->getMessage() );
+			$records = [];
+		}
 
 		$fs = new Filesystem();
 		if ( ! empty( $records ) ) {
diff --git a/php/init-ee.php b/php/init-ee.php
index f5574d9b3..5c82b1746 100644
--- a/php/init-ee.php
+++ b/php/init-ee.php
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@
 define( 'EE', true );
 define( 'EE_VERSION', trim( file_get_contents( EE_ROOT . '/VERSION' ) ) );
 define( 'EE_START_MICROTIME', microtime( true ) );
-define( 'IS_DARWIN', 'Darwin' === php_uname( 's' ) );
+// PHP_OS, not php_uname(): that can be disabled, and this runs before the requirements check.
+define( 'IS_DARWIN', 'Darwin' === PHP_OS );
 
 if ( IS_DARWIN ) {
 	define( 'EE_ROOT_DIR', rtrim( getenv( 'HOME' ), '/\\' ) . '/easyengine' );
diff --git a/php/utils.php b/php/utils.php
index 120d50050..2ca999efd 100644
--- a/php/utils.php
+++ b/php/utils.php
@@ -521,6 +521,11 @@ function http_request( $method, $url, $data = null, $headers = array(), $options
 		}
 	}
 
+	// Requests picks curl when curl_init() and curl_exec() exist, then calls the other curl functions unchecked.
+	if ( ! isset( $options['transport'] ) && count( array_filter( \EE\Requirements::FUNCTIONS['curl'], 'function_exists' ) ) < count( \EE\Requirements::FUNCTIONS['curl'] ) ) {
+		$options['transport'] = \WpOrg\Requests\Transport\Fsockopen::class;
+	}
+
 	try {
 		// Updated class name: \WpOrg\Requests\Requests
 		$response = \WpOrg\Requests\Requests::request( $url, $headers, $data, $method, $options );