Initial web server configuration

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Overview

• Planning• Testing the OS/Environment– IP setup

• Installation• Configuration– Simple minimum details

• Testing– Default website – with the manuals!

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Planning

• For a live system:– Requirements Planning (Session 3)– Information Architecture and Website Structure

(Session 4) – Name Planning (Session 5) – Interaction Planning – CGI environments (Session 6) – Security Planning (Session 7) – User Access Planning (Session 8)– Planning for Growth (Session 11)

• Much ‘a given’ for your practical work

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TCP/IP Configuration Check

• Check the Windows settings

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Apache web server

• Most commonly used web server software• Open source• Free to use• Based on NCSA httpd software (early 1990s)• Currently three versions: 2.2, 2.0 and 1.3

supported• httpd.apache.org• Note distinction between Apache Software

Foundation and Apache HTTP Server

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Installation

• Two choices for Apache:– From source code– From distributed binaries, for Win32, Linux etc.

• For Win2000/XP the binary is a standard windows installer package– see tutorial notes

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Configuration

• Apache configured using text files.– http.conf

the main Apache server configuration file– srm.conf

server resource configuration– access.conf

directory and file access restrictions– mime.types

relates media types to file name extensions– magic

lists recognisable byte sequences

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Configuration file syntax (1)

• A hash symbol ( # ) is used to introduce a comment

• There are two kinds of conf directive: – Variable assignment – Block directive

• The syntax of a variable assignment is: <variable name><white space><value>

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DocumentRoot "D:/WebRoot/Roger/htdocs"

Configuration file syntax (2)

• A block directive – looks a little like an HTML tag (but isn't)– serves to apply specific directives to specific parts

of the Apache system

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<Directory / > Options none AllowOverride none Order allow, deny Deny from all</Directory>

Minimum basic configuration file

• For Windows, Apache v1

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# Simple conf file for the web site Roger

ServerType standalone

ServerRoot "C:/Apache"

ServerName "H01.CommsLab.port.ac.uk"

DocumentRoot "D:/WebRoot/Roger/htdocs"

TransferLog "logs/access.log"

Log files

• Will be covered in Session 04 practical• Brief example of common:

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192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:02 +0000] "GET / HTTP/1.1" 200 1494

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:02 +0000] "GET /apache_pb.gif HTTP/1.1" 200 2326

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:21 +0000] "GET /manual/ HTTP/1.1" 200 9580

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:21 +0000] "GET /manual/images/apache_header.gif HTTP/1.1" 200 4084

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:21 +0000] "GET /manual/images/pixel.gif HTTP/1.1" 200 61

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:21 +0000] "GET /manual/images/index.gif HTTP/1.1" 200 1540

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:33 +0000] "GET /manual/windows.html HTTP/1.1" 200 27725

192.168.27.58 - - [10/Feb/2002:17:59:34 +0000] "GET /manual/images/sub.gif HTTP/1.1" 200 6083

Testing

• Apache can be run as an application– From Start menu – assuming install ok– From a command prompt

• Why notextcursor?

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Apache as a service

• Apache can also be run as "service"/"daemon"• Default install of version 2 is as service• Implications:– No user interface at all, not even a window!– Started automatically at server boot– Stopped automatically at shutdown– You may need to remove from "service list" to use

a manual console

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Starting/Stopping Apache

• To start:– Change directory to Apache install– Open a DOS command prompt– Command apache

• To stop:– Open a new command prompt– Command apache –k shutdown– Wait a while– CTRL–C a valid alternative!

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Default web site

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