Chapter 26. Apache (httpd): Setting Up a Web Server

26. Apache (httpd): Setting Up a Web Server

IN THIS CHAPTER

JumpStart I: Getting Apache Up and Running	789
JumpStart II: Setting Up Apache Using system-config-httpd	790
Filesystem Layout	792
Directives I: Directives You May Want to Modify as You Get Started	794
Contexts and Containers	798
The Red Hat httpd.conf File	814
Redirects	817
Multiviews	818
Virtual Hosts	818
Troubleshooting	819

The World Wide Web (WWW or Web for short), is a collection of servers that hold material, called content, that Web browsers (or just browsers) can display. Each of the servers on the Web is connected to the Internet, a network of networks (an internetwork). Much of the content on the Web is coded in HTML (Hypertext Markup Language, page 1036). Hypertext, the code behind the links that you click on a Web page, allows browsers to display and react to links that point to other Web pages on the Internet.

Apache is the most popular Web server on the Internet today. It is both robust and extensible. The ease with which you can install, configure, and run it in the Linux environment makes it an obvious choice for publishing content on the World Wide Web. The Apache server and related projects are developed and maintained by the Apache Software Foundation (ASF), a notfor-profit corporation formed in June 1999. The ASF grew out of the Apache Group, which was established in 1995 to develop the Apache server.

This chapter starts by providing introductory information about Apache. This information is followed by the first JumpStart section, which describes the minimum steps needed to get Apache up and running. The second JumpStart section covers the use of the Red Hat system-config-httpd configuration script. Following these sections is "Filesystem Layout," which tells you where the various Apache files are located.

Configuration directives, a key part of Apache, are discussed starting on page 794. This section includes coverage of contexts and containers, two features/concepts that are critical to understanding Apache. The next section explains the main Apache configuration file, /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf, as modified by Red Hat. The final pages of the chapter cover virtual hosts, troubleshooting, and modules you can use with Apache, including CGI and SSL.