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Specifying the Server and File Locations

This chapter introduces you to the Oracle HTTP Server configuration files, explains how to set Oracle HTTP Server and server administrator options, and specifies file locations in the following topics:

• Accessing Configuration Files

• Setting Server and Administrator Functions

• Specifying File Locations

  Note: Readers using this guide in PDF or hard copy formats will be unable to access third-party documentation, which Oracle provides in HTML format only. To access the third-party documentation referenced in this guide, use the HTML version of this guide and click on the hyperlinks.

Accessing Configuration Files

Oracle HTTP Server is configured by placing directives, which are basically instructions, into text configuration files. The configuration files are located in ORACLE_HOME/Apache/Apache/conf for UNIX and ORACLE_HOME\Apache\Apache\conf for Windows. Some of these files are read only once when the server starts or is reloaded, whereas some files are read every time a related file or directory is requested.

The configuration files which are read only once are called server-wide configuration files.

httpd.conf

This is a server configuration file which typically contains directives that affect how the server runs, such as user and group IDs it should use, location of other files. Because the server configuration file is the main file that the server starts with, Oracle HTTP Server doesn't include any directive that says where to locate it. The location is passed on command line when the server starts.

Setting Server and Administrator Functions

You can use the following directives to set basic Oracle HTTP Server and administrator functions:

• ServerName

• UseCanonicalName

• ServerAdmin

• ServerSignature

• ServerTokens

• ServerAlias

ServerName

This enables the server to set a hostname that can be used to create redirection URLs, through which users can access directories without having to use a "/" at the end.

Oracle9iAS Web Cache on a Different Machine than Oracle HTTP Server

This section provides information about modifying ServerName directive for deployment if Oracle9iAS Web Cache is on a different machine than Oracle HTTP Server.

At installation time, Oracle HTTP Server sets the httpd.conf file with the following directives that impact Oracle9iAS Web Cache:

• Port=web_cache_port specifies the Oracle9iAS Web Cache listening ports

• Listen=Oracle_HTTP_Server_port specifies the HTTP and HTTPS ports obtained by Oracle HTTP Server.

• ServerName specifies the host name of Oracle HTTP Server.

• UseCanonicalName On instructs Oracle HTTP Server to use the host names and port values set in the ServerName and Port directives when redirecting a URL.

For example,

##
## httpd.conf -- Apache HTTP Server configuration file
##
...
Port 7777
Listen 7778
...
ServerName http_server.company.com
...
UseCanonicalName On
....

If Oracle9iAS Web Cache is deployed on a separate machine from Oracle HTTP Server, then the Oracle HTTP Server administrator must modify the ServerName directive in httpd.conf for each site hosted by Oracle9iAS Web Cache. This will enable Oracle HTTP Server to redirect URLs to Oracle9iAS Web Cache. The following example shows httpd.conf modified to set requests for www.1st.company.com and www.2nd.company.com to Oracle9iAS Web Cache with a listening port of 7777.

Port 7777
Listen 7778
...
ServerName www.1st.company.com
ServerName www.2nd.company.com
...
UseCanonicalName On
....

See Also: "ServerName directive" in the Apache Server documentation

UseCanonicalName

This determines which hostname and port to use when redirecting the URL to the same server.

• on: This is the default setting. For this setting, the server uses the hostname and port values set in ServerName and Port.

• off: For this setting, the server uses the hostname and port that the user specifies in the request.

  See Also: "UseCanonicalName directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ServerAdmin

This creates an email address that is included with every error message that clients encounter. It is useful to create a separate email address for this.

See Also: "ServerAdmin directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ServerSignature

This enables the server to recognize which server, amongst the various proxies, created the returned response, such as an error message.

• on: This is the default. For this setting, it creates a footer to the returned document that includes information such as ServerName and server version number.

• email: For this setting, it additionally creates a "mailto:" reference to the ServerAdmin of the document.

• off: For this setting, the footer and mailto: reference is not created.

  See Also: "ServerSignature directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ServerTokens

This controls the server information which is returned to clients, such as in error messages. This information includes a description of the generic OS-type of the server and information about compiled-in modules.

• min(imal): For this setting, the server provides information such as server name and version.

• OS: For this setting, the server provides information such as server name, version and operating system.

• full: For this setting, the server provides information such as server name, version, operating system, and complied modules.

  See Also: "ServerTokens directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ServerAlias

This sets alternate names for the current virtual host.

See Also: "ServerAlias directive" in the Apache Server documentation

Specifying File Locations

You can use the following directives to control the location of various server files:

• CoreDumpDirectory

• DocumentRoot

• ErrorLog

• LockFile

• PidFile

• ScoreBoardFile

• ServerRoot

CoreDumpDirectory

This specifies the directory in which the server dumps core. The default is the ServerRoot directory. This directive is applicable to UNIX only.

See Also: "CoreDumpDirectory directive" in the Apache Server documentation

DocumentRoot

This sets the directory from which httpd will serve files. Unless matched by a directive like Alias, the server appends the path from the requested URL to the document root to make the path to the document.

See Also: "DocumentRoot directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ErrorLog

This sets the name of the file to which the server will note any errors it encounters. If the name of the file does not begin with a slash, then it is assumed to be relative to the ServerRoot. If the name of the file begins with a pipe (|), then it is assumed to be a command to spawn to handle the error log.

See Also: "ErrorLog directive" in the Apache Server documentation

LockFile

This sets the path to the lockfile used when Oracle HTTP Server is complied with either USE_FCNTL_SERIALIZED_ACCEPT or USE_FLOCK_SERIALIZED_ACCEPT. It is recommended that default value be used. The main reason for changing it is if the logs directory is NFS mounted, since the lockfile must be stored on a local disk.

See Also: "LockFile directive" in the Apache Server documentation

PidFile

This enables you to set and change the location of the PID file to which the server records the process identification number. If the filename does not begin with a slash (/), then it is assumed to be relative to the ServerRoot.

See Also: "PidFile directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ScoreBoardFile

This is required in some architectures to set a file that the server will use to communicate between the parent and children processes. To verify if your architecture requires a scoreboard file is to run Oracle HTTP Server and see if it creates the file named by the directive. If your architecture requires it then you must ensure that this file is not used at the same time by more than one invocation of the server.

See Also: "ScoreBoardFile directive" in the Apache Server documentation

ServerRoot

This specifies the directory that contains the conf and logs subdirectories. If the server is started with the -f option, then you will have to specify ServerRoot.

See Also: "ServerRoot directive" in the Apache Server documentation