Apache: The Definitive Guide (3rd Edition)

Book Description

Apache is far and away the most widely used web server platform in the world. This versatile server runs more than half of the world's existing web sites. Apache is both free and rock-solid, running more than 21 million web sites ranging from huge e-commerce operations to corporate intranets and smaller hobby sites. With this new third edition of Apache: The Definitive Guide, web administrators new to Apache will come up to speed quickly, and experienced administrators will find the logically organized, concise reference sections indispensable, and system programmers interested in customizing their servers will rely on the chapters on the API and Apache modules. Updated to cover the changes in Apache's latest release, 2.0, as well as Apache 1.3, this useful guide discusses how to obtain, set up, secure, modify, and troubleshoot the Apache software on both Unix and Windows systems. Dozens of clearly written examples provide the answers to the real-world issues that Apache administrators face everyday. In addition to covering the installation and configuration of mod_perl and Tomcat, the book examines PHP, Cocoon, and other new technologies that are associated with the Apache web server. Additional coverage of security and the Apache 2.0 API make Apache: The Definitive Guide, Third Edition essential documentation for the world's most popular web server.

Customer Reviews:

Waste of paper.......2006-12-01

Most of the time you can trust O'Reilly technical books. But this dog should be drug out back and shot. It's out of date, it's poorly written, it meanders all over the place. I'm pretty tolerant of technical writing as long as I'm learning what I need to along the way. But at a time when I was highly motivated to get up to speed on Apache I literally gave up and threw this on the floor in frustration. Buy any other book on Apache. This one sucks.

This book is not a tutorial........2006-07-04

This book is not a tutorial on Apache. Forget about this book if you're seeking to implement the ubiquitous LAMP (Linux, Apache, MYSQL, PHP) combination. Perhaps you wish to complement your pursuit of a computer science degree with some resume enhancing practical skills. Or perhaps you're a seeking some IT certifications, or perhaps you're a hobbyist web developer - in all cases this book contains nothing that couldn't be freely found on an internet search engine. Most of the book's chapters consist of a series of Apache's features with each followed by a cryptic discussion that doesn't actually teach you anything. So unless you're a Apache expert looking for a handy reference to keep close at hand then please buy something else. Like a book that actually does the job of teaching you to do something with Apache.

Java 1 there's a good reason.......2006-04-27

Hi,
I read a few weeks ago some reviews complaining that this textbook doesn't deal with recent Java SDK like 4.1 or 5. Then I had trouble ping-ing an XP home pc, so I learned that ping works with ICMP, I thought maybe if I write a little ping-debugger I'd get somewhere near an answer, my PC linux is a Debian, I searched for some ICMP Java classes for Debian, then I found out that the latest Java SDK for Linux is 1.1. So don't put the blame on this Apache manual (IMHO) "il ne peut pas aller plus vite que la musique"

not great but still quite worth of it.......2005-08-07

I partly agree with the downstairs, but can not put it in 1 star.
This book is OK for beginner, both on Win32 and Linux. And with detailed description (yes, it tells what is called NT Service and how to open a MMC to start a service :-) so IT JUST WORKS.
On the other hand, there is a lot of setting with the config, this book contians a long list of explaination with the para, like a ref book. But it does gives you a few good example of CGI (C and Perl).
Still think it is the top apache book on market

This book served its purpose........2005-01-19

Now you may think that there are better books out there. And there maybe. However this book is a "five star" book. I bought this book for a beginning apache class. We were able to follow the instructions and down load the Apache server from the Internet. The only problem we had was with the NIS system that was not anticipated in this book. It was a lot more important to use this book to read the flat files and see how they were related to each other. The section on Extra Modules (chapter 12) gave a way to improve the server and go outside the scope of this book. This book covered more details than I was looking for; this ways different people can use the book to target their particular needs. You can safely say:

"This book has everything you need to set up an apache server."

Average customer rating:

Very disappointed
room for improvement
Definitely not for advanced users
Very easy to understand and tells you stuff you need to know
Good thorugh reference for all aspects of tomcat admin

Tomcat: The Definitive Guide
Jason Brittain , and Ian F. Darwin
Manufacturer: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0596003188

Book Description

Jakarta Tomcat is not only the most commonly used open source servlet engine today, it's become the de facto standard by which other servlet engines are measured. Powerful and flexible, it can be used as a stand-alone web server or in conjunction with another server, like Apache or IIS, to run servlets or JSPs. But mastery of Tomcat is not easy: because it's as complex as it is complete. Tomcat: The Definitive Guide answers vexing questions that users, administrators, and developers alike have been asking. This concise guide provides much needed information to help harness Tomcat's power and wealth of features. Tomcat: The Definitive Guide offers something for everyone who uses Tomcat. System and network administrators will find detailed instructions on installation, configuration, and maintenance. For users, it supplies insightful information on how to deploy Tomcat. And seasoned enterprise Java developers will have a complete reference to setting up, running, and using this powerful software The book begins with an introduction to the Tomcat server and includes an overview of the three types of server configurations: stand-alone, in-process, and out-of-process. The authors show how directories are laid out, cover the initial setup, and describe how to set the environment variables and modify the configuration files, concluding with common errors, problems, and solutions. In subsequent chapters, they cover:

The server.xml configuration file
Java Security manager
Authentication schemes and Tomcat users
The Secure Socket Layer (SSL)
Tomcat JDBC Realms
Installing servlets and Java Server Pages
Integrating Tomcat with Apache
Advanced Tomcat configuration

and much more. Tomcat: The Definitive Guide covers all major platforms, including Windows, Solaris, Linux, and Mac OS X, contains details on Tomcat configuration files, and has a quick-start guide to get developers up and running with Java servlets and JavaServer Pages. If you've struggled with this powerful yet demanding technology in the past, this book will provide the answers you need.

Customer Reviews:

Very disappointed.......2007-03-11

This book is hopelessly incomplete. I'm always having to augment it's contents with on-line information. I just attempted to determine the difference between "path" and "docBase" in the "Context" tag in the server.xml file but again it struck out. All page 175 says is that "context" configures the web application directory within a host. End of story. I strongly suggest that you look to another source for Tomcat.

room for improvement.......2006-04-17

Chap 3: Deploying servlet and JSP Web Applications in Tomcat.
Writing a book about a servlet container whose app deployment methods have most users puzzeled is a challenge. I dont think this book does any better than the online docs (which are bad).

Chap 4: Tomcat performance tuning.
Capacity planning, now thats one area where my knowledge general and tomcatwise is a little thin - the chapter only list the topics but provide no hints or answers. Could have been interesting but wasted my time.

Chap 6: Tomcat security.
Locking down with java policy file, unix chroot and bsd chroot, request filter - wellwritten and very usefull.

Chap 7: Config files and their elements:
Hmm a new way to run the server on lower 1024 ports without root user - why present this now and not in chap 6? A few details from previous chapters repeated - dont the authors two talk together?

Chap 8: Debugging and troubleshooting:
Only the obvious things - too thin.

All in all i found the chapter on security and clustering usefull but the book as a hole seems to lack a clear structure/vision and some chapters dosent do more for me than the lousy online docs. Configuring tomcat is not easy and this book dosent help much. Never the less i like working with tomcat! :)

Definitely not for advanced users.......2006-03-24

This book is for beginners who are not familiar with Tomcat. Or, for users who are just learning how to use it. But not for advanced users.

Very easy to understand and tells you stuff you need to know.......2005-01-15

I'm just getting into JSP/Servlet via Tomcat 4. I found this book very easy to read and understand. I was actually reading through the book at the bookstore. It was exactly what I was looking for as a person with limited UNIX and J2EE experience.

The book clearly tells you what you need to do and tells you how to confirm that something is working. Of greatest interest to me was how Tomcat would be implemented. The book listed the 4 ways to integrate Tomcat with an existing Apache server running in addition to running Tomcat as a stand-alone HTTP server. The book is sensitive to readers that may be running Tomcat on several platforms other than UNIX and XP. I found this book to be informative. I highly recommend it.

Good thorugh reference for all aspects of tomcat admin.......2004-11-13

First note that this book is for tomcat 4, not 5. Hopefully there will soon be an up to date version of this book available.

Note also that this book is from an administrator's perspective, not a developer's. You won't learn how to write custom tag libs from reading this.

Note also that if you are new to tomcat, and just want to get the thing running, there is sufficient on line documentation to do this at the jakarta site. Don't spend money on this book unless you want a solid administration reference.

That being said, it is an great reference to all aspects of tomcat administration. Every element of every configuration file is explained. Also, there is an excellent chapter on tomcat security.

The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite (Definitive Guide)

Average customer rating:

Just read the online documentation
Definitely definitive
Great way to learn how to make Apache adapt to your needs
Welcomed alternative to the obscure official documentation
mod_rewrite explained very well

The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite (Definitive Guide)
Rich Bowen
Manufacturer: Apress
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Accessories:

ASIN: 1590595610

Book Description

Organizing websites is highly dynamic and often chaotic. Thus, it is crucial that host web servers manipulate URLs in order to cope with temporarily or permanently relocated resources, prevent attacks by automated worms, and control resource access.

The Apache mod_rewrite module has long inspired fits of joy because it offers an unparalleled toolset for manipulating URLs. The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite guides you through configuration and use of the module for a variety of purposes, including basic and conditional rewrites, access control, virtual host maintenance, and proxies.

This book was authored by Rich Bowen, noted Apache expert and Apache Software Foundation member, and draws on his years of experience administering, and regular speaking and writing about, the Apache server.

Customer Reviews:

Just read the online documentation.......2007-08-21

I was very disappointed with this book. The information inside is so basic and cursory that you're bound to quickly run into situations more advanced than the contents can cover.

For instance, it doesn't deal at all with using a rewritemap within a rewritecond, and it only gives one small paragraph to rewritecond backreferences. I've spent the last few weeks scouring the internet for details about mod_rewrite, and there's very little documentation.

This book, at most, aggregates that documentation in one place. To call it the "definitive guide" is a bit much.

Definitely definitive.......2006-06-27

The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite by Rich Bowen leaves nothing to be desired. After pointing out when not to use mod_rewrite, a chapter on regular expressions and one on installing and configuring mod_rewrite (both statically and as a dynamic object), the author digs right in to the RewriteRule directive with clear examples for doing simple and more complex redirection. Chapter five expands on those rules with the RewriteCond directive illustrating its strength with time-based redirection (different pages day & night) and how to solve the "image theft" problem, and chapter six lays out the RewriteMap directive which allows to map URLs based on external data; I again found some very good examples here.

The next two chapters cover real-world examples which include adjusting URLs, reorganization of content, forcing SSL, and serving content based on a username. Access control, virtual hosts (yes, using mod_rewrite!), proxying and debugging make up the remaining chapters which are packed full of information (a lot of which I didn't know about).

I think that The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite really is just that: definitive. It is a must have for any systems administrator who wants to use mod_rewrite on an Apache web server, and I strongly recommend it.

Great way to learn how to make Apache adapt to your needs.......2006-05-31

Apache is the most commonly employed web server software on the Internet. While it is powerful and flexible out of the box your needs may require more advanced security, virtual web servers, flexibility or other items that can easily be changed. The ability to use mod_rewrite allows you to rewrite your URL in many ways so that it works the way you want it to. Among its other capabilities it allows you to set up Mass Virtual Hosting and rearrange your site with ease. And for those of us who love the Linux world the use of regular expressions allows a lot of flexibility. Some of the more powerful features include the ability to use conditional rewrites (the content is different based on usernames), force users to enter the site only through the main page, limit user access to particular directories, prevent spider access, and prevent image theft. The Definitive Guide to Apache mod_rewrite is a highly recommended introduction to this very popular but vastly under-documented program.

Welcomed alternative to the obscure official documentation.......2006-05-30

mod_rewrite is a powerful tool, but, unfortunately, it has always been poorly documented and its somewhat arcane syntax makes things even worst. Bowen offers a very welcomed alternative to the obscure official documentation. Be advised a decent understanding of Regular Expressions is required to fully leverage mod_rewrite

mod_rewrite explained very well.......2006-03-23

When I first came across RewriteRule directives I was mostly horrified. It was only because I was learning about Perl Regular Expressions at the time that I didn't make the sign of a cross at the stuff and just go another direction. But I realized that the power I craved came at a cost.

I admit that I had did the whole "trial and error" thing coupled with scouring the net for examples before I realized having a book would make things so much easier. So I resorted to searching Amazon for mod_rewrite. This is the only book that my search turned up.

I have to say the book was definitely well worth it. The tips about when to NOT use mod_rewrite was very much appreciated. Some of my uses could have been accomplished with a FilesMatch or DirectoryMatch directives instead of a RewriteRule.

The VirtualHosts chapter was useful, as was the Proxy chapter. I didn't realize how useful mod_proxy was until this chapter gave a few good examples.

All in all I'm very satisfied with this book. Because of the short length I was worried that it wouldn't cover the material well enough. However I don't think there is anything I've needed to do with mod_rewrite that this book didn't cover well enough for me to accomplish without another resource.

Average customer rating:

Very basic, generalized. Not much there.
Not for Newbies or Windows Users
Great Intro Book
Where's the Big Picture
Thought would be a usual "O really!?" :-(

Apache: The Definitive Guide
Ben Laurie , and Peter Laurie
Manufacturer: O'Reilly
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1565925289

Amazon.com

With distributions for both Unix and 32-bit Windows environments, the Apache Web server boasts reliability, security, and scalability--and it's free. Apache: The Definitive Guide shows Apache administrators how to perform their jobs, detailing the server through version 1.3.

The authors--one of them a member of the Apache development team--begin with an academic discussion of what Web servers do before walking the reader through the process of installing Apache. Installation gets much attention--readers find out, step by step, how to set up a Web site (or several) under Apache, and how to set up Web site security and other preferences properly. The book also provides in-depth discussions of particular aspects of Apache operation, including MIME handling, the Common Gateway Interface (CGI), and security features such as authentication and caching.

For the programmers in the crowd, this book documents the Apache API with discussions of resource pools and their allocation, plus a full API reference. A tutorial explains how to write Apache extension modules in C. In all matters, Apache: The Definitive Guide covers both Unix and Win32 machines, but it places more emphasis on the Unix port. The complete source code of Apache 1.3 appears on the CD-ROM that ships with the book. --David Wall

Book Description

The freeware Apache web server runs on about half of the world's existing web sites, and it is rapidly increasing in popularity. Apache: The Definitive Guide, written and reviewed by key members of the Apache Group, is the only complete guide on the market today that describes how to obtain, set up, and secure the Apache software. Apache was originally based on code and ideas found in the most popular HTTP server of the time: NCSA httpd 1.3 (early 1995). It has since evolved into a far superior system that can rival (and probably surpass) almost any other Unix-based HTTP server in terms of functionality, efficiency, and speed. The new version now includes support for Win32 systems. This new second edition of Apache: The Definitive Guide fully describes Windows support and all the other Apache 1.3 features. Contents include:

The history of the Apache Group
Obtaining and compiling the server
Configuring and running Apache on Unix and Windows, including such topics as directory structures, virtual hosts, and CGI programming
The Apache 1.3 Module API
Apache security
A complete list of configuration directives

With Apache: The Definitive Guide, web administrators new to Apache can get up to speed more quickly than ever before by working through the tutorial demo. Experienced administrators and CGI programmers, and web administrators moving from Unix to Windows, will find the reference sections indispensable. Apache: The Definitive Guide is the definitive documentation for the world's most popular web server. Includes CD-ROM with Apache manuals and demo sites discussed in the book.

Customer Reviews:

Very basic, generalized. Not much there........2003-05-11

If you've used Apache without even reading about any detailed configurations, you'd still not see anything new in this book. I can see this book being a little useful for beginners, but even then, it's not really getting into very detailed information about the configurations and whatnot for module installs/additions. I can see someone new still getting frustrated with this book if they run into a problem.

I picked it up, well, because I buy every O'Reilly book that comes out (seriously) and thought I might be able to find something interesting, useful or that I wasn't aware of or forgot... maybe even a little tip about efficiency, compiling options or just anything of interest.

This is no more useful than the README and INSTALL files that come with Apache's source code. I'm not sure I want to even give this two stars come to think of it. I just don't see the point to this book. A let down coming from O'Reilly.

Not for Newbies or Windows Users.......2002-12-30

Really, this book can be described as the Apache httpd manual in much greater detail.

The book covers pretty much everything you might want to know about running Apache on a *nix or Windows Operating System, but the basic attitude toward Windows users is "If it doesn't work for you - tough luck", which is fine, since Apache really isn't meant to run on Windows as anything more than a test server anyway. Still, I fear that a lot of the Windows folks who are jumping into the Open Source craze may pick this book up and be greatly disappointed.

Another problem I had with the book was the fact that it plays out as more of a step by step manual for setting up specific features of Apache. This makes it fairly difficult to use it for reference later on, but perhaps the idea was that once you got through this book, you could use the web and the manual as a reference instead.

All in all, the book is fairly useful, it just takes some getting used to. If you plan to use it to set up a Windows server, you'd probably be better off braving the various forums and threads out there available to Apache users. However, if you have a good Operating System (BSD, Unix, or Linux), and you want some extra help setting up your Apache server, or setting up specific parts of your Apache server, by all means give this book a shot. It's an above average book, but it's below average by O'Reilly standards.

Great Intro Book.......2002-09-10

Apache the Definitive Guide 2nd Edition

Hallelujah!
I think this book was exactly what I needed. Coming over from the M$ world where everything is a GUI, the httpd.conf file was a bit frustrating. Apache's online documentation was not newbie friendly. This book bridges that gap. I liked the way they begin with NO conf file and explains the Apache errors, and how to fix it in the conf file. The book then goes on adding additional functionality and options.

This book does not explain every configuration option available to Apache, and it is a bit outdated (covers up to version 1.3.n). The book did come with a CD with sample conf files, but I found that I didn't even need to use them. The book is NOT a complete desktop reference, but it helped me understand Apache conf files so now the Apache online documentation makes sense.

This book showed me the ropes and I'm successfully running Apache as my web server, which is all I was trying to do.

Where's the Big Picture.......2002-04-11

The authors jump in with an example configuration, but never explain how each element of the configuration relates to the rest. For example- do alias statements take precedence over blocks ? Does it matter what order an alias or scriptalias directive appears in your file ? We are never told. In addition, there is a lack of continuity between one experiment in configuration and the next. As other reviewers have pointed out, it's unclear who the intended audience is. I'm sure at some point I'll get some value from the API documentation, but as a newbie to Apache, I've learned considerably more through trial and error on my own than by reading this book.

Thought would be a usual "O really!?" :-(.......2001-11-28

I had been dealing with Apache before I purchased this book, and I tell you, learnt a lot. The feature of the book that I liked the most was illustration servers that they build on each chapter (almost on each chapter). Every single configuration is built upon the previous one. For example, they build the first web server in chapter 2, site.toddle with just the following configuration:

User webuser
Group webgroup
Servername yourmachinename
DocumentRoot /usr/www/site.toddle/htdocs

Then in the following chapters they introduce different issues, and keep adding lines to the above configuration file and building seperate versions of more advanced sites.

However, there're several things that you might wanna be aware of before purchasing this book. Although the above mentioned feature of the book claims it's well-organized, it's not. Some of the directives just pop-up in the middle of the discussion, where they are not supposed to belong. I found that pretty annoying and confusing. I can recall the one about CERN Metafiles in chapter 3. Another annoying thing was the way they introduce directives. Consider the following lines from page 53:

ServerSignature [off|on|email]
Default: off
Directory, .htaccess

[ ...6 line description follows...]

Yes, it reminds me of the Apache's online documentation (which even does way better job than the above cold-blooded description). Of course, one expects more from a book than citing the online documentaion.

If you want to know what kind of audience the book is designed for, my answer is straightforward: I don't know, period! I have a feeling even the authors don't know anything about their potential readers. They try to get as detailed as they can where it doesn't make sence to do so. And when you expect some detail, they just ignore you.

Book Description

The Definitive Guide to Apache MyFaces and Facelets is an ideal reference if you're looking to develop real-world applications with the open source lightweight Apache MyFaces and Dojo (the Ajax API). The book focuses less on theory and more on aspects like scalability, design, optimization, and configurability.

This book emphasizes meeting real-world requirements for performance and scalability. It includes lucid code samples that reflect the pattern being described. The "In the Trenches" sections in each chapter give you advice and recommendations based on actual experiences with each pattern. What's more, the "Extreme Extensions" section at the end of each relevant chapter is dedicated to a "freestyle" expression of taking a particular pattern or set of patterns to the max. (This is a great way for you to learn because of the magnification effect.) This is also the first book to embrace the Dojo framework for Ajax (soon to be an Apache project).

Apache: The Definitive Guide, 3rd Edition

Average customer rating:

This book served its purpose.

Apache: The Definitive Guide, 3rd Edition
Ben Laurie , and Peter Laurie
Manufacturer: Tandem Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: School & Library Binding
ASIN: 0613912012

Customer Reviews:

This book served its purpose........2004-09-13

Now you may think that there are better books out there. And there maybe. However this book is a "five star" book. I bought this book for a beginning apache class. We were able to follow the instructions and down load the Apache server from the Internet. The only problem we had was with the NIS system that was not anticipated in this book. It was a lot more important to use this book to read the flat files and see how they were related to each other. The section on Extra Modules (chapter 12) gave a way to improve the server and go outside the scope of this book. This book covered more details than I was looking for; this ways different people can use the book to target their particular needs. You can safely say:
"This book has everything you need to set up an apache server."

Average customer rating:

Definitive Guide to Apache Mod_Rewrite

Manufacturer: MICROSOFT PRESS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GXWNZQ

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