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How do I set up a Web Server on the Burrow?

How do I set up a Web Server on the Burrow?

Scope

This document provides information about setting up a web server using the Luddy Burrow systems. Before you begin, please note that some Luddy classes require students to build and manage their own version of apache. This KB document does not address that case but, rather, describes the process of setting up a web server using the version of apache installed with the operating system. This provides a very simple way you can run your own server without the overhead of managing the apache software. Also, note that you can avoid the hassle of running your own server altogether by using the existing Web Hosting Options.

You are also encouraged to read the Server KB Document that discusses general issues related to running your own server on the Luddy systems.

If you have any questions about Linux systems within the school, please contact us.

If all you want to do is host your html, php, or cgi scripts on a Luddy School web server, please note that you do NOT have to run your own web server. Please see the Web Hosting Options page for information about using the existing Luddy web servers.

Web Server Configuration

What follows is a cookbook example of setting up an apache web server on the Burrow system that you can follow. You should be logged into burrow.luddy.indiana.edu (aka. silo) when you do this.

Create Directories - You need to create a directory that will contain your apache configuration files, logs, html files, and cgi/php scripts. In this example, we will use a directory named apache2 in your home directory but you can use any name you like.

[Before you begin, make sure there is no existing apache2 directory]

$ cp -dpRx /etc/apache2 ~/apache2

$ cd ~/apache2

$ mkdir html logs cgi-bin

$ rm ~/apache2/conf-enabled/other-vhosts-access-log.conf

Modify Main Configuration File - You will need to modify the default apache configuration file. Just edit the file ~/apache2/apache2.conf per the

In the following table, you must replace all occurrences of username with your actual IU username. Note that some of the lines are commented out by default so you must uncomment them.

Default Value	Update Value
#ServerRoot "/etc/apache2"	ServerRoot "/u/username/apache2"
DefaultRuntimeDir ${APACHE_RUN_DIR}	DefaultRuntimeDir "/u/username/apache2"
PidFile ${APACHE_PID_FILE}	PidFile "/u/username/apache2/.pid"
User ${APACHE_RUN_USER}	User username
Group ${APACHE_RUN_GROUP}	Group students Note: If you are not a student, run the groups command and use the first group name in the list
ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log	ErrorLog "/u/username/apache2/logs/error.log"
<Directory /var/www/> Options Indexes FollowSymLinks	<Directory /u/username/apache2/html/> Options Indexes FollowSymLinks ExecCGI Note: The addition of the ExecCGI to the Options is only needed if you want to run cgi script

Modify Port Configuration File - You will need to modify the default port configuration. Just edit the file ~/apache2/ports.conf and make the changes in the following table:

Default Value	Updated Value
Listen 80	Listen 12345 NOTE: Replace the port number (12345) with the actual port number you are using. Please see the Server KB Document for information about choosing and registering your port number.

Modify Site Configuration File - You will need to modify the default site configuration. Just edit the file ~/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf and make the changes in the following table:

Default Value	Updated Value
<VirtualHost *:80>	<VirtualHost *:12345> Note: Replace the port number (12345) with the actual port number you are using. Please see the Server KB Document for information about choosing and registering your port number.
ServerAdmin webmaster@localhost	ServerAdmin username@iu.edu
DocumentRoot /var/www/html	DocumentRoot /u/username/apache2/html
ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log	ErrorLog /u/username/apache2/logs/error.log
CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined	CustomLog /u/username/apache2/logs/access.log combined
	AddType application/x-httpd-cgi .cgi Note: Add this line inside the VirtualHost definition section if you will want to run cgi script

Starting and Stopping the Server - You can now start and stop apache by running the apache2 command using the -f flag to specify the location of your configuration file. You can start the server with:

$ /usr/sbin/apache2 -f ~/apache2/apache2.conf -k start

You can stop the server with:

$ /usr/sbin/apache2 -f ~/apache2/apache2.conf -k stop

If you make configuration changes, you can restart the server with:

$ /usr/sbin/apache2 -f ~/apache2/apache2.conf -k restart

Testing and Debugging

Testing - html - You can create a test index.html file with:

$ echo Test html file > ~/apache2/html/index.html

If the server is running and everything is set up right, you will be able to access this test page using the url:

<a href="http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/" class="external-link" rel="nofollow">http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/<img class="rendericon" src="/confluence-prd/images/icons/linkext7.gif" height="7" width="7" align="absmiddle" alt="" border="0"/></a>

You will need to replace PORT with the port number you selected for your server.

Testing - php - You can create a test php file with:

$ echo '<?php phpinfo(); ?>' > ~/apache2/html/test.php

If the server is running and everything is set up right, you will be able to access this test php script using the url:

<a href="http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/test.php" class="external-link" rel="nofollow">http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/test.php<img class="rendericon" src="/confluence-prd/images/icons/linkext7.gif" height="7" width="7" align="absmiddle" alt="" border="0"/></a>

You will need to replace PORT with the port number you selected for your server. This test php script will display the php version details.

Testing - cgi - If you will be using cgi scripts, you can create a test script named ~/apache2/cgi-bin/test.cgi with the following contents:

#!/bin/bash
echo "Content-type: text/html"
echo
echo Test cgi script

This cgi script needs to executable, which you can do by running:

$ chmod +x ~/apache2/cgi-bin/test.cgi

Then enable the cgi module and restart the server:

$ ln -s ../mods-available/cgi.load ~/apache2/mods-enabled/cgi.load
$ ln -s ../mods-available/cgid.conf ~/apache2/mods-enabled/cgid.conf
$ /usr/sbin/apache2 -f ~/apache2/apache2.conf -k restart

If the server is running and everything is set up right, you will be able to access this test php script using the url:

<a href="http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/test.cgi" class="external-link" rel="nofollow">http://burrow.luddy.indiana.edu:PORT/test.cgi<img class="rendericon" src="/confluence-prd/images/icons/linkext7.gif" height="7" width="7" align="absmiddle" alt="" border="0"/></a>

Debugging - If you are getting server errors, you should consult the apache logs. These files are in ~/apache2/logs and server errors should be logged to the file name error.log.

Guide information

Guide manager: Rob Henderson
Last updated: June 2023

How do I set up a Web Server on the Burrow?

Scope

Web Server Configuration

Testing and Debugging

Guide information

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