[Isis-users] ABCD en un server real

Tue Dec 11 12:04:21 CET 2012

Dear Mr Wenke,

If the administrator of a webhosting service does not allow you to add a few lines to the httpd.conf (a text page) which gives directives to the executable applications of ABCD (in the cgi-bin folder), you cannot make the ABCD work like a website, as far as I could understand. 

Some hosting services, particularly the low paid ones, do not allow its service users to make any such changes. They provide access to the htdocs folder (the root folder) alone. One can create a website with html pages by just uploading the files to the root folder alone and without making any changes in the server configuration.  Similarly once can upload a Content Management System like Drupal/Joomla/Word press because almost every web server will have Apache, PHP and MySql pre-installed.  

But to install software like Greenstone/ABCD, it is necessary to make changes in the configuration file, as well.

Regards,

K Rajasekharan
KILA, Mulagunnathukavu

From: Wenke Adam 
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2012 7:36 PM
To: De Smet Egbert 
Cc: CDS/ISIS Liste 
Subject: Re: [Isis-users] ABCD en un server real

Egbert, 

As I understand it, doses your reply indirectly indicate that if the commercial hosting service is not willing to add anything to the httpd.conf file, nor restart Apache, then the wxis based applications will not work?

wenke

2012/12/10 De Smet Egbert <egbert.desmet at ua.ac.be>

  Reply to Wenke about Virtual Host in Apache for ABCD :

  - make sure the httpd.conf (main configuration file of Apache in conf-subfolder of Apache) contains the following line somewhere (e.g. at the end) :
  Include conf/extra/httpd-vhosts-abcd.conf
  - in the subfolder of 'conf' named 'extra', create a file named httpd-vhosts-abcd.conf which defines DocumentRoot and ScriptAlias for ABCD, see the attached example (taken from the new ABCD-version which will use this configuration) in which you have to check and edit the paths for your local situation.

  Restart Apache in order to re-load the configuration. The first step above means the system is told to read the configuration file specifically for ABCD found in the extra-subfolder, then in that specific configuration file Apache finds DocumentRoot and ScriptAlias defined for ABCD. In the sample file it is assumed you want to run ABCD on port 9090 because of the statement
  <VirtualHost *:9090>
  where you could of course also indicate another port (e.g. 80) to which Apache is told to 'listen' in its main configuration file.

  If one wants to use several applications with several ports (e.g. one with port 80, one with port 9090), a file ports.conf can be used, also to be added in the main file by an 'include' statement, to list the different 'listen' statements.

  Egbert de Smet
  IOIW / U&S
  Universiteit Antwerpen
  ________________________________________
  From: isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org [isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org] on behalf of Leyla Schön [l.schoen at bzfo.de]

  Sent: Monday, December 10, 2012 9:13 AM

  To: CDS/ISIS Liste
  Subject: Re: [Isis-users] ABCD en un server real

  >What happens if you want to use a commercial web hosting service, such as dreamhost or similar, where you are given a space where you can upload your >applications, but no direct access to the configuration file of Apache or its equivalent nor direct dialog with the administrators?

  Dear Wenke:

  This is exactly my problem: our recent provider is rejecting certain scripts and that is why I am trying to have an own windows server now...

  By the way Abel was recommending siteground as a hosting service...

  Egbert: Thank you very much for your repeated and continuous help!

  Sincere regards

  Leyla

  Am 07.12.2012 21:50, schrieb Wenke Adam:
  Estimado at s:

  El tema ha sido ventilado antes, pero según he entendido, siempre en el contexto en que la persona que administra el ABCD también tiene acceso al servidor, ya sea como administrador directo del Apache o programa equivalente, o si no, por lo menos con un diálogo fluido con los administradores institucionales de manera a poder editar/hacer editar el archivo de configuración del servidor web para incluir las respectivas rutas, puertos, alias, etc que lleven a nuestra aplicación.

  ¿Qué sucede en el caso de usar un servicio comercial, tipo Dreamhost, en que la empresa nos otorga un espacio al que podemos subir nuestras aplicaciones, pero no nos permite acceso directo al servidor web ni a su configuración, ni diálogo con los administradores?

  ¿Sería posible hacer funcionar el ABCD en estas condiciones?

  Y qué sucede con aplicaciones más antiguas, tales como GenisisWeb que genera aplicaciones usando wwwisis en vez de wxis? ¿Podrían funcionar así?

  Agradecería muchísimo si alguien me pudiera aclarar este tema.
  Gracias
  Wenke

  Dear friends:
  This issue has been discussed more than a few times before, but, as far as I have understood it until now, always in the context that the ABCD administrator also has access to the webserver, either directly or at least through a fluid contact with the institutional administrators, in order to have the relevant paths, ports, aliases, etc. included in the server's configuration file.

  What happens if you want to use a commercial web hosting service, such as dreamhost or similar, where you are given a space where you can upload your applications, but no direct access to the configuration file of Apache or its equivalent nor direct dialog with the administrators?

  Would it be possible to make ABCD work under these conditions?

  And, would it work for older applications, such as GenIsisWeb, that uses wwwisis instead of wxis?

  I would be very greatful if someone could explain this to me.
  Thanks

  Wenke

  Basically, what I don´t understand is the following, see my comments in red/bold:

  A quite practical way of doing things is the idea of 'virtual hosts' : you put a specific configuration file for ABCD (defining DocumentRoot and ScriptAlias) inside a subfolder of the configuration folder and tell the system to read all those files as part of the configuration by 'including' the folder itself. In a subfolder of which configuration folder? The webserver's configuration folder? How do I "tell the system"?
  Each of the files there identify the virtual folder by name or by port.

  Regards
  Wenke

  2012/12/6 De Smet Egbert <egbert.desmet at ua.ac.be<mailto:egbert.desmet at ua.ac.be>>

  This issue has been discussed a few times before.
  The general idea is that when installing ABCD on a 'real' server (meaning mostly : a 'dedicated' server for web-applications), it behaves very much like any other web-application running under a CGI-capable web-server (e.g. Apache but also IIS).
  But mostly in such cases the administrator of the server will decide on how to install it and probably do it him/herself, depending on local conditions of already installed server-configurations and other applications. Mostly administrators of servers will not accept you to tell them where and how to install the ABCD-system - which for that reason is quite flexible in installation requirements.
  That is why it is difficult to give exact instructions which work for all such local conditions.

  Generally there are 2 parameters to decide on : DocumentRoot and ScriptAlias. I am using the Apache vocabulary here but it is simliar in IIS, e.g. 'virtual folder' is used in IIS to allow defining folders outside the proper IIS-subfolders to be accessed by applications.
  The ABCD htdocs-folder is the one to become 'DocumentRoot' and the www/cgi-bin folder (with subfolders in the near future) will be the ScriptAlias where executables are allowed to run. So these are the two paths to note down and pass on to the server administrator. In principle they can be anywhere in the file-system but on a server won't be as the default configuration on a Windows personal computer : C:\ABCD\www. In Linux e.g. they could be in the folder /var/www/ABCD or /opt/ABCD.

  A quite practical way of doing things is the idea of 'virtual hosts' : you put a specific configuration file for ABCD (defining DocumentRoot and ScriptAlias) inside a subfolder of the configuration folder and tell the system to read all those files as part of the configuration by 'including' the folder itself.
  Each of the files there identify the virtual folder by name or by port.

  If so desired we could provide sample such configuration files, but always taking into account the chosen paths would have to be changed according to local conditions and policy of the server administrator.

  Egbert de Smet
  IOIW / U&S
  Universiteit Antwerpen
  ________________________________________

  From: isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org<mailto:isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org> [isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org<mailto:isis-users-bounces at iccisis.org>] on behalf of Leyla Schön [l.schoen at bzfo.de<mailto:l.schoen at bzfo.de>]

  Sent: Thursday, December 06, 2012 9:24 AM
  To: CDS/ISIS Liste
  Subject: Re: [Isis-users] ABCD en un server real

  very interesting question so I used google translate to read Luis' message.

  I would be interested in the answers as well

  Thanks

  Leyla Schoen

  Am 06.12.2012 00:11, schrieb Luis Peña:
  Veo que con mucha frecuencia que se pide ayuda sobre la configuración del ABCD en un servidor real.
  Por favor, alquien pudiera mandar un tutorial de como lo ha hecho en su institución.

  Seria bueno disponer de un manual con capturas de imágenes, de los procedimientos para configurar ABCD en un servidor real.

  Por ejemplo en mi institucion utilizan Internet Information Service, diseñado especialmente para ASP, a mi me gustaría tener algunas instrucciones.

  Pido esto por la colectividad que necesita montar ABCD en el server de su institucion, ya que ABCD viene listo para funcionar una PC local.

  Alguien se anima, por favor?

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  --
  Wenke Adam
  Asesora Sistemas de Doc & Inf
  Santiago
  Chile
  Cel: +56-9-890 21 630

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  _______________________________________________
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  To manage your own subscription options go to: http://lists.iccisis.org/listinfo/isis-users
  Or contact Henk Rutten: hlrutten at xs4all.nl

-- 
Wenke Adam
Asesora Sistemas de Doc & Inf
Santiago

Chile

Cel: +56-9-890 21 630

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