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iPlanet Web Server, Enterprise Edition Administrator's Guide



Chapter 1   Introduction to iPlanet Web Server


This chapter introduces iPlanet Web Server and discusses some of the fundamental server concepts. Read it to obtain an overview of how iPlanet Web Server works.

This chapter includes the following sections:



iPlanet Web Server

iPlanet Web Server, Enterprise Edition 6.0 is a multi-process, multi-threaded, secure web server built on open standards. It provides high performance, reliability, scalability, and manageability for any size enterprise.

This section includes the following topics:


iPlanet Web Server Features

iPlanet Web Server is primarily designed to provide access to your business HTML files. In addition, it offers the following features:

  • Enterprise-wide manageability—Including delegated administration, cluster management, and LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) support. LDAP integration with Directory Server enables you to store users and groups in a centralized directory. In addition, you can monitor your server in real-time by using the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). SNMP is a protocol used to exchange data about network activity.Note that in order to add users and groups to iPlanet Web Server, you must have a directory server installed, such as iPlanet Directory Server. See the iPlanet Web Server Installation and Migration Guide for more information.

  • Security— Users can establish encrypted and authenticated transactions between clients and the server through the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) 3.0 protocol. In addition, iPlanet Web Server employs the following security-based standards: Public Key Cryptography Standard (PKCS) #11, which defines the interface used for communication between SSL and PKCS #11 modules; Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)-140; and special certificates that work with 56, 128, or 168 bits, depending on the capability of the client.

  • Access control—You can protect confidential files or directories by implementing access control (viewing, editing, and version control) by user name, password, domain name, or IP address. This feature also represents another aspect of the NSAPI Content Management plug-in, which enables an end user (the owner of a document) to set access control on a document, rather than having to ask the administrator to accomplish the task.

  • High performance—Delivers high performance for dynamic and secure content with features such as HTTP1.1, multi-threading, and support for SSL hardware accelerators.

  • Standards-based— iPlanet Web Server includes support for a wide range of web software standards, including: JDK 1.2; Servlets 2.2; JavaServer Pages 1.1; HTTP 1.1; and various security-based standards, including PKCS #11, FIPS-140, and 168-bit step-up certificates.

  • Server-side Java Servlet and JavaServer Pages support—enables development of server plugins, dynamic content, presentation logic, and JDBC database access.

  • Additional features—Support for multiple processes and process monitors, failover, automatic recovery, and dynamic log rotation.


Administering and Managing iPlanet Web Servers

You can manage your iPlanet Web Server(s) via the following user interfaces:

  • iPlanet Web Server Administration Server

  • Server Manager

  • Class Manager

  • Virtual Server Manager

In previous releases, the Enterprise Server and other Netscape servers were administered by a single server, called the Administration Server. In the 4.x release, the "administration server" became simply an additional instance of the iPlanet Web Server, called iPlanet Web Server Administration Server, or Administration Server. You use the Administration Server to administer all of your iPlanet Web Server instances. For more information, see Administration Server.

For managing individual instances of iPlanet Web Server, you can use the Server Manager. For more information, see Server Manager.To manage virtual servers, use the Class Manager. For more information, see Dynamic Reconfiguration.



iPlanet Web Server Architecture


iPlanet Web Server incorporates a modular architecture that integrates seamlessly with all of the products in the iPlanet family of servers. In addition, iPlanet Web Server includes an administration server interface for coordinating administrative functions across all of your web servers. Note that this administrative interface is itself another instance of iPlanet Web Server.

iPlanet Web Server includes the following software modules:

These server modules are described in the following sections.


Content Engines

iPlanet Web Server content engines are designed for manipulating customer data. The following three content engines make up the Web Publishing layer of the iPlanet Web Server architecture: HTTP (Web Server), Content Management, and Search.

The HTTP engine represents the core of the iPlanet Web Server. From a functional perspective, the rest of the iPlanet Web Server architecture resides on top of this engine for performance and integration functionality.

The Content Management engine enables you to manage your server's content. You create and store HTML pages, JavaServer Pages, and other files such as graphics, text, sound, or video on your server. When clients connect to your server, they can view your files provided they have access to them.

The Search engine enables iPlanet Web Server users to search the contents and attributes of documents on the server. As the server administrator, you can create a customized text search interface that works with various types of documents formats, such as HTML, Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, and WordPerfect. iPlanet Web Server converts many types of non-HTML documents into HTML as it indexes them so that users can use your web browser to view the documents that are found for their search.


Server Extensions

The iPlanet Web Server extensions enable you to extend or replace the function of the server to better suit your business operations. The following server extensions are part of the core iPlanet Web Server architecture:

  • Common Gateway Interface (CGI)

  • Netscape Server Application Programming Interface (NSAPI)

  • Java Servlets and JavaServer Pages

Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is a stand-alone application development interface that enables you to create programs that process your client requests dynamically.

Netscape Server Application Programming Interface (NSAPI) is used to implement the functions the server calls when processing a request (Server Application Functions) which provide the core and extended functionality of the iPlanet Web Server. It allows the server's processing of requests to be divided into small steps which may be arranged in a variety of ways for speed and flexible configuration.

Java Servlets and JavaServer Pages extensions enable all Java servlet and JavaServer page meta-functions, including instantiation, initialization, destruction, access from other components, and configuration management. Java servlets and JavaServer pages, are reusable Java applications that run on a web server rather than in a web browser.


Runtime Environments

In addition to the various server extensions, iPlanet Web Server includes a set of runtime environments which support the server extensions. These runtime environments include the following:

  • CGI Processor

  • NSAPI Engine

  • Java Virtual Machine (JVM)


Application Services

Finally, the iPlanet Web Server architecture includes a set of application services for various application-specific functions. These application services include the following:

  • Security & Access Control

  • Session Management Service

  • File System Service

  • Mail Service



iPlanet Web Server Configuration

iPlanet Web Server is configured to enable you to turn on or off various features, determine how to respond to individual client requests, and write programs that run on and interact with the server's operation. The instructions (called directives) which identify these options are stored in configuration files. iPlanet Web Server reads the configuration files on startup and during client requests to map your choices with the desired server activity. For more information about these files, see iPlanet Web Server Configuration Files.

The server includes a number configuration files which are stored in server_root/https-server_id/config and server_root/https-admserv/config when installed on your computer.

This section includes the following topics:


iPlanet Web Server Component Options

The following component options are available when you install iPlanet Web Server:

  • iPlanet Web Server Core

  • Java Runtime Environment

  • Java and Servlets

  • SNMP


iPlanet Web Server Configuration Files

iPlanet Web Server includes a variety of configuration files that enable you to set various global variables, and to customize how the server responds to specific events and client requests. You can modify the configuration files automatically using the Administrator Server, Server Manager, and Class Manager user interface, or by editing the files directly using a text editor.

The main iPlanet Web Server configuration files are: magnus.conf, obj.conf, mime.types, server.xml, and admpw. These configuration files are described in this section.

Note There are a number of configuration files iPlanet Web Server uses when your server is set up as part of a cluster of iPlanet Web Servers (these files include a .clfilter file extension). For more information regarding how you can configure a cluster of iPlanet Web Servers, including important guidelines, see About Clusters.


magnus.conf: contains global server configuration information (such as security and default language selection). This file sets the values for variables that configure the server during initialization. iPlanet Web Sever reads this file and executes the variable settings on startup. The server does not read this file again until it is restarted, so you must restart the server every time you make changes to this file.

For more information, see NSAPI Programmer's Guide for iPlanet Web Server

obj.conf: object configuration file. There is one obj.conf file for each virtual server class, or grouping of virtual servers. Whenever this guide refers to "the obj.conf file," it refers to all obj.conf files or to the obj.conf file for the virtual server class being described. All the obj.conf files are located in server_root/server_id/config. They are typically named vsclass.obj.conf, where vsclass is the virtual server class name.

The obj.conf file contains settings for server customization, and instructions that the server uses to process requests from clients (such as browsers). Each virtual server reads this file every time it processes a client request.

For more information about the actual file syntax and the specific directives used by the obj.conf and magnus.conf configuration files, see the NSAPI Programmer's Guide.

server.xml: configures the addresses and ports that the server listens on and assigns virtual server classes and virtual servers to these listen sockets. For more information, see the NSAPI Programmer's Guide.

mime.types: the MIME (Multi-purpose Internet Mail Extension) type configuration file. This file maps file extensions to MIME types, to enable the server to determine the type of content being requested. For example, requests for resources with .html extensions indicate that the client is requesting an HTML file, while requests for resources with .gif extensions indicate that the client is requesting an image file in GIF format.

For more information, see Specifying a Default MIME Type. Note that you must restart the server every time you make changes to this file.

admpw: the user name and password file for the Administrator Server superuser. For more information, see Changing the Superuser Settings.


Dynamic Reconfiguration

Dynamic reconfiguration allows you to make configuration changes to a live web server without having to stop and restart the web server for the changes to take effect. You can dynamically change all configuration settings and attributes in server.xml and its associated files without restarting the server.

To access the dynamic reconfiguration screen and install a new configuration dynamically, click the Apply link found in the upper right corner of the Server Manager, Class Manager, and Virtual Server Manager pages, then click the Load Configuration Files button on the Apply Changes page. If there are errors in installing the new configuration, the previous configuration is restored.


Single-Server Configuration

If you have installed iPlanet Web Server on a single server machine, the installation process places all the files under the server root directory that you specified during installation.


All Platforms

For all platforms, the following directories are created under the server root directory:

  • alias contains the key and certificate files for all iPlanet servers (for example, https-admserv-server_id-cert7.db and secmod.db).

  • bin contains the binary files for the server, such as the actual server, the Administration Server forms, and so on. In addition, this directory includes the https/install folder that contains files needed for migrating server settings and default configuration files needed for backward compatibility.

  • docs is the server's default primary document directory, where your server's content files are usually kept. If you are migrating settings from an existing server, this directory doesn't appear until you finish the migration process.

  • extras contains the log analyzer and log analysis tools.

    • The flexanlg directory contains a command-line log analyzer. This log analyzer analyzes files in flexlog format.

    • The log_anly directory contains the log analysis tool that runs through the Server Manager. This log analyzer analyzes files in common log format only.

  • httpacl contains the files that store access control configuration information in the generated.server-id.acl and genwork.server-id.acl files. The file generated.server-id.acl contains changes you make using the Server Manager access control forms after saving your changes; genwork.server-id.acl contains your changes before you save your changes.

  • https-admserv contains the directories for the Administration Server. This directory has the following subdirectories and files:

    • For Unix/Linux platforms, this directory contains shell scripts to start, stop, and restart the server and a script to rotate log files.

    • ClassCache contains classes and Java files, generated as result of the compilation of JavaServer pages.

    • conf_bk contains backup copies of the administration server's configuration files.

    • config contains the server's configuration files: admpw, admin.conf, cluster.xml, contexts.properties, cron.conf, dsgw.conf, dsgwfilter.conf, dsgw-language.conf, dsgw-orgperson.conf, dsgwserarchprefs.conf, jvm12.conf, magnus.conf, magnus.conf.clfilter, mime.types, ns-cron.conf, obj.conf, obj.conf.clfilter, server.dtd, servers.lst, server.xml, server.xml.clfilter, servlets.properties, ssl.xml, user-apps.xml, userclass.obj.conf, and web-apps.xml. Working copies are kept here. For more information on magnus.conf and obj.conf, see the NSAPI Programmer's Guide for iPlanet Web Server.

    • logs contains any error or access log files.

    • SessionData contains session database data from MMapSessionManager.

    • startsvr.bat is the script that starts the Server Manager on Windows NT machines. The Server Manager lets you configure all servers installed in the server root directory.

    • stopsvr.bat is the script that stops the Server Manager on Windows NT machines.

  • https-server_id.domain are the directories for each server you have installed on the machine. Each server directory has the following subdirectories and files:

    • ClassCache contains classes and Java files, generated as result of the compilation of JavaServer pages.

    • conf_bk contains backup copies of the server's configuration files.

    • config contains the server instance configuration files.

    • logs contains the server instance log files.

    • reconfig is the script used to reconfigure the server dynamically. If you make non-global changes to the server, you can use this script to reconfigure the server without stopping and starting it. Note that changes to ACL files and magnus.conf require you to stop and restart the server.

    • restart is the script that restarts the server.

    • rotate rotates server log files without affecting users who may be connected to the server.

    • search contains the following directories: admin and collections

    • SessionData contains session database data from MMapSessionManager.

    • startsvr.bat is the script that starts the Server Manager. The Server Manager lets you configure all servers installed in the server root directory.

    • stopsvr.bat is the script that stops the Server Manager.

  • manual contains the online manuals for the product.

  • plugins contains directories for Java, search, and other plugins. This directory has the following subdirectories:

    • htaccess contains server plugin for .htaccess access control and htconvert, an .nsconfig to .htaccess converter.

    • digest contains the Digest Authentication Plugin for iPlanet Directory Server 5.0, as well as information about the plugin.

    • samples contains samples and example components, plugins and technologies supported by the iPlanet Web Server servlet engine. This includes binaries, all code, and a build enviroment.

    • servlets contains information about and examples of web-apps applications.

    • include contains various include files.

    • lib contains shared libraries.

    • nsacl contains information for your server's access control lists.

    • loadbal contains the required files for the Resonate load-balancer integration plugin.

    • nsapi contains header files and example code for creating your own functions using NSAPI. For more information, see the iPlanet documentation web site at: http://docs.iplanet.com/docs/manuals/enterprise.html.

    • search contains information for your server's search plugins.

    • snmp contains information for your server's SNMP plugins.

  • setup contains the various iPlanet Web Server setup files, including setup.log and uninstall.inf.

  • userdb contains user databases and related information.

  • LICENSE.txt is the license file.

  • README.txt is the readme filethat contains a link to the iPlanet Web Server Release Notes.


Unix and Linux Platforms

In addition to the files and directories described in All Platforms the following files are created at the server-root directory for Unix and Linux platforms:

  • startconsole launches a browser to the Administration Server page.

The following files are created under the server-root/https-admserv directory for Unix and Linux platforms:

    • ClassCache contains classes and Java files, generated as result of the compilation of JavaServer pages.

    • conf_bk contains backup copies of the server's configuration files.

    • config contains the Administration Server configuration files.

    • logs contains the Administration Server log files.

    • SessionData contains session database data from MMapSessionManager.

    • restart is the script that restarts the Server Manager.

    • start is the script that starts the Server Manager. The Server Manager lets you configure all servers installed in the server root directory.

    • stop is the script that stops the Server Manager.


Virtual Server Configuration

Virtual servers allow you, with a single installed server, to offer companies or individuals domain names, IP addresses, and some server administration capabilities. You can configure virtual servers using the Virtual tab of the Server Manager, as well as the Class Manager interface and the server.xml file. The settings for virtual servers are stored in the server.xml file, found in the server_root/server_id/config directory.

For more information, see "Using Virtual Servers".


Multiple-Server Configuration

You can have multiple web servers running on the same server machine. Multiple web servers can be configured from a single-server administration interface called the Administration Server



Administration Server


The Administration Server is a web-based server that contains the Java forms you use to configure all of your iPlanet Web Servers.

After installing iPlanet Web Server, you use your browser to navigate to the Administration Server page and use its forms to configure your iPlanet Web Servers. When you submit the forms, the Administration Server modifies the configuration for the server you were administering.

The URL you use to navigate to the Administration Server page depends on the computer host name and the port number you choose for the Administration Server when you install iPlanet Web Server. For example, if you installed the Administration Server on port 1234, the URL would look like this:

http://myserver.mozilla.com:1234

Before you can get to any forms, the Administration Server prompts you to authenticate yourself. This means you need to type a user name and password. You set up the "superuser" user name and password when you install iPlanet Web Server on your computer. After installation, you can use distributed administration to give multiple people access to different forms in the Administration Server. For more information about distributed administration, see "Allowing Multiple Administrators."

The first page you see when you access the Administration Server, is called Servers. You use the buttons on this page to manage, add, remove, and migrate your iPlanet Web Servers. The Administration Server provides the following tabs for your administration-level tasks:

  • Servers

  • Preferences

  • Global Settings

  • Users and Groups

  • Security

  • Cluster Mgmt (Cluster Management)
    Note You must enable cookies in your browser to run the CGI programs necessary for configuring your server.


For more information on using the Administration Server, including information regarding these administration-level tasks, see "Administering iPlanet Web Servers".



Server Manager


The Server Manager is a web-based interface that contains the Java forms you use to configure individual instances of iPlanet Web Server.

You can access the Server Manager for iPlanet Web Server by performing the following steps:

  1. Install and start your iPlanet Web Server.

    The Administration Server displays the Servers page.

  2. In the Manage Servers area, select the desired server and click Manage.

    iPlanet Web Server displays the Server Manager Preferences page.


    Note Note that you must enable cookies in your browser to run the CGI programs necessary for configuring your server.


You use the links on the Preferences page to manage options such as thread pool settings, and to turn the web server on and off.

In addition, the Server Manager provides the following tabs for additional iPlanet Web Server managerial tasks:

  • Security

  • Logs

  • Monitor

  • Virtual Server Class

  • Java

  • Legacy Servlets

  • Search

For more information, see the Server Manager in the online help.


Using the Resource Picker

Most of the Server Manager and Class Manager pages configure the entire iPlanet Web Server or an entire class. However, some pages can configure either the entire server (or class) or files and directories that the server (or class) maintains. These pages include the Resource Picker, shown in Figure 1-1, at the top.

Figure 1-1    Resource Picker

The Resource Picker appears on a number of pages, including the Server Manager's Log Preferences page and most screens accessible from the Class Manager's Content Management tab.

To use the Resource Picker, choose a resource from the drop-down list for configuration. Click Browse to browse your primary document directory; clicking Options allows you to choose other directories. Click Wildcard to configure files with a specific extension.


Wildcards Used in the Resource Picker

In many parts of the server configuration, you specify wildcard patterns to represent one or more items to configure. Please note that the wildcards for access control and text search may be different from those discussed in this section.

Wildcard patterns use special characters. If you want to use one of these characters without the special meaning, precede it with a backslash (\) character.



Class Manager


The Class Manager is a web-based interface that contains the Java forms you use to configure your virtual iPlanet Web Servers. The user interface for virtual servers has two parts, the Server Manager and the Class Manager. The Class Manager contains settings that affect a single class or single virtual server. You can set services for the class in the Class Manager, as well as add virtual servers (members of the class) and configure settings for an individual virtual server.

You can access the Class Manager for iPlanet Web Server by performing the following steps:

  1. From the Server Manager, click the Virtual Server Class tab.

    The Server Manager displays the Select a Class of Virtual Server page.

  2. From the drop-down list, select a virtual server class and click Manage.

    iPlanet Web Server displays the Class Manager's Select a Virtual Server page.

You can also access the Class Manager by simply clicking the Class Manager link in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.

The Class Manager provides the following tabs to manage your iPlanet Web Server virtual servers:

  • Virtual Servers

  • Programs

  • Content Management

  • Styles

For more information, see Class Manager in the online help.



Virtual Server Manager


To access the Virtual Server Manager, go to the Virtual Servers tab in the Class Manager, then select a virtual server from the list on the Manager Virtual Servers page and click Manage, or click on the link to a virtual server under the tree view.

The pages provided in the Virtual Server Manager allow you to check the status and settings, set the Java web applications state to on, and generate reports for the selected virtual server.

The Virtual server Manager provides the following tabs to manage your iPlanet Web Server virtual servers:

  • Preferences

  • Logs

  • Web Applications


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Copyright © 2001 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Some preexisting portions Copyright © 2001 Netscape Communications Corp. All rights reserved.

Last Updated May 09, 2002