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WebPlus is a free value added service that adds a number of features to your webspace and gives you your own cgi-bin, allowing you to run your own CGI scripts on your web site, together with a MySQL database
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Once you have activated WebPlus on your account, you can upload CGI scripts (Eg Perl), PHP or ASP scripts, into your WebPlus web space using FTP, and also use the MySQL database from your scripts or by using the web-based management tool, phpMyAdmin
To upload files (Eg CGI scripts) to WebPlus by FTP, please use the hostname
webplus.accountname (for example if your account is
bloggs.abel.co.uk, your FTP hostname would be webplus.bloggs.abel.co.uk),
and log in using your full account name as the user name
(bloggs.abel.co.uk), with your normal account password.
You must be connected to the Internet through our network in order to access
WebPlus FTP.
Once connected, you will see various subdirectories. CGI programs should be
uploaded into the cgi-bin directory; whereas PHP scripts, ASP scripts and any other files should go in docs. When uploading script files,
ensure that your FTP client is set to upload in ASCII mode to convert the
line endings correctly.
Once uploaded you may have to mark the CGI programs as executable. This can be done using the 'chmod' command available on most FTP clients. If you need to refer to any files or directories in your CGI scripts please ensure that you use relative paths.
CGI scripts will appear as http://webplus.account name/cgi-bin/script name,
any files in the docs directory will appear as
http://webplus.accountname/filename
If you need more help uploading the files have a look at the
question on uploading.
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CGI scripting is one method of building a dynamic web site that people can interact with. CGI scripts or CGI programs can be written to respond to user actions and generate web pages based on them, personalising the content of the site.
cgi-bin is the normal name for the directory of a website where these CGI scripts can be found. CGI scripts for WebPlus can be written in: Perl or Python.
WebPlus also supports Server Side Includes (SSI) , PHP and ASP
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Currently we use the following software versions -- Perl - 5.8.0
- Python - 2.2.2
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- Perl - /usr/bin/perl
- Python - /usr/bin/python
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Once you have registered for WebPlus you can upload your ASP files by directly dialling into 08456961001 and connecting to webplus.abel.co.uk with an FTP client (for example if your account name is bloggs.abel.co.uk your FTP hostname would be webplus.bloggs.abel.co.uk) using your full account name as the user name (bloggs.abel.co.uk) and your usual password. When uploading your ASP files you should ensure that your FTP client is set to upload in ASCII mode to convert the line endings correctly. Your ASP and associated files should be uploaded to the docs directory.
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Once uploaded you may have to mark the ASP files as executable. This can be done using the 'chmod' command available on most FTP clients.
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For more information on ASP please see Chilisoft's web site
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If you need help uploading the files have a look at the question on uploading above.
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MySQL databases are provided as part of WebPlus. If you have activated
WebPlus on your account, then you already have a database. To use your
database, you need to know your WebPlus ID number - this will be given to
you when you activate the service. If you've already activated Web Plus but
don't know your ID number, visiting the Activation
Page will give you your WebPlus ID again.
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To access your database, your scripts need to use webplusdb as the
hostname, your WebPlus ID (including the "webplus" prefix) as the username,
and your usual account password.
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We provide phpMyAdmin, an easy to use, web-based tool to enable you to fully
administer your database. To use phpMyAdmin, visit
http://webplus.accountname/dbadmin/, log in with your
WebPlus ID (including the "webplus" prefix) and your usual password, and
follow the instructions provided.
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You should ensure that you regularly backup the content of your
database, which you can do using phpMyAdmin (How do I administer my database?)
and selecting the "Export" option.
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These are an advanced feature that let you to modify the server configuration. You can create them in any directory inside your webspace; they only affect that immediate directory, not sub-directories. This is an example file:
ErrorDocument 404 /error404.html
DirectoryIndex default.htm
AddType model/vrml .wrl
The first line specifies a document to use when a 404 (file not found) error is encountered. The path to the document starts at the root of your webspace. Other common codes are 500 (internal server error, i.e. broken CGI script), and 401 (forbidden, i.e. wrong user name and password).
The second line specifies the default file to use in the directory should be default.htm instead of the usual index.html.
The third line defines the mime type for file with a .wrl extension. You only need to do this for obscure file types, as all the common ones are in the main server configuration. You can also use this directive to override the default mime types.
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First of all you need to create a .htpasswd file. This contains a list of user names and passwords. The easiest way to generate this is to install Apache on your workstation, and use the htpasswd command-line tool. You can then upload it using FTP, we suggest to the docs directory in your webspace. Next, put these lines in the .htaccess file for the directory you want to protect:
AuthName secure
AuthType basic
AuthUserFile /data/clients/webplus/content/webplus.YOUR.DOMAIN.NAME/docs/.htpasswd
Require valid-user
You need to change YOUR.DOMAIN.NAME appropriately, and will need to change the path if you've used a directory other than docs. The AuthName line can be any string you like - it's just a name that is displayed to the end-user.
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The full details are in the Apache documentation. Note that the AllowOverride command in force is: AllowOverride FileInfo AuthConfig Limit.
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| Please note that these services are provided on a DIY basis and as an added value feature to your account. Additional support is available on a consultancy basis. For a quotation please email support@abel.co.uk |
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