Overview of the Oracle HTTP Server (OHS) Oracle Application Server Tips by Burleson Consulting

The Oracle HTTP Server (OHS) is built on Apache version 1.3 and is a very reliable, secure, and capable web server.  OHS (and Apache) is an extremely versatile web server, capable of handling multiple simultaneous requests in multiple languages and formats.  The Apache base that OHS is built upon has earned a solid reputation throughout the world for it?s capabilities and performance.  

For the most part, this chapter refers to the Oracle HTTP Server as OHS, however, many of the actual files refer to the server as Apache.   Because OHS is designed to be the front end to the application server, there are a number of additions to the base Apache server and a few features that are not implemented.  An example of this is starting and stopping OHS. While the Apache server can be started from the command prompt and can be passed parameters at startup, OHS is normally started and monitored by the opmnclt script as part of the 9i Application Server, and the opmn must pass startup parameters to OHS.   

Additional Information

This chapter is focused on how to administer and maintain the Oracle HTTP Server.  The best place for additional information is Oracle HTTP Server Administration Guide.  And since OHS is built on the Apache 1.3 server you can also find information in the online documentation at www.apache.org.

Managing the Oracle HTTP Server

In early versions of Oracle9iAS, OHS  (with a standard Apache server) was started and stopped using the httpd command located in the $ORACLE_HOME/Apache/Apache/bin directory.  Oracle9iAS 9.0.4 uses the apachectl script (located in the same directory). However, when used, it returns a warning not to use apachectl, but to instead use the $ORACLE_HOME/dcm/dcmctl script.  The best way to insure that the application server starts up all parts, including OHS, is to use the $ORACLE_HOME/opmn/bin/opmnctl script, passing it the startall or stopall parameters.  This is because OHS is an integral part of the application server - stopping just OHS will cause problems in the instance.  Also, opmn monitors the processes and may restart OHS if it detects it is down.  Thus, it is recommended that the instance be brought down using opmn if you need to bring down or restart OHS from the command line.  Once running, OHS is easily configured, started or stopped using the Enterprise Manager web site.  Using Enterprise Manager is discussed later in this chapter. 

When OHS starts, it begins as a single parent process that writes its operating system pid in the file httpd.pid.  The parent process spawns a number of child processes that are used to handle client requests.  As the server runs, the parent process checks the number of idle child processes and either adds processes (if there are too few) or destroys processes (if there are too many) to insure that the server is ready to respond instantly to a request and is not wasting server resources with too many idle processes. 

When OHS starts, the configuration information is obtained from a file called httpd.conf, which is located in the $ORACLE_HOME/Apache/Apache/conf directory.  On an Apache server, this file can be moved and the new location passed into the server as a startup parameter.  Since OHS is started and monitored by the opmn program, the configuration file should remain where it was installed. 

The httpd.conf file is discussed in detail later in this chapter.  The Apache server that OHS is built on provides a basic framework and then expands its capabilities by utilizing modules.  This modular structure allows the administrator to add or remove capabilities to the base server as needed. 

Note: The Distributed Configuration Management utility maintains a repository of configuration data.  If you manually update the configuration files, you must update the repository.  To execute this update use the command: dcmctl ?updateConfig ?ct ohs.  If you update the configuration using Enterprise Manager the repository is automatically updated for you.

Oracle HTTP Server Modules

The OHS uses modules to add capabilities to the base server.  Some modules are self-contained, while others rely on separate modules, and some call external programs.  Each module adds features to implement a specific function.  There are nearly 50 core modules in a basic Apache server, while OHS adds additional modules to support specific 9iAS features. 

Each module may add new directives that need to be defined in the httpd.conf file.  The httpd.conf file contains a number of directives, enclosed within IfModules, that load parameters only if that module is loaded.  Modules are not actually loaded at startup.  OHS scans the module?s file and loads headers that will call the module if its functionality is required. 

Below is a brief list of some of the main modules and the functions they add to the basic server.  Many will be discussed in greater detail in the configuration file section. Because the function of an application server is to support Enterprise Applications using J2EE, mod_jserv and mod_oc4j are discussed in detail in Chapters 6 and 7.

 

Module Type

Module Name

Module Function

Security

mod_access

Access Control based on client host name or IP

 

mod_auth

Authentication using text files

 

mod_auth_anon

Anonymous user authentication

 

mod_ssl

SSL Certificates

 

mod_osso

Provides integration with Single Sign On

Configuration

mod_actions

Execution of CGI scripts

 

mod_alias

Maps directories into the document tree and URL redirecting

 

mos_setenvif

Sets environmental variables based on the request

 

mod_dir

Supports trailing slash redirects and directory index files

 

mod_headers

Supports customization of HTTP response headers

Debug

mod_log_config

Supports logging of request.

 

mod_status

Presents current server performance statistics

Response

mod_mime

Determination of file types from file name

 

mod_negotiation

Supports selecting the best from multiple documents that support user?s capabilities

URL_Changes

mod_rewrite

Rule base rewriting engine to rewrite request on the fly

 

mod_userdir

Support user_specific directories

Language

mod_perl

Forwards perl scripts to the PERL interpreter

 

mod_jserv

Forwards servlet request  and handles response

 

mod_oc4j

Routes request to OC4J instances, also supports load balancing.

 

mod_plsql

Forward plsql request to the Oracle database engine for execution of stored procedures

 

mod_include

Server-parsed HTML

 

mod_CGI

Execution of CGI scripts

Session

mod_unique_id

Supports unique identifiers for certain request

 

mod_usertrack

Supports user tracking using cookies

Performance

mod_proxy

Supports caching proxy server

In this chapter and throughout the book some modules will be discussed in detail.  For detailed information on each module refer to the Oracle HTTP Server Administration Guide.

 

This is an excerpt from "Oracle 10g Application Server Administration Handbook" by Don Burleson and John Garmany.