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User's Guide for the WN server


Table of Contents

Chapter 1: An Overview of the WN Server

  1. How WN Works
  2. Features of WN
    1. Searching
    2. Parsed Text, Server-Side Includes and Wrappers
    3. Filters
    4. Ranges

Chapter 2: Installation and Setup of WN

  1. Installing the Software
    1. Configuring WN
    2. Building WN
  2. Running the Server as a Stand-alone Daemon
  3. Running the Server Under inetd(8)
  4. Your Hostname: What's in a Name?
  5. Testing Your Setup
  6. Shutting Down Your Server
  7. Managing Log Files
  8. Trouble Shooting

Chapter 3: Creating Your WN Data Directory

  1. The index.wn file
  2. File Ownership and Permissions
  3. Using the wndex Utility
  4. The Directory Record
  5. File Records
  6. Your Default Page
  7. Serving Files not Listed in an index.wn File
  8. Customized Error Messages

Chapter 4: Security on the WN Server

  1. External Threats
    1. Protecting Your index.cache Files
    2. CGI Programs
  2. Internal Threats
  3. Password Authentication and Restriction by IP Address
  4. Some Recommended Security Configurations
    1. Forbid CGI and Only Maintainer Trusted
    2. Only Maintainer or Maintainer Group Trusted
    3. Restricted User Serving Privileges
  5. Other WN Security Measures

Chapter 5: Setting Up Searches on the WN Server

  1. Title Searches
  2. Keyword Searches
  3. Title/Keyword Searches
  4. Fielded Searches for User Supplied Fields
  5. Context Searches
  6. Grep Searches
  7. Line Searches
  8. File Context and Grep Searches
  9. Search a Directory or Search a Hierarchy?
  10. List Searches
  11. Index Searches
  12. Search Modes
  13. Searchwrappers

Chapter 6: Parsed Text and Server Side Includes on the WN Server

  1. Wrappers, Includes, and List-Includes
  2. Simple Including
  3. Conditional Text: If, Else, and Endif
  4. Conditional Text and Access Control Files
  5. Logical Operations in If Conditions
  6. More on Including: the section Marker
  7. Wrapping Files
  8. Search Wrappers
  9. Nested Including and Wrapping
  10. Including Title, Query, Fields and Environment Variables

Chapter 7: User Defined Fields on the WN Server

Chapter 8: Filters on the WN Server

  1. Processing a File as it is Served
  2. Filters as a Substitute for CGI Programs

Chapter 9: Ranges on the WN Server

  1. URL Range Parameters
  2. The "Range:" Header
  3. The wn_mkdigest Utility

Chapter 10: Limiting Access to Your WN Hierarchy

  1. Access Control Files: Limiting Access by Hostname or IP Address
    1. Privileged Sites
    2. Customized Error Messages
  2. Limiting Access by Password Authentication

Chapter 11: Users' Hierarchies and Personal Home Pages on the WN Server

  1. Hierarchies in User Home Directories
  2. Alternate Hierarchies From a Table Lookup

Chapter 12: Multi-homed or Virtual Servers on the WN Server

  1. One Server per Virtual Host
  2. A Single Server with Multiple Virtual Hosts
    1. Using a Virtual Hosts List File
    2. Compiling in the List of Virtual Hosts

Chapter 13: WN Utility Programs

  1. wn_mkdigest
  2. wnpnuts
  3. wnindexmaker
  4. wn_uncache
  5. wnv2c
  6. wnredir

Chapter 14: WN Auxiliary Modules

  1. Database Modules
  2. File Modules
  3. Authorization Modules
  4. Index Search Modules

Chapter 15: Clickable Images and Imagemap Files on the WN Server

  1. The Steps in Setting up a Clickable Image
    1. Create an Image
    2. Create a Map File
    3. Install the Image and Map File on Your Server
    4. Put a Link to Your Image Map in Your HTML Document
  2. The Format of an Image Map File
    1. defaultq keyword
    2. rect keyword
    3. circle keyword
    4. poly keyword
    5. point keyword
    6. nocoords keyword
  3. The URL Format in an Imagemap File

Chapter 16: Using CGI Programs on the WN Server

  1. Do You Need a CGI Program?
  2. How Does the Server Recognize a CGI Program?
  3. How Does a CGI Program Work?
  4. CGI Handlers
  5. How Can CGI Programs be Made Safe?

Chapter 17: Support for the WN Server and Thanks

  1. Support
  2. Thanks

Appendix A.1: Command Line Options for the WN Server

Appendix A.2: Command Line Options for WN Server wndex Utility

Appendix B: Index File Directives for the WN Server

  1. Directory Directives
  2. File Directives

Appendix C: Parsed Document Syntax for the WN Server

  1. Matching Regular Expressions: #if and #elif
    1. #if and #elif Conditions
    2. Access Control Files
  2. Inserting the Contents of a File
  3. Conditional Redirecting

Appendix D: CGI and Other Environment Variables for the WN Server

  1. Standard CGI Variables
  2. WN Specific CGI Variables
  3. WN Specific Database Variables

Appendix E: Creating User Home Pages for the WN Server

  1. Getting Started
  2. Granting Access to Your Home Page
    1. A Lazy Way
    2. A Better Way
  3. What's Your URL
  4. Advanced Features
  5. HTML References

Appendix F: MD5 Digests of Recent WN releases

Appendix G: Configuration Macros for WN

Appendix H: Default Index Cache Files

Appendix I: How the Index to WN User's Guide Server Works

Appendix J: Colophon for the WN User's Guide

Index of the WN User's Guide


The Complete User's Guide for the WN server

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Return to the WN Home Page


WN version 2.5.0
Copyright © 1998-2005 John Franks <john@math.northwestern.edu>
licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License
Last modified: Sat June 18 2005
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