How This Book Is Organized

This book is broken up into twelve chapters and two appendixes, as follows:

Chapter 1 covers the basics of installing the vanilla Apache software, from source on Unixish systems, and on Windows from the Microsoft Software Installer (MSI) package built by the Apache developers.

Chapter 2 describes the details of installing some of the most common third-party modules, and includes generic instructions that apply to many others that have less complex installation needs.

Chapter 3 includes recipes about recording the visits to your web site(s), and Apache's error logging mechanism.

Chapter 4 tells you how to run multiple web sites using a single Apache server and set of configuration files.

Chapter 5 describes how to manipulate URLs, how to control which files they refer to, how to change them from one thing to another, and how to make them point to other web sites.

Chapter 6 covers some of the basic issues of securing your Apache server against penetration and exposure by the nefarious elements on the Internet.

Chapter 7 addresses the issues of making your Apache web server capable of handling secure transactions with SSL-capable browsers—a must if you're going to be handling sensitive data such as money transfers or medical records.

Chapter 8 tells you how to enhance your server with runtime scripts and make them operate as a particular user.

Chapter 9 describes how to customize the web server's error messages to give your site its own unique flavor.

Chapter 10 describes how to configure your Apache server to act as a proxy between users and web pages and make the processes as transparent and seamless as possible.

Chapter 11 includes a number of recipes for addressing performance bottlenecks and improving the overall function of your Apache server.

Chapter 12 covers a variety of miscellaneous topics that didn't seem to fit into any of the other chapters.

Appendix A explains how regular expressions are used for pattern-matching in Apache directives.

Appendix B covers some basic troubleshooting techniques, where to look for messages, common configuration problems, etc.