Apache HTTP Server
Starting Apache
Invoking Apache
On Unix, the httpd
program is usually run as a daemon
which executes continuously, handling requests. It is possible to
invoke Apache by the Internet daemon inetd
each time a
connection to the HTTP service is made (use the ServerType directive) but this is
not recommended.
On Windows, Apache is normally run as a service on Windows NT, or as a
console application on Windows 95. See also running Apache for Windows.
Command line options
The following options are recognized on the httpd command line:
-d
serverroot
- Set the initial value for the
ServerRoot variable to
serverroot. This can be overridden by the ServerRoot command
in the configuration file. The default is
/usr/local/apache
on Unix, /apache
on
Windows and /os2httpd
on OS/2.
-D
name
- Define a name for use in in
IfDefine directives.
This option can be used to optionally enable certain functionality in the
configuration file, or to use a common configuration for
several independent hosts, where host specific information is enclosed in
<IfDefine> sections.
-f
config
- Execute the commands in the file config on startup. If
config does not begin with a
/
, then it is taken to be a
path relative to the ServerRoot. The
default is conf/httpd.conf
.
-C
"directive"
- Process the given apache "directive" (just as if it had been part of a
configuration file) before actually reading the regular configuration files.
-c
"directive"
- Process the given apache "directive" after reading
all the regular configuration files.
-X
- Run in single-process mode, for internal debugging purposes only; the
daemon does not detach from the terminal or fork any children. Do NOT
use this mode to provide ordinary web service.
-v
- Print the version of httpd and its build date, and then exit.
-V
- Print the base version of httpd, its
build date, and a list of compile time settings which influence the
behavior and performance of the apache server (e.g.,
-DUSE_MMAP_FILES),
then exit.
-L
-
Give a list of directives together with expected arguments and places
where the directive is valid, then exit. (Apache 1.3.4 and
later. Earlier versions used -l instead).
-l
-
Give a list of all modules compiled into the server, then exit.
(Apache 1.3.4 and later. Earlier versions used -h instead).
Give a list of directives together with expected arguments and places
where the directive is valid, then exit. (Apache 1.2 to 1.3.3. Later
versions use -L instead).
-h
-
Print a list of the httpd options, then exit. (Apache 1.3.4 and
later. Earlier versions used -? instead).
Give a list of all modules compiled into the server, then exit. (Up to
Apache 1.3.3. Later versions use -l instead).
-S
- Show the settings as parsed from the config file (currently only
shows a breakdown of the vhost settings) but do not start the
server. (Up to Apache 1.3.3, this option also started the server).
-t
- Test the configuration file syntax (i.e., read all configuration files
and interpret them) but do not start the server. If the configuration contains
errors, display an error message and exit with a non-zero exit status,
otherwise display "Syntax OK" and terminate with a zero exit status. This
command checks to see if all DocumentRoot entries exist and are directories.
For sites with many vhosts, this is expensive; consider the
-T
command instead.
-T
- Test the configuration file syntax (i.e., read all configuration files
and interpret them) but do not start the server. If the configuration contains
errors, display an error message and exit with a non-zero exit status,
otherwise display "Syntax OK" and terminate with a zero exit status. This
command does not perform any checking of the DocumentRoot entries.
-k
option
- Windows only: signal Apache to restart or shutdown. option
is one of "shutdown" or "restart". (Apache 1.3.3 and later).
-?
- Print a list of the httpd options, and then exit (up to Apache
1.3.3. Later version use -h instead).
Apache HTTP Server