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8 <title>Configuration Files - Apache HTTP Server</title>
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15 <p class="apache">Apache HTTP Server Version 2.3</p>
16 <img alt="" src="../images/feather.gif" /></div>
17 <div class="up"><a href="./"><img title="<-" alt="<-" src="../images/left.gif" /></a></div>
19 <a href="http://www.apache.org/">Apache</a> > <a href="http://httpd.apache.org/">HTTP Server</a> > <a href="http://httpd.apache.org/docs/">Documentation</a> > <a href="../">Version 2.3</a></div><div id="page-content"><div id="preamble"><h1>Configuration Files</h1>
21 <p><span>Available Languages: </span><a href="../de/./configuring.html" hreflang="de" rel="alternate" title="Deutsch"> de </a> |
22 <a href="../en/./configuring.html" title="English"> en </a> |
23 <a href="../ja/./configuring.html" hreflang="ja" rel="alternate" title="Japanese"> ja </a> |
24 <a href="../ko/./configuring.html" hreflang="ko" rel="alternate" title="Korean"> ko </a></p>
27 <p>This document describes the files used to configure the Apache
30 <div id="quickview"><ul id="toc"><li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#main">Main Configuration Files</a></li>
31 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#syntax">Syntax of the Configuration Files</a></li>
32 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#modules">Modules</a></li>
33 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#scope">Scope of Directives</a></li>
34 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#htaccess">.htaccess Files</a></li>
36 <div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
38 <h2><a name="main" id="main">Main Configuration Files</a></h2>
40 <table class="related"><tr><th>Related Modules</th><th>Related Directives</th></tr><tr><td><ul><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_mime.html">mod_mime</a></code></li></ul></td><td><ul><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#ifdefine"><IfDefine></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#include">Include</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_mime.html#typesconfig">TypesConfig</a></code></li></ul></td></tr></table>
42 <p>Apache is configured by placing <a href="mod/directives.html">directives</a> in plain text
43 configuration files. The main configuration file is usually called
44 <code>httpd.conf</code>. The location of this file is set at
45 compile-time, but may be overridden with the <code>-f</code>
46 command line flag. In addition, other configuration files may be
47 added using the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#include">Include</a></code>
48 directive, and wildcards can be used to include many configuration
49 files. Any directive may be placed in any of these configuration
50 files. Changes to the main configuration files are only
51 recognized by Apache when it is started or restarted.</p>
53 <p>The server also reads a file containing mime document types;
54 the filename is set by the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_mime.html#typesconfig">TypesConfig</a></code> directive,
55 and is <code>mime.types</code> by default.</p>
56 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
58 <h2><a name="syntax" id="syntax">Syntax of the Configuration Files</a></h2>
61 <p>Apache configuration files contain one directive per line.
62 The back-slash "\" may be used as the last character on a line
63 to indicate that the directive continues onto the next line.
64 There must be no other characters or white space between the
65 back-slash and the end of the line.</p>
67 <p>Directives in the configuration files are case-insensitive,
68 but arguments to directives are often case sensitive. Lines
69 that begin with the hash character "#" are considered
70 comments, and are ignored. Comments may <strong>not</strong> be
71 included on a line after a configuration directive. Blank lines
72 and white space occurring before a directive are ignored, so
73 you may indent directives for clarity.</p>
75 <p>You can check your configuration files for syntax errors
76 without starting the server by using <code>apachectl
77 configtest</code> or the <code>-t</code> command line
79 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
81 <h2><a name="modules" id="modules">Modules</a></h2>
84 <table class="related"><tr><th>Related Modules</th><th>Related Directives</th></tr><tr><td><ul><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_so.html">mod_so</a></code></li></ul></td><td><ul><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#ifmodule"><IfModule></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_so.html#loadmodule">LoadModule</a></code></li></ul></td></tr></table>
86 <p>Apache is a modular server. This implies that only the most
87 basic functionality is included in the core server. Extended
88 features are available through <a href="mod/">modules</a> which can be loaded
89 into Apache. By default, a <a href="mod/module-dict.html#Status">base</a> set of modules is
90 included in the server at compile-time. If the server is
91 compiled to use <a href="dso.html">dynamically loaded</a>
92 modules, then modules can be compiled separately and added at
93 any time using the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_so.html#loadmodule">LoadModule</a></code>
95 Otherwise, Apache must be recompiled to add or remove modules.
96 Configuration directives may be included conditional on a
97 presence of a particular module by enclosing them in an <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#ifmodule"><IfModule></a></code> block.</p>
99 <p>To see which modules are currently compiled into the server,
100 you can use the <code>-l</code> command line option.</p>
101 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
102 <div class="section">
103 <h2><a name="scope" id="scope">Scope of Directives</a></h2>
106 <table class="related"><tr><th>Related Modules</th><th>Related Directives</th></tr><tr><td /><td><ul><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory"><Directory></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directorymatch"><DirectoryMatch></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#files"><Files></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#filesmatch"><FilesMatch></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#location"><Location></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#locationmatch"><LocationMatch></a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#virtualhost"><VirtualHost></a></code></li></ul></td></tr></table>
108 <p>Directives placed in the main configuration files apply to
109 the entire server. If you wish to change the configuration for
110 only a part of the server, you can scope your directives by
111 placing them in <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory"><Directory></a></code>, <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directorymatch"><DirectoryMatch></a></code>, <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#files"><Files></a></code>, <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#filesmatch"><FilesMatch></a></code>, <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#location"><Location></a></code>, and <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#locationmatch"><LocationMatch></a></code>
112 sections. These sections limit the application of the
113 directives which they enclose to particular filesystem
114 locations or URLs. They can also be nested, allowing for very
115 fine grained configuration.</p>
117 <p>Apache has the capability to serve many different websites
118 simultaneously. This is called <a href="vhosts/">Virtual
119 Hosting</a>. Directives can also be scoped by placing them
120 inside <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#virtualhost"><VirtualHost></a></code>
121 sections, so that they will only apply to requests for a
122 particular website.</p>
124 <p>Although most directives can be placed in any of these
125 sections, some directives do not make sense in some contexts.
126 For example, directives controlling process creation can only
127 be placed in the main server context. To find which directives
128 can be placed in which sections, check the <a href="mod/directive-dict.html#Context">Context</a> of the
129 directive. For further information, we provide details on <a href="sections.html">How Directory, Location and Files sections
131 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
132 <div class="section">
133 <h2><a name="htaccess" id="htaccess">.htaccess Files</a></h2>
136 <table class="related"><tr><th>Related Modules</th><th>Related Directives</th></tr><tr><td /><td><ul><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#accessfilename">AccessFileName</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code></li></ul></td></tr></table>
138 <p>Apache allows for decentralized management of configuration
139 via special files placed inside the web tree. The special files
140 are usually called <code>.htaccess</code>, but any name can be
141 specified in the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#accessfilename">AccessFileName</a></code>
142 directive. Directives placed in <code>.htaccess</code> files
143 apply to the directory where you place the file, and all
144 sub-directories. The <code>.htaccess</code> files follow the
145 same syntax as the main configuration files. Since
146 <code>.htaccess</code> files are read on every request, changes
147 made in these files take immediate effect.</p>
149 <p>To find which directives can be placed in
150 <code>.htaccess</code> files, check the <a href="mod/directive-dict.html#Context">Context</a> of the
151 directive. The server administrator further controls what
152 directives may be placed in <code>.htaccess</code> files by
153 configuring the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code>
154 directive in the main configuration files.</p>
156 <p>For more information on <code>.htaccess</code> files, see
157 the <a href="howto/htaccess.html">.htaccess tutorial</a>.</p>
159 <div class="bottomlang">
160 <p><span>Available Languages: </span><a href="../de/./configuring.html" hreflang="de" rel="alternate" title="Deutsch"> de </a> |
161 <a href="../en/./configuring.html" title="English"> en </a> |
162 <a href="../ja/./configuring.html" hreflang="ja" rel="alternate" title="Japanese"> ja </a> |
163 <a href="../ko/./configuring.html" hreflang="ko" rel="alternate" title="Korean"> ko </a></p>
164 </div><div id="footer">
165 <p class="apache">Copyright 2006 The Apache Software Foundation.<br />Licensed under the <a href="http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0">Apache License, Version 2.0</a>.</p>
166 <p class="menu"><a href="../mod/">Modules</a> | <a href="../mod/directives.html">Directives</a> | <a href="../faq/">FAQ</a> | <a href="../glossary.html">Glossary</a> | <a href="../sitemap.html">Sitemap</a></p></div>