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22 <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 2.5</a> > <a href="./">How-To / Tutorials</a></div><div id="page-content"><div id="preamble"><h1>Apache HTTP Server Tutorial: .htaccess files</h1>
24 <p><span>Available Languages: </span><a href="../en/howto/htaccess.html" title="English"> en </a> |
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31 <p><code>.htaccess</code> files provide a way to make configuration
32 changes on a per-directory basis.</p>
34 <div id="quickview"><ul id="toc"><li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#related">.htaccess files</a></li>
35 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#what">What they are/How to use them</a></li>
36 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#when">When (not) to use .htaccess files</a></li>
37 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#how">How directives are applied</a></li>
38 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#auth">Authentication example</a></li>
39 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#ssi">Server Side Includes example</a></li>
40 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#cgi">CGI example</a></li>
41 <li><img alt="" src="../images/down.gif" /> <a href="#troubleshoot">Troubleshooting</a></li>
42 </ul><ul class="seealso"><li><a href="#comments_section">Comments</a></li></ul></div>
43 <div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
45 <h2><a name="related" id="related">.htaccess files</a></h2>
46 <table class="related"><tr><th>Related Modules</th><th>Related Directives</th></tr><tr><td><ul><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/core.html">core</a></code></li><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_authn_file.html">mod_authn_file</a></code></li><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_authz_groupfile.html">mod_authz_groupfile</a></code></li><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_cgi.html">mod_cgi</a></code></li><li><code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_include.html">mod_include</a></code></li><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#accessfilename">AccessFileName</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#options">Options</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_mime.html#addhandler">AddHandler</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#sethandler">SetHandler</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_authn_core.html#authtype">AuthType</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_authn_core.html#authname">AuthName</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_authn_file.html#authuserfile">AuthUserFile</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_authz_groupfile.html#authgroupfile">AuthGroupFile</a></code></li><li><code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_authz_core.html#require">Require</a></code></li></ul></td></tr></table>
48 <div class="note">You should avoid using <code>.htaccess</code> files completely if you have access to
49 httpd main server config file. Using <code>.htaccess</code> files slows down your Apache http server.
50 Any directive that you can include in a <code>.htaccess</code> file is better set in a <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory">Directory</a></code> block, as it will have the same effect with better performance.</div>
51 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
53 <h2><a name="what" id="what">What they are/How to use them</a></h2>
56 <p><code>.htaccess</code> files (or "distributed configuration files")
57 provide a way to make configuration changes on a per-directory basis. A
58 file, containing one or more configuration directives, is placed in a
59 particular document directory, and the directives apply to that
60 directory, and all subdirectories thereof.</p>
62 <div class="note"><h3>Note:</h3>
63 <p>If you want to call your <code>.htaccess</code> file something
64 else, you can change the name of the file using the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#accessfilename">AccessFileName</a></code> directive. For example,
65 if you would rather call the file <code>.config</code> then you
66 can put the following in your server configuration file:</p>
68 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">AccessFileName .config</pre>
72 <p>In general, <code>.htaccess</code> files use the same syntax as
73 the <a href="../configuring.html#syntax">main configuration
74 files</a>. What you can put in these files is determined by the
75 <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> directive. This
76 directive specifies, in categories, what directives will be
77 honored if they are found in a <code>.htaccess</code> file. If a
78 directive is permitted in a <code>.htaccess</code> file, the
79 documentation for that directive will contain an Override section,
80 specifying what value must be in <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> in order for that
81 directive to be permitted.</p>
83 <p>For example, if you look at the documentation for the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#adddefaultcharset">AddDefaultCharset</a></code>
84 directive, you will find that it is permitted in <code>.htaccess</code>
85 files. (See the Context line in the directive summary.) The <a href="../mod/directive-dict.html#Context">Override</a> line reads
86 <code>FileInfo</code>. Thus, you must have at least
87 <code>AllowOverride FileInfo</code> in order for this directive to be
88 honored in <code>.htaccess</code> files.</p>
90 <div class="example"><h3>Example:</h3><table>
92 <td><a href="../mod/directive-dict.html#Context">Context:</a></td>
93 <td>server config, virtual host, directory, .htaccess</td>
97 <td><a href="../mod/directive-dict.html#Override">Override:</a></td>
102 <p>If you are unsure whether a particular directive is permitted in a
103 <code>.htaccess</code> file, look at the documentation for that
104 directive, and check the Context line for ".htaccess".</p>
105 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
106 <div class="section">
107 <h2><a name="when" id="when">When (not) to use .htaccess files</a></h2>
109 <p>In general, you should only use <code>.htaccess</code> files when
110 you don't have access to the main server configuration file. There is,
111 for example, a common misconception that user authentication should
112 always be done in <code>.htaccess</code> files, and, in more recent years,
113 another misconception that <code class="module"><a href="../mod/mod_rewrite.html">mod_rewrite</a></code> directives
114 must go in <code>.htaccess</code> files. This is simply not the
115 case. You can put user authentication configurations in the main server
116 configuration, and this is, in fact, the preferred way to do
117 things. Likewise, <code>mod_rewrite</code> directives work better,
118 in many respects, in the main server configuration.</p>
120 <p><code>.htaccess</code> files should be used in a case where the
121 content providers need to make configuration changes to the server on a
122 per-directory basis, but do not have root access on the server system.
123 In the event that the server administrator is not willing to make
124 frequent configuration changes, it might be desirable to permit
125 individual users to make these changes in <code>.htaccess</code> files
126 for themselves. This is particularly true, for example, in cases where
127 ISPs are hosting multiple user sites on a single machine, and want
128 their users to be able to alter their configuration.</p>
130 <p>However, in general, use of <code>.htaccess</code> files should be
131 avoided when possible. Any configuration that you would consider
132 putting in a <code>.htaccess</code> file, can just as effectively be
133 made in a <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory"><Directory></a></code> section in your main server
134 configuration file.</p>
136 <p>There are two main reasons to avoid the use of
137 <code>.htaccess</code> files.</p>
139 <p>The first of these is performance. When <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code>
140 is set to allow the use of <code>.htaccess</code> files, httpd will
141 look in every directory for <code>.htaccess</code> files. Thus,
142 permitting <code>.htaccess</code> files causes a performance hit,
143 whether or not you actually even use them! Also, the
144 <code>.htaccess</code> file is loaded every time a document is
147 <p>Further note that httpd must look for <code>.htaccess</code> files
148 in all higher-level directories, in order to have a full complement of
149 directives that it must apply. (See section on <a href="#how">how
150 directives are applied</a>.) Thus, if a file is requested out of a
151 directory <code>/www/htdocs/example</code>, httpd must look for the
154 <div class="example"><p><code>
157 /www/htdocs/.htaccess<br />
158 /www/htdocs/example/.htaccess
161 <p>And so, for each file access out of that directory, there are 4
162 additional file-system accesses, even if none of those files are
163 present. (Note that this would only be the case if
164 <code>.htaccess</code> files were enabled for <code>/</code>, which
165 is not usually the case.)</p>
167 <p>In the case of <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/mod_rewrite.html#rewriterule">RewriteRule</a></code> directives, in
168 <code>.htaccess</code> context these regular expressions must be
169 re-compiled with every request to the directory, whereas in main
170 server configuration context they are compiled once and cached.
171 Additionally, the rules themselves are more complicated, as one must
172 work around the restrictions that come with per-directory context
173 and <code>mod_rewrite</code>. Consult the <a href="../rewrite/intro.html#htaccess">Rewrite Guide</a> for more
174 detail on this subject.</p>
176 <p>The second consideration is one of security. You are permitting
177 users to modify server configuration, which may result in changes over
178 which you have no control. Carefully consider whether you want to give
179 your users this privilege. Note also that giving users less
180 privileges than they need will lead to additional technical support
181 requests. Make sure you clearly tell your users what level of
182 privileges you have given them. Specifying exactly what you have set
183 <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> to, and pointing them
184 to the relevant documentation, will save yourself a lot of confusion
187 <p>Note that it is completely equivalent to put a <code>.htaccess</code>
188 file in a directory <code>/www/htdocs/example</code> containing a
189 directive, and to put that same directive in a Directory section
190 <code><Directory /www/htdocs/example></code> in your main server
193 <p><code>.htaccess</code> file in <code>/www/htdocs/example</code>:</p>
195 <div class="example"><h3>Contents of .htaccess file in
196 <code>/www/htdocs/example</code></h3><pre class="prettyprint lang-config">AddType text/example .exm</pre>
199 <div class="example"><h3>Section from your <code>httpd.conf</code>
200 file</h3><pre class="prettyprint lang-config"><Directory /www/htdocs/example>
201 AddType text/example .exm
202 </Directory></pre>
205 <p>However, putting this configuration in your server configuration
206 file will result in less of a performance hit, as the configuration is
207 loaded once when httpd starts, rather than every time a file is
210 <p>The use of <code>.htaccess</code> files can be disabled completely
211 by setting the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code>
212 directive to <code>none</code>:</p>
214 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">AllowOverride None</pre>
216 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
217 <div class="section">
218 <h2><a name="how" id="how">How directives are applied</a></h2>
220 <p>The configuration directives found in a <code>.htaccess</code> file
221 are applied to the directory in which the <code>.htaccess</code> file
222 is found, and to all subdirectories thereof. However, it is important
223 to also remember that there may have been <code>.htaccess</code> files
224 in directories higher up. Directives are applied in the order that they
225 are found. Therefore, a <code>.htaccess</code> file in a particular
226 directory may override directives found in <code>.htaccess</code> files
227 found higher up in the directory tree. And those, in turn, may have
228 overridden directives found yet higher up, or in the main server
229 configuration file itself.</p>
233 <p>In the directory <code>/www/htdocs/example1</code> we have a
234 <code>.htaccess</code> file containing the following:</p>
236 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">Options +ExecCGI</pre>
239 <p>(Note: you must have "<code>AllowOverride Options</code>" in effect
240 to permit the use of the "<code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#options">Options</a></code>" directive in
241 <code>.htaccess</code> files.)</p>
243 <p>In the directory <code>/www/htdocs/example1/example2</code> we have
244 a <code>.htaccess</code> file containing:</p>
246 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">Options Includes</pre>
249 <p>Because of this second <code>.htaccess</code> file, in the directory
250 <code>/www/htdocs/example1/example2</code>, CGI execution is not
251 permitted, as only <code>Options Includes</code> is in effect, which
252 completely overrides any earlier setting that may have been in
255 <h3><a name="merge" id="merge">Merging of .htaccess with the main
256 configuration files</a></h3>
258 <p>As discussed in the documentation on <a href="../sections.html">Configuration Sections</a>,
259 <code>.htaccess</code> files can override the <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory"><Directory></a></code> sections for
260 the corresponding directory, but will be overridden by other types
261 of configuration sections from the main configuration files. This
262 fact can be used to enforce certain configurations, even in the
263 presence of a liberal <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> setting. For example, to
264 prevent script execution while allowing anything else to be set in
265 <code>.htaccess</code> you can use:</p>
267 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config"><Directory /www/htdocs>
272 Options +IncludesNoExec -ExecCGI<br />
273 </Location></pre>
276 <div class="note">This example assumes that your <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#documentroot">DocumentRoot</a></code> is <code>/www/htdocs</code>.</div>
279 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
280 <div class="section">
281 <h2><a name="auth" id="auth">Authentication example</a></h2>
283 <p>If you jumped directly to this part of the document to find out how
284 to do authentication, it is important to note one thing. There is a
285 common misconception that you are required to use
286 <code>.htaccess</code> files in order to implement password
287 authentication. This is not the case. Putting authentication directives
288 in a <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#directory"><Directory></a></code>
289 section, in your main server configuration file, is the preferred way
290 to implement this, and <code>.htaccess</code> files should be used only
291 if you don't have access to the main server configuration file. See <a href="#when">above</a> for a discussion of when you should and should
292 not use <code>.htaccess</code> files.</p>
294 <p>Having said that, if you still think you need to use a
295 <code>.htaccess</code> file, you may find that a configuration such as
296 what follows may work for you.</p>
298 <p><code>.htaccess</code> file contents:</p>
300 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">AuthType Basic
301 AuthName "Password Required"
302 AuthUserFile /www/passwords/password.file
303 AuthGroupFile /www/passwords/group.file
304 Require Group admins</pre>
307 <p>Note that <code>AllowOverride AuthConfig</code> must be in effect
308 for these directives to have any effect.</p>
310 <p>Please see the <a href="auth.html">authentication tutorial</a> for a
311 more complete discussion of authentication and authorization.</p>
312 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
313 <div class="section">
314 <h2><a name="ssi" id="ssi">Server Side Includes example</a></h2>
316 <p>Another common use of <code>.htaccess</code> files is to enable
317 Server Side Includes for a particular directory. This may be done with
318 the following configuration directives, placed in a
319 <code>.htaccess</code> file in the desired directory:</p>
321 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">Options +Includes
322 AddType text/html shtml
323 AddHandler server-parsed shtml</pre>
326 <p>Note that <code>AllowOverride Options</code> and <code>AllowOverride
327 FileInfo</code> must both be in effect for these directives to have any
330 <p>Please see the <a href="ssi.html">SSI tutorial</a> for a more
331 complete discussion of server-side includes.</p>
332 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
333 <div class="section">
334 <h2><a name="cgi" id="cgi">CGI example</a></h2>
336 <p>Finally, you may wish to use a <code>.htaccess</code> file to permit
337 the execution of CGI programs in a particular directory. This may be
338 implemented with the following configuration:</p>
340 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">Options +ExecCGI
341 AddHandler cgi-script cgi pl</pre>
344 <p>Alternately, if you wish to have all files in the given directory be
345 considered to be CGI programs, this may be done with the following
348 <pre class="prettyprint lang-config">Options +ExecCGI
349 SetHandler cgi-script</pre>
352 <p>Note that <code>AllowOverride Options</code> and <code>AllowOverride
353 FileInfo</code> must both be in effect for these directives to have any
356 <p>Please see the <a href="cgi.html">CGI tutorial</a> for a more
357 complete discussion of CGI programming and configuration.</p>
359 </div><div class="top"><a href="#page-header"><img alt="top" src="../images/up.gif" /></a></div>
360 <div class="section">
361 <h2><a name="troubleshoot" id="troubleshoot">Troubleshooting</a></h2>
363 <p>When you put configuration directives in a <code>.htaccess</code>
364 file, and you don't get the desired effect, there are a number of
365 things that may be going wrong.</p>
367 <p>Most commonly, the problem is that <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> is not
368 set such that your configuration directives are being honored. Make
369 sure that you don't have a <code>AllowOverride None</code> in effect
370 for the file scope in question. A good test for this is to put garbage
371 in your <code>.htaccess</code> file and reload the page. If a server error is
372 not generated, then you almost certainly have <code>AllowOverride
373 None</code> in effect.</p>
375 <p>If, on the other hand, you are getting server errors when trying to
376 access documents, check your httpd error log. It will likely tell you
377 that the directive used in your <code>.htaccess</code> file is not
380 <div class="example"><p><code>
381 [Fri Sep 17 18:43:16 2010] [alert] [client 192.168.200.51] /var/www/html/.htaccess: DirectoryIndex not allowed here
384 <p>This will indicate either that you've used a directive that is
385 never permitted in <code>.htaccess</code> files, or that you simply
386 don't have <code class="directive"><a href="../mod/core.html#allowoverride">AllowOverride</a></code> set to
387 a level sufficient for the directive you've used. Consult the
388 documentation for that particular directive to determine which is
391 <p>Alternately, it may tell you that you had a syntax error in your
392 usage of the directive itself.</p>
394 <div class="example"><p><code>
395 [Sat Aug 09 16:22:34 2008] [alert] [client 192.168.200.51] /var/www/html/.htaccess: RewriteCond: bad flag delimiters
398 <p>In this case, the error message should be specific to the
399 particular syntax error that you have committed.</p>
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