Basic system configuration

HoverWeb's basic configuration files are kept in the "config" folder of the distribution tree. The files are mainly text based in this version, this may change in a future release of the server.
The basic setup uses 4 files, a fifth one is discussed in the BasicPlug page.

The server.conf file

This file manages the basic information the server needs to run, it's current format is a text file with keywords on a line directly followed by it's value. Edit the default, it is most self explanatory, a future version will offer a complete interface from any Web browser.
Title Default value Description
Name HoverWeb Server Informative name for the server
Port 80 Server port, must be free at launch
Listens 12 Number of acceptable connections
Path pub Server's file system
Log file server.log Where to store the log information
Log true Should the system maintain the log
DefaultIndex index.html Default indexes list
Default MIME text/html MIME type to use if unspecified
Plug-In Dir plugs Where the plug-ins are stored

  • The port is normally 80 for standard http requests, it may be set to any other value
  • The server was tried with up to 350 active threads.
  • The path will be modified for listed virtual hosts.
  • The default index is actually a comma separated list tried in sequence - do not insert spaces between file names as this will mess up the parser.

virtual.hosts management

Virtual hosting is built into HoverWeb. The virtual hosting only works with browsers specifying a host parameter in the request header (all recent browsers do). You do not need multiple IP adresses to be routed to your machine in order to support virtual hosting but it will support multiple IP adresses if it is present on your server. The active port does not affect virtual hosting.
since it is a simple text file, you may edit it at will. Use a distinct line for each virtual host, use spaces, not tabs to separate the items.
Each item is in the fomat: my.host.com (machine dependant path), paths can be absolute or relative.

On POSIX/UNIX systems, the path will look like: /home/mystuff
On Windows machines, the path will look like: c:\mystuff
On MacOS machine, the path will look like: /MyDrive/Mystuff

Using vitual hosting also allows you to preconfigure the server for running on various machines since each of them will receive different domain name request and these can be mapped to machine specific folder.

realms.list management

Realms access restriction is very simple to implement and uses the Basic encryption scheme supported by all browsers. This file simply lists a Realm name and a corresponding match string to be identified in the request path. If a match is found, authorization information is requested from the client.
The same Realm name can be used for multiple match strings.

users.list management

Every time a Realms protected acces is made, the browser returns a username:password pair to the server. The users.list file conatins a sequence of usercodes followed by a comma separated list of accessible Realms for this user. If there is a match, access is granted and the file is transfered.


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The Hover/ATS series of server software is a development from Internet Interactif inc. It is based on JAVA technology from SUN microsystems to ensure maximal portability between platforms.

Information requests may be directed to: Internet Interactif inc.
Phone: (514) 628-1449
Fax: (514) 628-9691
Email: info@interactif.qc.ca


© 1998 Internet Interactif inc. All rights reserved, Hover, Hover ATS, All terrain software, HoverWeb and Hover SQL
and their respective identifications are being registered as trademarks.
JAVA is a trademark from SUN microsystems, Operating system names and chip names are the trademarks of their respective owners.
Internet Interactif makes no warranty about the actual functions available under a specific java port or version.