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FAQ Index

WWW FAQ

What is SSI?

SSI is an acronym for Server Side Includes. This is basically a way to signal the server from within inside an HTML document, that there is something that needs to be processed differently. With this you may even include CGIs, or other text files into a static HTML document. (This is what is used for Text based page counters). To include SSI into an HTML document you must use the .shtml extension.

Where is PERL?

The PERL interpreter can be found in the /usr/bin directory. For Perl scripts (CGI mostly) you need to specify the PERL location to be as "/usr/bin/perl".

What is an .htaccess file?

An .htaccess file is a configuration file for the Apache Web server. It lets you assign properties to a directory on a per directory basis. If you don't know what it is, chances are you don't need it, but you may check the Apache Home Page for more information.


May I use the .htaccess files?

Yes you may. Htaccess files are permitted all throughout your directory tree. Remember, the options and commands you specify there are inherited to your subdirectories unless you specify different parameters.

What types of CGI may I run?

SpeedHost.Com is an Unix based web server. This means compiled CGI scripts should be compiled on the server (there are multiple C/C++ compiling tools available for your use on the shell). Perl scripts should run with no troubles. We recommend that CGI scripts be installed in your public_html/cgi-bin directory.

Can I use FrontPage extensions?

SpeedHost.Com does not currently offer FrontPage extensions support. SpeedHost.Com is a Linux based system running the latest version of Apache Web Server. The FrontPage extensions stopped being supported by Apache many versions ago. In the future, a Windows based server may be provided to accomodate users who require FrontPage extension capabilities.

What is a customizable WWW page?

SpeedHost.Com is equipped with the Apache web server. This program allows each user to define custom settings for their Websites by using a configuration file known as '.htaccess' file. This file can reside in any of your directories and will affect everything from that directory on forward. In this file you can define things like what file the browser will open when it encounters a "404 File Not Found" error and things similar to that. Please refer to the Apache WWW Server Page for the documentation on how to use .htaccess files.

May I run a thumbnail post site?

Please see the SpeedHost.Com Rules before attempting to post trivial material on the web from our server. Pornographic, Offensive, Copyrighted material, are all grounds for an account termination warning. If you are not sure if you are able to post something, chances are you should not.

How do I create an .htpasswd file?

If you want to create an .htpasswd file you need to use a telnet shell program called 'htpasswd'. If you type just that on the shell it will show you how to use it, but here's a quick example:

htpasswd -c .htpasswd login

That will first ask you twice for the password for the user 'login' that you just requested. Then it will create (marked by the -c parameter) a file called '.htpasswd' and add that user and his/her password. If you're adding more users to an already existing file, just omit the '-c' parameter.

Can you help me get my CGI to run?

Unfortunately, to keep SpeedHost.Com being a quality service, we cannot use our time to help setting up CGI or SSI scripts. We will be offering a set of homebrewn CGIs you can use for counters, web boards, etc. However we encourage you to look in the web and newsgroups using the various search engines. There are numerous places where you can find CGI, SSI and even HTML tutorials and help solving your problems. If you think we should provide any special type of CGI to our users, please let us know.

Where are the WWW logs for my page?

The logs will be on your 'logs' directory right out of your home directory. '~/logs/Access_Log' is your complete Transfer log. '~/logs/Error_Log' contains all the errors from people getting broken links and CGIs creating errors.

What is this public_html directory?

If you're not familiar with Unix account setups, the public_html directory is where you place your HTML files. That is the directory the web server will go to when someone tries to access your address.

Are there WWW logfiles for my domain?

We have assigned a logs directory to every account. You may see it in your ~/logs directory. In there you will find the Access_Log file which details every HTML request to your domain, and the file Error_Log which includes every failed attempt at your domain. You may find using the Error_Log very useful for debugging CGI scripts.

Why do my CGIs give me errors all the time?

There are a few requirements for CGIs to work correctly from your account. Here are a few tips:

The CGI must be in mode '755' - The owner must be the only one who has write capability.

The CGI must be completely owned by the site owner. If the CGI is owned by some other user, it won't execute.

The directory must have ExecCGI option enabled. The ExecCGI Apache directive is by default turned ON in your directory. If you specify an .htaccess file with an 'Options' directive, don't forget to add ExecCGI to the list, otherwise they will not run.

For better debugging check your Error_Log file located at your ~/logs/ directory. That's the best source for debugging. If the error is "Premature end of header script" or something similar, then the script is the one at fault.

Do you host .nu, .to and other domains like that?

Yes, as a Web Hosting provider, we are ready to host those kinds of domain names. The information you need to give them for the Domain Name Servers is as follows:

Primary DNS Server: NS.SPEEDHOST.COM
Primary Server IP: 216.42.31.130
Secondary DNS Server:NS2.SPEEDHOST.COM
Secondary Server IP: 216.42.31.169

We can handle the InterNIC transactions but some domains like the .nu, have to be done by the user since it requires the use of a password.

Do I have a custom "404 File Not Found" Error Page

Yes you do. There will be two files under your public_html directory that will be called when the server goes into an error. The first file, '404.html' will be called if a visitor to your website tries to access a file that does not exist. The 404 file should have a message that indicates the user accordingly and instructs them to contact the Webmaster about it.

The second filename is 500.html. This error file will be displayed when the server encounters an error trying to process a CGI script on your site. This is called Error "500 Internal Server Error". You can create your 500.html file so that it explains to the visitor, that it was an error during execution.