Could someone help me, with a bit of plain english please? Am finding the tutorials on getting mod_fastcgi installed and working a tad confusing.
I have a VPS with Cpanel and WHM. Apache 2.2.24 A number of different user directories, only one of which has to run a Catalyst app. [Although it would be nice to use one user as a dev server, and another user as a production server] I have downloaded http://fastcgi.com/dist/mod_fastcgi-current.tar.gz I extracted this on the hard drive of my MacBook Pro. This gave me the folder: mod_fastcgi-2.4.6 On my VPS, my apache appeared to be installed at /usr/local/apache ...so I opened up Makefile.AP2 within the mod_fastcgi-2.4.6 folder on my laptop, using a text editor, and changed: top_dir = /usr/local/apache2 to the following: top_dir = /usr/local/apache ...so that the top directory path would be correct. I then uploaded the entire mod_fastcgi-2.4.6 folder to the root of my VPS. I opened a terminal window and logged in as root, using SSH. I changed directory to the folder I'd just uploaded: cd mod_fastcgi-2.4.6 Then I entered the three command lines in the installation instructions, one after each other: cp Makefile.AP2 Makefile make make install I then browsed to the folder: /usr/local/apache/modules/ ...and saw the file: mod_fastcgi.so ... was now in there, so assumed that's mod_fastcgi installed! =D Hooray! So now I believe I need to: Configure Apache. Restart Apache. Run my Catalyst App. ....and this is where I'm having trouble. Here are my problems: PROBLEM ONE: Tutorials imply the following line should be added to the httpd.conf file: LoadModule fastcgi_module modules/mod_fastcgi.so ...with modules being the folder mod_fastcgi.so is in on my VPS. So - my first question - where in httpd.conf do I put it? At the very start? In between the <Virtual Host> tags for the domain name I want the Catalyst App to be at? In the include conf files, for my domain name (the includes are in the last line before the virtual host tag closes)? Or do I forget about httpd.conf entirely, and shove it in a .htaccess file, in my app's directory? >From what I gather, External (aka Standalone Server Mode, aka as just Server) >is the best mode to run the app under. This brings us nicely to.... PROBLEM TWO: http://wiki.catalystframework.org/wiki/deployment/apache_fastcgi#Configure_Apache ...gets pretty confusing here. It gives the example of: <IfModule mod_fastcgi.c> FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi -host myhost:8081 Alias /myapp/ /tmp/myapp.fcgi/ </IfModule> I need to know how to customise this for my purposes. My server does have a /tmp/ directory, and I understand myapp.fcgi is totally fictional and shouldn't exist. Now - what about the rest of the first line? -host myhost:8081 Documentation says we should change hostname and port as appropriate. What throws me is that the next bullet point says that if the catalyst app is actually on our apache server, that we should use "-socket <filename>" instead of "-port <n>" .... this is odd, because in the example, there is no "-port <n>" used anywhere. It then goes on to say using "-host" will still work... then says we should use "localhost" as the hostname... before then saying we could use "user -port" instead, O_o. So should the line be: FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi -host www.mydomainname.com:8081 ...or: FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi -host localhost:8081 ...or: FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi -socket some-sort-of-filename-goes-here (...which raises the question - what filename? mod_fastcgi documentation says the filename of the unix domain socket the app uses to communicate with the web server - I have no idea what that is, =S. ) ...or: FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi gamextra -8081 (..my attempt at interpreting user -port) ...or should the line be something else entirely?? I'm assuming: Alias /myapp/ /tmp/myapp.fcgi/ ...will be entirely correct as it is, yes? PROBLEM THREE: Where do I put... <IfModule mod_fastcgi.c> FastCgiExternalServer /tmp/myapp.fcgi -host localhost:8081 Alias /myapp/ /tmp/myapp.fcgi/ </IfModule> ....? The same place we put the LoadModule line in PROBLEM ONE...? I assume after solving these three problems, I simply: Restart Apache. Launch my catalyst app from the command line using lines similar to the examples in the documentation. Any advice on setting the -n flag? The http://wiki.catalystframework.org/wiki/deployment/apache_fastcgi#Run_your_app_as_a_FastCGI_process example decides to run three parallel instances. UPDATE: Just as I'm finishing this email, I see: www.catalystframework.org/calendar/2006/16 suggests: FastCgiExternalServer /path/to/myapp/script/myapp_fastcgi.pl -host 127.0.0.1:55900 Alias / /path/to/myapp/script/myapp_fastcgi.pl/ # or Alias /myapp/ /path/to/myapp/script/myapp_fastcgi.pl/ to run at a non root location My Catalyst app is at: /home/gamextra/public_html/GXCatalystTest/script/gxcatalysttest_fastcgi.pl Should I interpret that as.... FastCgiExternalServer /home/gamextra/public_html/GXCatalystTest/script/gxcatalysttest_fastcgi.pl -host 127.0.0.1:55900 Alias /myapp/ /home/gamextra/public_html/GXCatalystTest/script/gxcatalysttest_fastcgi.pl/ ....? Would that work as a solution to problem two? If so - problem three - where would I put it? ^_^. Feedback appreciated - as this is something I could waste whole days reading multiple tutorials on! Already taken me a day to learn all I had to do was type three simple command lines to install mod_fastcgi, =P....!! Huge thanks people, Yours, Andrew.
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