Apache User Directory

The following article deals with configuring a particular feature of Apache. The test machine ran RedHat 7.2.

Apache lets every UNIX system user to host his own page. This article deals with configuring such a system. Once this is successfully configured, the user can access his page thus:

http://hostname/~username/

The actual contents of the page should by default reside in the folder ``public_html''. If, as system administrator, you want to change the default name from ``public_html'' to say, ``mypage'', look for the following entry in the file /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf:

<IfModule mod_userdir.c>
 UserDir public_html
</IfModule>

Change it to:

<IfModule mod_userdir.c>
 UserDir mypage
</IfModule>

In a RedHat system, the UserDir feature is enabled by default. If you want to disable this feature for users ``sudhir'' & ``santha'', the following code has to be added in /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf:

UserDir disable sudhir santha

Instead, if you want to disable this feature to all users except ``subhash'' & ``sarat'', add the following:

UserDir disable
UserDir enable subhash sarat

Now restart the Apache web server:

# /etc/init.d/httpd restart

Troubleshooting

Even after configuring the above, if the page is not accessible, issue the following command:

$ chmod a+rx ~
$ chmod a+rx ~/public_html/

Yes, both your home directory and the UserDir should have global read and execute permission!

- Subhash.
July '02