NAME Apache2::Translation - Configuring Apache dynamically SYNOPSIS LoadModule perl_module /path/to/mod_perl.so PerlLoadModule Apache2::Translation PerlTransHandler Apache2::Translation PerlMapToStorageHandler Apache2::Translation TranslationEvalCache 1000 TranslationKey MyKey Database dbi:mysql:dbname:host User username Password password Singleton 1 Table tablename Key keycolumn Uri uricolumn Block blockcolumn Order ordercolumn Action actioncolumn Cachetbl cachetablename Cachecol cachecolumn Cachesize 1000 # another provider Configfile /path/to/config # export our provider parameters SetHandler modperl PerlResponseHandler Apache2::Translation::Config # configuring the WEB interface PerlModule Apache2::Translation::Admin SetHandler modperl PerlResponseHandler Apache2::Translation::Admin INSTALLATION perl Makefile.PL make make test make install DESCRIPTION As the name implies "Apache2::Translation" lives mostly in the URI Translation Phase. It is somehow similar to "mod_rewrite" but configuration statements are read at runtime, thus, allowing to reconfigure a server without restarting it. The actual configuration statements are read by means of a *Translation Provider*, a Perl class offering a particular interface, see below. Currently there are 3 providers implemented, Apache2::Translation::DB, Apache2::Translation::BDB, and Apache2::Translation::File. There is also a WEB interface (Apache2::Translation::Admin). An Example Let's begin with an example. Given some database table: id key uri blk ord action 1 front :PRE: 0 0 Cond: $HOSTNAME !~ /^(?:www\.)xyz\.(?:com|de)$/ 2 front :PRE: 0 1 Redirect: 'http://xyz.com'.$URI, 301 3 front :PRE: 1 0 Do: $CTX{lang}='en' 4 front :PRE: 1 1 Cond: $HOSTNAME =~ /de$/ 5 front :PRE: 1 2 Do: $CTX{lang}='de' 6 front /static 0 0 File: $DOCROOT.'/'.$CTX{lang}.$MATCHED_PATH_INFO 7 front /appl1 0 0 Proxy: 'http://backend/'.$CTX{lang}.$URI 8 front /appl2 0 0 Proxy: 'http://backend/'.$URI.'?l='.$CTX{lang} 9 front / 0 0 Config: ['AuthName "secret"'], ['AuthType Basic'] 10 back :PRE: 0 0 Cond: $r->connection->remote_ip ne '127.0.0.1' 11 back :PRE: 0 1 Error: 403, 'Forbidden by Apache2::Translation(11)' 12 back /appl1 0 0 PerlHandler: 'My::Application1' 13 back /appl2 0 0 PerlHandler: 'My::Application2' The "id" column in this table is not really necessary for "Apache2::Translation". But if you want to deploy Apache2::Translation::Admin you need it. Well, here we have a frontend/backend configuration. The frontend records are labeled with the key "front", the backend records with "back". When a request comes in first the records with ":PRE:" in the "uri"-field are examined. Suppose, a request for "http://abc.com/static/img.png" comes in. Record 1 (id=1) checks the "Host" header. The expression after "Cond:" is evaluated as Perl code. It obviously returns true. "Cond" stands for *condition*. But how does it affect the further workflow? Here "blk" and "ord" come in. All records with the same "key", "uri" and "blk" form a block. "ord" gives an order within this block. Within a block all actions are executed up to the first condition that is false. Now, because our condition in record 1 is true the action in record 2 (within the same block) is executed. It redirects the browser with a HTTP code of 301 (MOVED PERMANENTLY) to "http://xyz.com/static/img.png". When the redirected request comes back the condition in record 1 is false. Hence, the next block (key=front, uri=:PRE:, blk=1) is evaluated. First a "lang" member of a context hash is set to "en". A "Do" action is similar to a condition, only its value is ignored. Record 4 then checks if the "Host" header matches "/de$/". If so, then record 5 sets the *language* to "de". Now, the records labeled with ":PRE:" are finished. The handler starts looking for blocks labeled with the request uri. That is, it looks for a block with key=front, uri=/static/img.png. None is found. Then it cuts off the last part of the uri (/img.png), repeats the lookup and finds record 6. The "File" action sets "$r->filename" to "$DOCROOT/en/img.png". "Apache2::Translation" provides some convenience variables. They are tied to members of the request record. $MATCHED_PATH_INFO contains the uri part cut off ("/img.png"). More on them below. Now another round is started and the next uri part is cut off. Record 9 matches. We see a "Config" action that sets "AuthName" and "AuthType". At the end the translation handler checks if "$r->filename" was set and returns "Apache2::Const::OK" or "Apache2::Const::DECLINED" respectively. I think that example gives a general idea, what "Apache2::Translation" does. Processing States Internally "Apache2::Translation" is implemented as a state machine. It starts in the *START* state, where some variables are initialized. From there it shifts immediately to the *PREPOC* state. Here all ":PRE:" rules are evaluated. From *PREPROC* it shifts to *PROC*. Now the rules with real uris are examined. When the *DONE* state is reached processing is finished. There is a special state named *LOOKUPFILE*. It is only used for subrequests that don't have an URI. For such requests the URI translation phase of the request cycle is skipped. Hence a *PerlTransHandler* would never be called. Such requests are results of calling "$r->lookup_file" for example. To catch also such requests install "Apache2::Translation" both as *PerlTransHandler* as well as *PerlMapToStorageHandler*. Then if such a subrequest occures the handler enters the *LOOKLUPFILE* state instead of *PREPROC*. From *LOOKLUPFILE* it normally shifts to *PROC* unless it executes a "Restart" action. In that case it shifts to *PREPROC*. You have to set $MATCHED_URI to some initial value if you want to hop through the *PROC* phase. A still empty $MATCHED_URI shifts from *PROC* immediately to *DONE*. Note: The *LOOKUPFILE* stuff is still somewhat experimental. You can control the current state by means of the "State", "Done" and "Restart" actions. Blocks and Lists of Blocks Above, we have defined a block as all records with the same "key", "uri" and "block". The actions within a block are ordered by the "order" field. A list of blocks is then an ordered list of all blocks with the same "key" and "uri". The order is given by the "block" number. Actions An action starts with a key word optionally followed by a colon and some arguments. The key words are case insensitive. "Apache2::Translation" provides some environment for code snippets in actions. They are compiled into perl functions. The compiled result is cached. 2 variables, $r and %CTX, are provided plus a few convenience variables. $r is the current "Apache2::RequestRec". %CTX is a hash that can be used to store arbitrary data. This hash is not used by Apache2::Translation itself. It can be used to pass data between actions. But note, the hash is localized to the translation handler. So, it cannot be used to pass data between different phases of the apache request cycle. Use "$r->notes" or "$r->pnotes" for that. Do: perl_code Fixup: perl_code "Do" is the simplest action. The Perl code is evaluated in scalar context. The return value is ignored. "Fixup" is just the same save it is run in the *Fixup* phase Cond: perl_code This is almost the same as "Do". The return value is taken as boolean. If it is false, the current block is finished. Processing continues with the next block. Done "Done" finishes the current block list and transfers control to the next state. That means if encountered in *PREPROC* state it switches to *PROC*. If the current state is *PROC* then the translation handler ends here. This action is a combination of "State: next_state" and "Last", see below. Don't try to use "Done" to return from a subroutine. Use "Last" instead. File: string This action sets "$r->filename" to string. It is equivalent to Do: $FILENAME=do{ string } Doc: ?content_type?, string "string" is evaluated as well as "content_type" if given. Then a special "moperl" handler is installed that simply sets the given content type and prints out the string to the client. "content_type" is "text/plain" if omitted. Proxy: ?url? This tells Apache to forward the request to "url" as a proxy. "url" is optional. If ommitted "$r->unparsed_uri" is used. That means Apache must be used as a proxy by the browser. CgiScript: ?string? is equivalent to Do: $r->handler( 'cgi-script' ); FixupConfig: ['Options ExecCGI'] If "string" is given it is evaluated and the result is assigned to "$r->filename". PerlScript: ?string? is equivalent to Do: $r->handler( 'perl-script' ); FixupConfig: ['Options ExecCGI'], ['PerlOptions +ParseHeaders'] If "string" is given it is evaluated and the result is assigned to "$r->filename". PerlHandler: string In short this action tries to figure out what "string" means and calls it as "modperl" handler. In detail it installs a "Apache2::Translation::response" as "PerlResponseHandler". When called the handler evaluates "string" which results either in a subroutine name, a package name, a subroutine reference or an object or class that implements the "handler" method. If a package name is given it must implement a "handler" subroutine. If the given package is not yet loaded it is "require"ed. Then the resulting subroutine or method is called and $r is passed. Further, a "PerlMapToStorageHandler" is installed that skips the handling of "Directory" containers and ".htaccess" files. If not set, this handler also sets "path_info". Assumed, #uri blk ord action /some/path 0 0 PerlHandler: ... and a request comes in for "/some/path/foo/bar". Then "path_info" is set to "/foo/bar". Config: list_of_strings_or_arrays FixupConfig: list_of_strings_or_arrays Surprisingly, these are the most complex actions of all. "Config" adds Apache configuration directives to the request in the *Map To Storage* phase before the default "MapToStorage" handler. Think of it as a kind of ".htaccess". "FixupConfig" does the same in the *Fixup* phase. While "Config" is used quite often "FixupConfig" is seldom required. It is used mainly to mend configurations that are spoiled by the default "MapToStorage" handler. Arguments to both actions are strings or arrays of one or two elements: Config: 'AuthName "secret"', ['AuthType Basic'], ['ProxyPassReverse http://...', '/path'] To understand the different meaning, you have to know about how Apache applies its configuration to a request. Hence, let's digress a little. Each Apache directive is used in certain contexts. Some for example can occur only in server config context, that means outside any "Directory", "Location" or even "VirtualHost" container. "Listen" or "PidFile" are examples. Other directives insist on being placed in a container. Also, the point in time when a directive takes effect differs for different directives. "PidFile" is clearly applied during server startup before any request is processed. Hence, our "Config" action cannot apply "PidFile". It's simply too late. "AllowOverride" is applied to single requests. But since it affects the processing of ".htaccess" files it must be applied before that processing takes place. To make things even more confusing some directives take effect at several points in time. Consider Options FollowSymLinks ExecCGI "FollowSymLinks" is applied when Apache looks up a file in the file system, while "ExecCGI" influences the way the response is generated ages later. Apache solves this complexity by computing a configuration for each single request. As a starting point it uses the server default configuration. That is the configuration outside any "Location" or "Directory" for a virtual host. This basic configuration is assigned to the request just between the *Uri Translation Phase* and *Map to Storage*. At the very end of *Map to Storage* Apache's core *Map to Storage* handler incorporates matching "Directory" containers and ".htaccess" files into the request's current configuration. "Location" containers are merged after *Map to Storage* is finished. Our "Config" action is applied early in *Map to Storage*. That means it affects the way Apache maps the request file name computed to the file system, because that comes later. But it also means, your static configuration (config file based) overrides our "Config" actions. This limitation can be partly overcome using "FixupConfig" instead of "Config". Now, what does the various syntaxes mean? The simplest one: #uri blk ord action /uri 0 0 Config: 'ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org' is very close to ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org Only, it is applied before any "Directory" container takes effect. Note, the uri-argument to the "Location" container is the value of $MATCHED_URI, see below. This is also valid if the "Config" action is used from a "Call"ed block. The location uri is sometimes important. "ProxyPassReverse", for example, uses the path given to the location container for its own purpose. All other forms of "Config" are not influenced by $MATCHED_URI. These two: Config: ['ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org'] Config: ['ProxyPassReverse /path http://my.backend.org', ''] are equivalent to ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org Note, the location container uri differs. The first one of them is also the only form of "Config" available with mod_perl before 2.0.3. The next one: Config: ['ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org', '/path'] is equivalent to ProxyPassReverse http://my.backend.org I have chosen "ProxyPassReverse" for this example because the "Location" container uri matters for this directive, see httpd docs. The following form of applying "ProxyPassReverse" outside of any container is not possible with "Apache2::Translation": ProxyPassReverse /path http://my.backend.org Now let's look at another example to see how "Directory" containers and ".htaccess" files are applied. "AllowOverride" controls which directives are allowed in ".htaccess" files. As said before Apache applies "Directory" containers and ".htaccess" files after our "Config" directives. Unfortunately, they are both applied in the same step. That means we can say: Config: 'AllowOverride Options' But if at least one "Directory" container from our "httpd.conf" is applied that says for example "AllowOverride AuthConfig" it will override our "Config" statement. So, if you want to control which directives are allowed in ".htaccess" files with "Apache2::Translation" then avoid "AllowOverride" in your "httpd.conf", especially the often seen: AllowOverride None Put it instead in a *PREPROC* rule: #uri blk ord action :PRE: 0 0 Config: 'AllowOverride None' So subsequent rules can override it. A similar problem exists with "Options FollowSymlinks". This option affects directly the phase when "Directory" containers are applied. Hence, any such option from the "httpd.conf" cannot be overridden by a "Config" rule. In Apache 2.2 at least up to 2.2.4 there is a bug that prevents "Config: AllowOverride Options" from working properly. The reason is an uninitialized variable that is by cause 0, see Call: string, ?@params? Well, the name suggests it is calling a subroutine. Assume you have several WEB applications running on the same server, say one application for each department. Each department needs of course some kind of authorization: #uri blk ord action AUTH 0 0 Config: "AuthName \"$ARGV[0]\"" AUTH 0 1 Config: 'AuthType Basic' AUTH 0 2 Config: 'AuthUserFile /etc/htaccess/user/'.$ARGV[1] /dep1 0 0 Call: qw/AUTH Department_1 dep1/ /dep2 0 0 Call: qw/AUTH Department_2 dep2/ The "AUTH" in the "Call" actions refer to the "AUTH" block list in the "uri" column. An optional parameter list is passed via @ARGV. "Call" fetches the block list for a given uri and processes it. If a "Last" action is executed the processing of that block list is finished. Redirect: url, ?http_code? The "Redirect" action sends a HTTP redirect response to the client and abort the current request. The optional "http_code" specifies the HTTP response code. Default is 302 (MOVED TEMPORARILY). "Redirect" tries to make the outgoing "Location" header RFC2616 conform. That means if the schema part is ommitted it figures out if it has to be "http" or "https". If a relative url is given an appropriate url is computed based on the current value of $URI. If the current request is the result of an internal redirect the redirecting request's status is changed to "http_code". Thus, "Redirect" works also for "ErrorDocument"s. Error: ?http_code?, ?message? "Error" aborts the entire request. A HTTP response is sent to the client. The optional "http_code" specifies the HTTP response code. The optional "message" is logged as reason to the "error_log". "http_code" defaults to 500 (INTERNAL SERVER ERROR), "message" to "unspecified error". Uri: string This action sets "$r->uri" to string. It is equivalent to Do: $URI=do{ string } Key: string "string" is evaluated in scalar context. The result is assigned to the current key. The new key takes effect if the list of blocks matching the current uri is finished. For example: id key uri blk ord action 1 dflt :PRE: 0 0 Cond: $CLIENTIP eq '192.168.0.1' 2 dflt :PRE: 0 1 Key: 'spec' 3 dflt :PRE: 0 2 Do: $DEBUG=3 4 dflt :PRE: 1 0 Config: 'Options None' 5 dflt / 0 0 File: $DOCROOT.$URI 6 spec / 0 0 File: '/very/special'.$URI Here an entirely different directory tree is shown to a client with the IP address 192.168.0.1. In record 2 the current key is set to "spec" if the condition in record 1 matches. Also, $DEBUG is set in this case (record 3). The next block in record 4 is executed for all clients, because the key change is not in effect, yet. Records 5 and 6 are new lists of blocks. Hence, record 6 is executed only for 192.168.0.1 and record 5 for the rest. The action "Key: 'string'" is equivalent to "Do: $KEY='string'". Restart: ?newuri?, ?newkey?, ?newpathinfo? "Restart" restarts the processing from the *PREPROC* phase. The optional arguments ar evaluated and assumed to result in strings. "newuri" is then assigned to "$r->uri" and $MATCHED_URI. "newkey" is assigned to $KEY and "newpathinfo" to $MATCHED_PATH_INFO. State: string If you look for a premature exit from the current block list take the "Done" action. This action affects the current state directly. Thus, you can loop back to the *PREPROC* state from *PROC*. It is mostly used the prematurely finish the translation handler from the *PREPROC* state. As the "Key" action it takes effect, when the current list of blocks is finished. "string" is evaluated as perl code. It is expected to result in one of the following strings. If not, a warning is printed in the "error_log". State names are case insensitive: start preproc proc done The "State" action is similar to setting the convenience variable $STATE. Only in the latter case you must use the state constants, e.g. "$STATE=DONE". Last If you look for a premature exit from the current block list take the "Done" action. This action finishes the current list of blocks (just like a false condition finishes the current block). It is used together with "State" to finish the translation handler from a conditional block in the *PREPROC* state: :PRE: 0 0 Cond: $finish :PRE: 0 1 State: 'done' :PRE: 0 2 Last Another application of "Last" is to return from a "Call" action. Convenience Variables and Data Structures $URI tied to "$r->uri" $REAL_URI tied to "$r->unparsed_uri" $METHOD tied to "$r->method" $QUERY_STRING tied to "$r->args" $FILENAME tied to "$r->filename" $DOCROOT tied to "$r->document_root" $HOSTNAME tied to "$r->hostname" $PATH_INFO tied to "$r->path_info" $REQUEST tied to "$r->the_request" $HEADERS tied to "$r->headers_in" $C tied to "$r->connection" $CLIENTIP tied to "$r->connection->remote_ip" $KEEPALIVE tied to "$r->connection->keepalive" For more information see Apache2::RequestRec. $MATCHED_URI tied to "$r->notes('Apache2::Translation::n::uri')" $MATCHED_PATH_INFO tied to "$r->notes('Apache2::Translation::n::pathinfo')" While in "PROC" state the incoming uri is split in 2 parts. The first part is matching the "uri" field of a database record. The second part is the rest. They can be accessed as $MATCHED_URI and $MATCHED_PATH_INFO. $KEY the current key. Tied to "$r->notes('Apache2::Translation::n::key')" $STATE the current processing state. $RC Normally, "Apache2::Translation" checks at the end if "$r->filename" is set. If so, it returns "Apache2::Const::OK" to its caller. If not, "Apache2::Const::DECLINED" is returned. The first alternative signals that the *Uri Translation Phase* is done and no further handlers are to be called in this phase. The second alternative says that subsequent handlers are to be called. Thus, "mod_alias" or the core translation handler see the request. Setting $RC your action decide what is returned. $RC is also set by the "PerlHandler" action. Modperl generated responses are normally not associated with a single file on disk. $DEBUG tied to "$r->notes('Apache2::Translation::n::debug')" If set to 1 or 2 debugging output is sent to the "error_log". %CTX a hash to store arbitrary data. It can be used to pass data between action blocks. But note, it is localized to the translation handler. So, it cannot be used to pass data between different phases of the apache request cycle. Use "$r->notes" or "$r->pnotes" for that. APACHE CONFIGURATION DIRECTIVES After installed and loaded by PerlLoadModule Apache2::Translation in your "httpd.conf" "Apache2::Translation" is configured with the following directives: ... Currently there are 3 provider classes implemented, Apache2::Translation::DB, Apache2::Translation::File and Apache2::Translation::BDB. The ellipsis represents configuration lines formatted as NAME VALUE These lines are passed as parameters to the provider. "NAME" is case insensitive and is converted to lowercase before passed to the provider object. Spaces round "VALUE" are stripped off. If "VALUE" begins and ends with the same quotation character (double quote or single quote) they are also stripped off. If "VALUE" is not quoted or is quoted with double quote characters then it is subject to environment variable expansion. All substrings that match "${VAR}" are replaced by the environment variable "VAR". The provider object is then created by: $Apache2::Translation::class->new( NAME1=>VALUE1, NAME2=>VALUE2, ... ); where "class" is exchanged by the actual provider name. TranslationProvider class param1 param2 ... This is an alternative way to specify translation provider parameters. Each parameter is expected to be a string formatted as NAME=VALUE There must be no spaces around the equal sign. The list is passed to the constructor of the provider class as named parameters: $Apache2::Translation::class->new( NAME1=>VALUE1, NAME2=>VALUE2, ... ); TranslationKey initial-key This sets the initial value for the key. Default is the string "default". TranslationEvalCache number "Apache2::Translation" compiles all code snippets into functions and caches these functions. Normally, an ordinary hash is used for this. Strictly speaking this is a memory hole if your translation table changes. I think that can be ignored, if the number of requests per worker is limited, see "MaxRequestsPerChild". If you think this is too lax, put a number here. If set the cache is tied to Tie::Cache::LRU. The number of cached code snippets will then be limited by "number". WHICH PROVIDER TO CHOOSE Unless you want to implement your own provider you can choose from these 3: * DB This is the provider implemented first. It uses a cache to store lookup results but at least one read (to fetch the version) is made for each request. Use it if you already have a DB engine at your site and if you don't mind the additional lookups. * File This provider is very fast. It reads the complete config file into memory and refreshes it when modified. Hence come the greatest drawback. Each perl interpreter reads the file and needs all the memory to hold every rule. So with many rules and a high "MaxClients" directive it eats up much memory. * BDB Choose this provider if you have many rules and a high "MaxClients" directive. Since most of the database is stored in shared memory by BerkeleyDB it is almost as fast as the "File" provider but its resource hunger is limited. EXPORTING OUR PROVIDER PARAMETERS A WEB server can export its provider parameters by means of the Apache2::Translation::Config module. That can then be used by the admin interface to connect to that provider. THE WEB ADMINISTRATION INTERFACE The simplest way to configure the WEB interface is this: PerlModule Apache2::Translation::Admin SetHandler modperl PerlResponseHandler Apache2::Translation::Admin Note, here an extra PerlModule statement is necessary. If nothing else specified the provider that has handled the current request is used. Note, there is a slash at the end of the location statement. It is necessary to be specified. Also, the URL given to the browser to reach the WEB interface must end with a slash or with "/index.html". Another provider is given by creating an "Apache2::Translation::Admin" object: $My::Transadmin=Apache2::Translation::Admin->new (provider_spec=>[File, ConfigFile=>'/path/to/config']); SetHandler modperl PerlResponseHandler $My::Transadmin->handler Here the provider is specified in a way similar to the "TranslationProvider" statement above. Also, an URL can be given that links to an exported parameter set: $My::Transadmin=Apache2::Translation::Admin->new (provider_url=>'http://host/config'); In this case "LWP::UserAgent" is used to fetch the parameters. Or you can create the provider object by yourself and pass it: use Apache2::Translation::File; $My::Transadmin=Apache2::Translation::Admin->new (provider=>Apache2::Translation::File->new (configfile=>'/path/to/config')); IMPLEMENTING A NEW PROVIDER A provider implements a certain interface that is documented in Apache2::Translation::_base. SEE ALSO Apache2::Translation::DB Apache2::Translation::BDB Apache2::Translation::File Apache2::Translation::Admin Apache2::Translation::_base Apache2::Translation::Config mod_perl: http://perl.apache.org TODO / WHISHLIST * UI improvements Help system that provides a short explanation to the actions and perhaps convenience variables. Action selection box. More and better keyboard control. * cleaning up the javascript code my.js could use redesign. * auto-Done mode In this mode the the translation handler finishes the current state after processing the first block list. Most of my block lists have a "Done" action at the end. This would also require an "Continue" action that to go to the next block list thus overruling the auto-Done. * user identities + access rights * domain specific mode to delegate responsibility for certain domains to different user groups. * some kind of *run-once* actions To initialize things. * error_log hook Apache implements an "error_log" hook. If there were a perl interface to it one could direct error messages to separate files with "Apache2::Translation". AUTHOR Torsten Foertsch, SPONSORING Sincere thanks to Arvato Direct Services (http://www.arvato.com/) for sponsoring the initial version of this module. COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE Copyright (C) 2005-2008 by Torsten Foertsch This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.