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Hosting User Manual

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Adding features to your website

1. Site settings

The site settings allow you to control many features of your website. Not only can you redirect visitors from one URL to another, but you can also define which page should be loaded first when a visitor accesses your domain name.

Read about how to setup error pages that will be displayed if a requested page on your site is missing or fails to open for any other reason and learn how to create password protected directories!

a. Redirect URL

This allows you to redirect your domain to a different domain or IP address.

With this feature you can redirect visitors from one URL to another. When a visitor tries to connect it will redirect them to the address specified here.

Example: If you were to put http://www.demo.com/products in the "Redirect from:" field and http://www.demo.com/new_products.html in the "to" field, it will redirect visitors of http://www.demo.com/products to the http://www.demo.com/new_products.html page.

NOTE: URL path must be an absolute path, not a relative path. It is not possible to use this method to redirect to a sub pages within the same domain, only to a different domain or IP address.

b. Directory index

This allows you to set your own index pages instead of the one we have set as default. In other words, you can tell your visitors' browsers which page to load when they type your base domain name (http://domainname.com/).

Default index pages
index.html
index.php
default.html

Example: If a visitor goes to your site http://www.example.com, the first page to open will be http://www.example.com/index.html. However, if you set welcome.html as the directory index, the page to open will be http://www.example.com/welcome.html.

You can specify multiple index pages in case different folders have index pages of different names. Make sure to enter the full list of indexes you would like to have in your configuration.

To set your custom directory indexes, do the following:

On the control panel page, click Web Options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the Web Service page, scroll down and find the directory indexes option and turn it on.
In the box that appears, enter the names of the files that will be treated as indexes. Put file names in descending order of priority and separate them with spaces (e.g. index.html cgi.bin about.html index.php).
At the top of the Web Service page, click the Apply link for the Server configuration to change.
The changes will take effect within 15 minutes. To edit the list you have made, click the Edit icon next to the Directory Indexes. On Windows hosting these changes will happen immediately.

c. Directory indexes

The index page is the first page entered on your site. If for any reason it is corrupted or missing, the system can automatically control what is displayed. Switch the radio buttons to enable or disable this option.

Disabled: This causes the server to refuse to list the files and folders of a directory if an index file is not found.

Enabled/Fancy:
When pointed at a directory, the server looks for a file called index.html; if found, that is what is sent back. If it's pointed at a directory that doesn't have an index.html, the server will perform "fancy indexing" and return the following HTML:

Set the title and main header to "Index of dir"
The header file for this directory, if any
A list of the files in this directory.
- Each file name is a link to the file.
- The first file is "Parent Directory".
- Last modification date, size, and an icon indicating the types of file included.

NOTE: We recommend you keep this option to disabled and instead keep an updated index file that list the files stored in your site.

d. Error pages

Use this utility to define what will be done if a requested page on your site is missing or fails to open for any other reason. In order to specify your own Error Documents, you need to be slightly familiar with the server returned error codes:

To configure Error Pages, do the following:

On the control panel page, click Web Options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the Web Service page, scroll down to find the Error option and click the Add icon on its right.
In the form that appears, enter the error document settings:

Message or URL: Enter the message the visitors will get or the URL of the page that they will be taken to if the requested page is not found.

Type: Specify if the text in the previous field must be treated as a URL (Redirect) or as a text message (Message).

Windows users will get a slightly different form:

e. Htprotect / Htaccess

NOTE: HtProtect is only available on Linux hosting packages.

HtProtect utility allows you to password protect any directory on your site so only authorized visitors can open its content with their browsers. Htprotect is a feature which is located inside of WebShell:

To add password protection to a directory, do the following.

On the control panel page, click the Webshell3 icon.

On the top navigation menu select the button which says protect. This will open a new window that allows you to select the directory you wish to apply the protection to.

http://web21.hostexcellence.com - Welcome to Protect wizard! - Mozilla Firefox
Group files are used if you need multiple people or groups of people to have access to a resource. This is optional and usually only required by advanced users.
Once you click on this you will be given two different options which would be to close or create, also if you already have users you can edit or delete those as well.
Once you have added the needed users use the close button to go back to the previous screen.
The default supplied valid user requirement is usually the best choice for the novice user. You can also list the users who specifically have access.
You can add any external .Htaccess information to the page labeled optional.
The Htprotect file must be saved to take affect.
Click the save icon on the left.
An overview screen will appear on which you can see all your information, prior to clicking the save button.
Your changes should take affect immediately.

f. Server side imagemap

This feature allows your server to regard files with a specific extension as map files. In other words, the server checks the file with the specified extension to define the links of an image (unlike a client-side image map, which uses the info inserted into the HTML code) and reports back to the browser where to go.

To add an imagemap file extension, do the following:

On the control panel page, click Web Options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the Web Service page, scroll down to find the Server Side imagemap option and click the add icon on its right.

Enter the file extension beginning with a dot:

g. Paths

Linux

Perl
/usr/bin/perl

ImageMagick
/usr/X11R6/bin/ (/usr/X11R6/bin/mogrify)
Convert is at /usr/X11R6/bin/convert
Identity is at /usr/X11R6/bin/identify

PHP
/usr/local/bin/php

Sendmail
/usr/sbin/sendmail

Date
/bin/date

Python
/usr/bin/python

Python2
/usr/bin/python2

CURL
/usr/bin/curl

Ffmpeg
/usr/bin/ffmpeg

Home Directory
/hsphere/local/home/<username>
Replace <username> with your username

Windows

Perl
c:\perl\perl

ImageMagick
c:\Program Files\ImageMagick

Home directory
D:\home\<username>
Replace <username> with your username

h. Ports

A port is a special number present in the header of a data packet.

Ports are typically used to map data to a particular process running on a computer.

Below is a list of commonly used open ports on our network:

HTTP - 80
HTTPS - 443
POP3 - 110
SMTP - 25
IMAP - 143
mySQL - 3306
PostGreSQL - 5432
MSSQL - 1433
FTP - 21

i. MIME types

This utility allows you to define file formats that are not defined in web browsers. This enables the browser to display or output files that are not in HTML format, just like it displays simple text files and .gif graphics files.

To add a definition for your own file format, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web service page, scroll down to find the MIME type option and click the add icon on its right.
On the page that appears, enter the extension for the file type:

Begin file extension with a dot. The MIME type must comply with MIME type specifications, e.g.: text/rtf or video/mpeg.

j. Error logs

If you turn the error logs icon on it will keep a history of the errors received from scripts ran on your site.

2. Adding support for dynamic web content

a. CGI scripts

To add CGI support, you will need to create a CGI alias or, in other words, specify a CGI file extension and a CGI handler for it, for instance Perl. For example, you can specify that all .cgi files must be treated as executable Perl scripts.

To add a CGI alias, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web services page, scroll down to find the cgi-bin option and turn it on. Now all files in the cgi-bin directory will be treated as CGI executables. This is the directory to place all your CGI scripts.
On the web services page, scroll down to find the CGI option and click the add icon to the right.
Enter an extension beginning with a dot and select the handler from the list:

b. PHP scripts

You can add support for your own PHP scripts.

To add PHP support, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web service page, scroll down to find the PHP option and turn it on.

Skip this step if you are using a Windows-based plan.

On the web service page, click the add icon that has appeared next to the PHP option.
On the page that appears, enter an extension for your PHP pages beginning with a dot, for instance .php4. Select the MIME type from the list.
At the top of the web service page, click the apply link for the server configuration to change. The changes will take effect within 15 minutes.

c. ASP

To add support for ASP (Active Server Pages) in a Windows-based account, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web service page, scroll down to find the ASP option and turn it on.

d. ASP.NET

To add support for ASP.NET in a Windows-based account, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web service page, scroll down to find the ASP.NET option and turn it on.

e. ColdFusion

To add ColdFusion support in a Windows-based account, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web services page, scroll down to find the ColdFusion option and turn it on.
If you need to add custom file extensions to be handled by ColdFusion, click the Add icon that has appeared next to the PHP option:
On the page that appears, enter an extension for your PHP pages beginning with a dot.

f. Server Side Includes

You can add your own SSI file extensions. For example, you can specify that all .shtml files must be treated as server side includes.

To add a SSI file extension, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Click the edit icon for the domain you wish to edit.
On the web services page, scroll down to find the SSI option and click the add icon on its right.
In the window that appears, enter your SSI file extension beginning with a dot:
At the top of the web services page, click the apply link for the server configuration to change. The changes will take effect within 15 minutes.

NOTE: Adding .html as an SSI file extension will cause many problems. Webalizer and many other scripts will cease to function.

3. One click install scripts (Linux)

Owners of Linux accounts can use simple CGI wizards to enhance their sites with the following scripts:

a. Counter

To add a counter to your site, do the following:

On the control panel page, click the counter icon.
Enable the counter for domains in the list.
Click the view icon for more instructions.

b. Guestbook

To add a guestbook to your site, do the following:

On the control panel page, click the guestbook icon.
Enable the guestbook for domains in the list.
Click the view icon for more instructions.

c. Formmail

To add a Formmail script to your site, do the following:

On the control panel page, click the Formmail icon.
Enable the Formmail for domains in the list.
Click the view icon for more instructions.

d. Chat

To add a chat to your site, do the following:

On the control panel page, click the chat icon.
Enable chat for domains in the list.
Click the view icon for more instructions.

e. PhpBB (Linux and Windows)

phpBB forum (distributed according to phpBB License Agreement) is a high powered, fully scalable, and highly customizable bulletin board package. phpBB has a user friendly interface, simple and straightforward administration panel, and helpful FAQ.

phpBB Key Features:

Unlimited forums and posts
Multiple language interfaces
Private or public forums
Powerful search utility
Private messaging system
Complete customization with templates

To add phpBB forum to your site, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Click the edit icon for the domain you wish to edit.
On the web services page, scroll down to find the phpBB option and turn it on:
This will start the installation wizard.
You'll be prompted to either create a new MySQL database or select from the existing databases for phpBB to use.

WARNING: Assigning a previously created MySQL database to be used for phpBB, will remove the contents of all its tables.
Click the setup icon to install the script:
You'll be taken to the phpBB admin control panel, where you can start configuring the forum to your liking.

f. mnoGoSearch

If you are on a Linux account, you can enhance your site with mnoGoSearch, a utility that searches your site by keywords. mnoGoSearch script file is stored in the cgi-bin directory, but its configuration files are located in the mnoGoSearch/ directory in your root.

To enable mnoGoSearch, do the following:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Click the edit icon for the domain you wish to edit.
On the web service page, scroll down to find the mnoGoSearch option and turn it on:
This will start the installation wizard.
You'll be prompted to either create a new MySQL database or select from the existing databases for mnoGoSearch to use.

WARNING: Assigning a previously created MySQL database to be used for phpBB, will remove the contents of all its tables.
Go to your search page by clicking the magnifying glass icon:

NOTE: It will take some time to index your site pages and get your search working. If you mishandle anything, you can always restore mnoGoSearch configuration to the default by clicking the Edit icon, but all your custom settings will be lost.
You can extend your mnoGoSearch capabilities (e.g.: set local charset) by editing file indexer.conf. For more information on working with indexer.conf, refer to indexer.conf dist which can be found in the /'account'/mnogosearch/'domain'/ directory.

g. Fixing problem scripts

If you have accidentally deleted any of your CGI scripts and/or the initial account index page (index.html), you can restore them to default. To get rid of any undesirable changes in you CGI scripts and go back to the default settings, delete the unnecessary files and restore the scripts.

To fix/restore the scripts:

On the control panel page, click web options.
Select the domain if you have more than one.
On the web service page, click the restore to default link.

WARNING: This will delete the CGI scripts and index pages of your website, which can cause damage to your site. As with any action please insure you have a backup of all your web files and databases.

h. Adding custom CGI scripts (Linux and Windows)

You can install almost any script on either our Windows or Linux hosting packages. Make sure you only download scripts from trustworthy locations. It is also important to read all accompanying documentation for proper use and installation instructions. These script files are usually placed in the cgi-bin folder of the specific domain.

4. FrontPage extensions

The FrontPage extensions work as a conduit for FrontPage to connect and publish your site to our servers. It is also required to provide some of the advanced server side functionalities offered by FrontPage.

It's a good idea to install and fully configure Front Page Extensions prior to uploading your web pages.

a. Installation

WARNING: If you turn off FrontPage extensions after they are configured and your site has been published this will delete needed files and corrupt some aspects of your site. A republish may be required to correct any problems.

To install FrontPage extensions, do the following:

On the control panel page, click the FrontPage icon.
Enable FrontPage Extension for domains in the list.
Now you can proceed to FrontPage configuration.

b. Configuration

To configure FrontPage formmail settings in Linux or Windows based accounts:

On the control panel page, click the FrontPage icon.
Click the edit icon in the FrontPage section.
On the page that appears, make sure to supply the sender and reply to e-mail addresses. They will be used in FrontPage mail forms.
Click submit
Now that you have applied your changes, you can upload your web pages.

c. Fixing problems

If your FrontPage publish fails to perform correctly, try reinstalling FrontPage Extensions by doing the following:

On the control panel page, click the FrontPage icon.
Click the Fix icon in the FrontPage section.
Click the Edit icon right beside the fix icon.
On the page that appears, make sure to supply the sender and reply to e-mail addresses. They will be used in FrontPage mail forms

d. How to resolve common errors

No extensions found on server or unable to connect to server

First make sure the FrontPage extensions are configured and the connection to the server is correct.
Make sure the site is accessible and the domain name is registered and has not expired.
If these do not resolve the problem, try to turn the front page extensions off and back on and then reconfigure.

We80.cnf

We80.cnf is an Authentication file. It can become corrupt and cause problems with a running site or at publish time. The following options should resolve the problem.

Try using the configure option to change the FrontPage user name and password and then changing it back. This causes it to recreate the We80.cnf file and may resolve the problem.
Go to publish site in FrontPage and verify the domain name is set without the 'www' prefix. Say, http://yourdomain.com is correct. http://www.yourdomain.com is not correct.
If you are still having problems try using the fix tool from the Front Page icon on your control panel.
If this does not work try turning the Front Page extensions off, deleting all _vti folders and folders starting with "_" in your domain directory, and then turn the extensions back on in your control panel.

Forms

If you have problems with a FrontPage form a common problem and solution is described below.

Open your Webpage in FrontPage.
In the folder list, expand the _private folder that is in the root of your Web site.
Locate the Feedback.txt file.
If you can't locate this file, follow these steps:
- On the File menu, click New, and then click Page or Web. The task pane opens.
- Under New form template, click Page Templates.
- On the General tab, click Normal Page, and then click OK.
- Switch to HTML view, and then delete all the HTML code.
- On the File menu, click Save.
- Locate and then double-click the _private folder that is in the root of your Web.
- In the Save as type box, click All Files (*.*).
- In the File name box, type Feedback.txt.
- Click Save.
Open the page that contains the feedback form.
Right-click the form, then click Form Properties.
Click Browse.
Locate and then double-click the _private folder that is in the root of your Web.
Click the Feedback.txt file, and then click OK.
In the Email address: type the email address which you provided while enabling FrontPage extensions
Save the form page.