NaviCOPA Web Server 2.01 - User Guide and FAQs

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Frequently Asked Questions - NaviCOPA Web Server

1. How do I get PHP to work with NaviCOPA?
   
   1) Go to http://www.php.net and download the Windows Binaries installer for either PHP 4 or PHP 5 (Advanced users may wish to use the zip package instead as it includes more functionality. Modifying the .ini settings will need to be done manually though).
   
   2) Run the PHP installer.
   
   3) The PHP installer will tell you that you may need to stop your web server before installation. This is not the case with NaviCOPA.
   
   4) The PHP installer will tell you where it is going to install PHP. This is C:\PHP by default. Make a note of this value as you will need to give it to NaviCOPA after the install is complete.
   
   5) The PHP installer will ask you which http server you wish to configure to run PHP. NaviCOPA is not on the list, so select "None (or other server)". NaviCOPA does not require configuring by the PHP installer.
   
   6) After the PHP installer is finished, open the NaviCOPA control panel. Go to the PHP tab. NaviCOPA also defaults to C:\PHP for the PHP install directory so if you let PHP install in the default location you don't need to change anything. If PHP installed somewhere other than C:\PHP then modify the path either manually or by using the browse button.
   
   7) If you modified the path press Apply and the PHP Controller should detect the presence of PHP. If it doesn't press the Redetect PHP button. Once the controller displays PHP Detected php should function through NaviCOPA.
   
   
   
2. Can I switch between different versions of PHP with NaviCOPA?
   
   Yes. Just install a different version of PHP into a different folder. Use the PHP tab in NaviCOPA to set the new PHP install folder and press apply.
   
   
   
3. Which versions of PHP work with NaviCOPA?
   
   NaviCOPA V2.01 has been tested with PHP 5.1.2 and PHP 4.4.2.
   
   
   
4. How do I configure SSL?
   
   You will need a certificate in order to use a secure site. You can get certificates from many places including Verisign, Globalsign and FreeSSL. FreeSSL will allow you to get a SSL certificate free to try for 30 days.
   
   Your chosen certificate provider will require a CSR (Certificate Signing Request) which is an encrypted block of data that contains the name of the server you wish to use the certificate on, your business name and your physical location.
   
   To generate a CSR load the NaviCOPA Control Panel and go to the SSL tab. Click the button marked Generate CSR. Now complete your details. It is very important that you get the name of the server correct. This should be the name you type into a webserver to access the site, eg www.myserver.com. If you do not get this correct then web clients will display a warning that the certificate is invalid when they connect to you.
   
   Once verified, your certificate provider will send a certificate to you. This usually arrives as a block of text that starts with -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- and ends with -----END CERTIFICATE-----.
   
   To add the certificate, press the "Add" button on the SSL page of the NaviCOPA controller. This will open the Add SSL Certificate window. Enter the domain name you wish to protect in the domain name field. This must be the same domain name you gave when generating the CSR. Next paste the certificate text that was sent to you by your certificate provider. You must paste everything from, and including the -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- line through and including the -----END CERTIFICATE----- line.
   
   Press the OK button and your certificate will be added.
   
   Make sure Enable SSL is ticked on the Ports screen. And if this is a certificate for a virtual host make sure "Allow SSL Access" is ticked on the virtual host screen.
   
   
   
5. How many SSL certificates can I install and use?
   
   You can add as many SSL certificates as you like to NaviCOPA. However, you can only actually use as many as you have IP addresses. Most users will only likely have 1 IP address assigned to a machine.
   
   The reasons for this are a little technical, but we will try and explain here.
   
   When a user connects to your server and wants to use a virtual host several things happen. First, the user types your virtual domain into their web browser, eg http://www.mydomain.com. The web browser converts www.mydomain.com into an IP address, eg 123.123.123.123. The browser then makes a connection to your machine (123.123.123.123) on port 80. Once the connection is established the browser sends a page request to your server. Within this page request is line that says "Host: www.mydomain.com". NaviCOPA uses this Host line to determine which virtual host to return the page from.
   
   This is where the problem with SSL comes in. An SSL connection is established (on port 443) at the point of initial connection. At that point the browser hasn't told NaviCOPA which host it wishes to use. And it has no way to do this until the connection is actually established. NaviCOPA uses the certificate that matches the IP address that the connection is being made on, 123.123.123.123. But you may have 5, 10, or 100 virtual hosts all using that same IP address. If the certificate chosen doesn't match the domain name that the browser is trying to connect to, which only the browser knows at this point, then the Bad Certificate message box will be displayed by the browser.
   
   So for most people you are restricted to 1 SSL certificate per NaviCOPA installation. Adding more IP addresses to your system will resolve this, but this is a technical issue that cannot be addressed here.
   
   
   
6. What will NaviCOPA return if a directory is requested?
   
   If no specific file is requested, eg a request is made to www.mydomain.com, NaviCOPA will look for the following files, index.html, index.htm, default.html, default.htm, index.php in that order. As soon as one is found, that will be the file that is returned.
   
   
   
7. Can NaviCOPA run CGI Scripts?
   
   Yes it can. You will find a cgi-bin directory created under the main NaviCOPA installation folder (usually \program files\navicopa).
   
   Perl CGI scripts can be used provided PERL is installed (you can get it at http://www.perl.org) and that the extension of the script is set to .pl