Archive for July, 2011

How do I disable Webalizer from Webmin?

How do I disable Webalizer?

Webalizer is a program which analyzes and generates statistics and reports about your webserver’s logs. It can be massively useful or it can be massively problematic. Very large log files can cause problems, and webalizer itself can cause problems even when not configured to process any log files.

Because of this it’s often necessary to disable it from running, as it can cause your server to hang.

1) Uninstall – Webalizer is a package which you can view in Webmin. Login to Webmin and click System > Software Packages and search for “webalizer”. You can uninstall webalizer completely from here.

2) Disable Cron – If you just want to disable it from running without uninstalling it, remove the cron entry under /etc/cron.daily – it may be called “00webalizer”.

Security: .htaccess and Apache

Apache is massively popular right now and probably the leading web server software. As such it is a security target, and much development and updates happen regarding Apache security. .htaccess is a security method long used by Apache, although it can do much more than just security. The .htaccess file provides a lot of functionality, anything from redirects, to URL re-writing, to changing PHP settings or Apache settings, folder display settings, and password and IP security.

.htaccess is hugely popular and a great way of going about several important tasks on a website. Documentation is readily available on the internet, most features are very easy, and the features it provides are incredibly useful.

Glossary: Fragmentation

Fragmentation, in our context, is when an application splits into many different versions or branches.

As an example, Google’s Android is constantly accused if being heavily fragmented, which detracts from the user experience. Android, and many different versions of it, are installed on literally hundreds of different devices. The large number of variations does present problems for development, carrier software releases, Android developers, and to a small extent end-users. (more…)