PowerWeb Server++ Features
 

Table of Contents

Introduction
Launching
Logging
HTTP Protocol Support and Server-Side Includes
Rock Solid Security
Extensions
Scripting
Other Features
Protocols
Platforms
NCSA and CERN Compatibility

Introduction

PowerWeb Server++ has been written in C++, implemented with the latest design patterns philosophy.

It is operating system and GUI independent and abstracts the notion of multiple protocols to allow multiple services to share a single server and a single code base.

Dynamic thread management using our SCREAM performance object technology brings you unparallelled performance, and takes full advantage of multiple CPU servers.

The integrated security library offers SSL version 3 capability for HTTP, FTP, SMTP and POP3, allowing you a full range of secure services. All these services are also available in non-secure mode: you choose which to enable.


Launching

32-bit Multi-threaded:
32-bit Multi-threaded architecture which requires no forks.

Dynamic Threads:
Limitations of inetd are surpassed through dynamic thread launching. PowerWeb's thread manager avoids forks, multiple processes and unnecessary system overhead by allocating threads on a demand basis, keeping a cached dynamic pool of threads to service requests.

Multi-Homed Server:
Different directory roots for different IP addresses provides for a multi-homed server.

Logging

Multi-Threaded Logging:
Multi-threaded logging for individual services overcomes traditional Unix syslog and NT event log limitations.

Common Log Format:
The CERN/NCSA common log format is supported.

Rotating Logs:
Log files can be cycled or archived on request.

Customised Logs:
Normal (hit) log entries can be customized through API scripts.

Multiple Logs:
Multiple logs can be used for different types of hits or for output in different record formats.

Non-Hit Log Entries:
API scripts can generate non-hit log entries such as comments.

API Logs:
API scripts can create their own log entries.

Performance Logs:
Dynamic Performance measurement logs can be queried at any time through your browser.

HTTP Protocol Support and Server-Side Includes

Browser Cache Optimisation:
Automatic response to If-Modified-Since allows browser cache optimisation

Browser Feature Optimisation:
PowerWeb Macros serves different documents or changes actions based on User-Agent header, for browser optimisation.

Dynamic Serving:
PowerWeb Macros serves different documents or changes actions based on Accept header, or URL for dynamic document serving.

Server-Side Includes:
PowerWeb Macros provides a Superset of server-side includes.

HTML Future Protection:
PowerWeb Macros based on HTML comments prevents conflicts with future HTML extensions.

Force Processing:
The Powerweb Server++ can force the processing of server-side includes.

HTTP Headers:
Automatically include any HTTP headers for HTML or non-HTML documents (without using CGI).

Access Server Variables:
Access to server state variables from CGI, API scripts, and Web Macros.

Server Push:
Send dynamic documents or images with server push.

Proxy Server:
PowerWeb Server++ can act as an HTTP proxy server on your firewall, or as a normal HTTP server, or both.

Rock Solid Security

SSL
Supports Version 3.0 and 2.0:
Allows for older clients to connect. Can enforce only version 3.0 connections for greater security and features.

Full-Strength Cryptography:
PowerWeb Secure Server++ is not limited to the 40 bits of US export-level cryptography. It imposes no limits on cryptographic or signature key lengths.

Session Caching:
A customisable session cache reduces the overhead of cryptography.

Client Certificates:
Use Client Certificates to avoid user name and password prompts.

Templates

Unified Security:
PowerWeb Server++ unifies the management of secure access to multiple-protocols through a centralised user interface, to simplify administration and ensure consistency.

Templates:
Administrators use templates to allow reuse of security rules across many resources.

Level Security:
Selectively Enable/Disable all levels of security.

Resources

Resource Security:
Security rules are applied to a resource, which can be defined as disks,directories or individual files that match wildcard patterns.

Resource Definition:
Resources are protected uniformly regardless of the protocols used to access them

Pervasive Security:
Can allow/deny based on physical paths inside or outside the document hierarchy.

Authentication

Dynamic Management:
User databases and authentication realms can be dynamically managed without restarting services.

Validated Authentication:
Security is enforced by requiring a matched user name and password, or by using SSL Version 3.0 client certificates.

Multiple Security Realms:
Protect sites through multiple user databases and authentication realms.

Access Control

Rule Ordering:
Security rules can be any combination, in any order, of allow and deny.

Rule Combinations:
Deny or allow access by any combination of username, domain name and/or IP address.

Restrict Hosts/Domains:
Deny or allow access by host and/or domain name.

Restrict IP Addresses:
Deny or allow access by IP address.

Hierarchies:
Security Rules are applied to both document and data hierarchies based on any of the above conditions.

Customisation:
Customise file-level security through scripts.

Inherited Security:
Hierarchical permissions model with inheritance; can specify separate permissions for each method/URL combination, and URLs inherit default permissions hierarchically.

Restrict Access Method:
Allow/deny access according to protocol, access method, and sub-method.

Filtering:
All requests can be filtered by a script to which any kind of security can be added.

Location:
Security rules and databases can be kept inside or outside of the protected directory.

Extensions

Database Connectivity:
Use embedded SQL within your HTML to access popular SQL databases (Sybase, Microsoft, DB/2, SQL Anywhere) through a native interface for the best speed and flexibility.

Multi-Page Forms:
Consolidates data entry across multiple forms in multiple documents.

Automatic Forms:
Processes form submittal automatically, storing the results in a database, or forwarding them to another server for processing.

Forms Data Entry Processing:
PowerWeb Server++ automatically creates server variables, integrated into Web Macros and APIs, for easy processing of forms without writing scripts. PowerWeb Server++ decodes all the data entry fields for you. There is no need to decompose the POSTed arguments, or to decode the escape sequences.

Wizards:
Create documents based on templates and styles with wizards.

Built-in Imagemaps:
Processes image maps internally, avoiding the overhead of CGI-based image map programs, without requiring any changes to existing HTML documents.

Imagemap Configuration:
Supports directly specifying Imagemap configuration files within the URL, avoiding the need to maintain a global configuration file for all imagemaps.

Long Document Names:
Store documents with long filenames, or with FAT 8.3 filenames. Users specifying a long filename automatically access the equivalent FAT 8.3 file if PowerWeb Server++ is running on a FAT partition.

Slashes in Document Names:
Path names can use either Unix style / or DOS style \ to separate directory names.

Scripting

Unique Flexibility:
With PowerWeb, you can write extensions in CGI, API libraries, or in Web Macros.

InSide HTML:
PowerWeb lets you code your scripts directly within your HTML for faster processing and easier editing. You can embed SQL, Rexx or Perl within your HTML and have it execute before the document is sent to the client.

API Scripts:
API Scripts extend PowerWeb Server++ as though part of the original product. The high performance and tight integration bypass the limitations of CGI, while allowing you to code in multiple languages.

Language Independence:
API and CGI scripts can be written in any language, such as Perl, C, C++, or Rexx. API compatibility across languages ensures an easy migration.

Other Features

Browser Interfaced:
GUI-based setup, configuration, administration and maintenance.

Easy Installation:
Quick-start easy installation without editing complex configuration files.

Local or Remote:
Any server configuration, administration and maintenance can be run locally or remotely, while the server is running.

Performance Measurement:
Real-time performance and throughput measurement tools.

File-type Customisation:
Apply script or actions based on output file type, either through server configuration or through Web Macros.

MIME-type Customisation:
Apply script or actions based on MIME content-type through Web Macros.

Automatic URL Correction:
Automatically corrects directory and welcome URLs without a trailing slash.

Protocols

Protocols supported (all with SSL version 3 and 2):
HTTP
HTTP Proxy
SMTP
POP3
FTP

Protocols to be supported:

SHTTP
SET
Search Engines

Platforms

Platforms supported:
OS/2 Warp
Windows NT 3.51x, 4.x
Windows 95

Platforms to be supported:

AIX 4.1x
Solaris
OS/400 3.1x
MVS Open Edition 5.1x

NCSA and CERN Compatibility

PowerWeb Server++ supports the features of the UNIX NCSA and CERN httpd servers, including:
HTTP Standard:
Compatible with Web browsers using HTTP/1.0.

CGI Compatibility:
Supports forms through CGI/1.1 and CGI/1.0 with both METHOD=GET and METHOD=POST.

Directory Indexing:
Provides automatic on the fly directory index generation in a variety of styles.

Imagemaps:
Imagemaps are fully supported (also sometimes called clickable images).

Access Control:
Documents are subject to access control.

Audit Trail:
An audit trail is kept of all accesses.

Aliases:
Aliases allow users to see a unified directory structure, even if documents are distributed across multiple network drives.

Redirections:
Redirections allow administrators to move documents to another server without affecting existing references in other documents.

Server-Side Includes:
PowerWeb Server++ implements a superset of the NCSA server-side includes.

Common Log Format:
The NCSA/CERN common log format is supported.


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