CGI.txt

   1 CGI - CUPS v1.1.21 - 06/29/2004
   2 -------------------------------
   3
   4 This file describes the experimental scripting/CGI support
   5 provided by CUPS starting with CUPS 1.1.19.
   6
   7 WARNING: CGI support is not complete; you may run into problems
   8 and limitations in the implementation of CGI in CUPS that are
   9 not present in full-featured web servers like Apache.
  10
  11
  12 OVERVIEW OF CGI SUPPORT IN CUPS
  13
  14 CUPS has traditionally provided a dynamic web interface through
  15 four CGI programs that are executed when users open special
  16 directories on the CUPS server.  Each CGI performs
  17 administration, class, job, and printer functions as directed by
  18 the user, but the actual programs that are run and functions
  19 that are available are limited to those that were originally
  20 designed into the scheduler.
  21
  22 Starting with CUPS 1.1.19, support is now available for CGI
  23 programs and specific scripting languages, currently Java, Perl,
  24 PHP, and Python.  The interpreters for these languages are
  25 currently configured at compile time.  Future versions may
  26 expand the interface to allow for generic support of scripting
  27 languages similar to the Apache "AddHandler" directive, but with
  28 external programs instead of modules.
  29
  30 The following MIME types are reserved for the CGI support in
  31 CUPS (the names have been chosen to mirror those used by
  32 Apache):
  33
  34     application/x-httpd-cgi      CGI script/program
  35     application/x-httpd-java     Java program
  36     application/x-httpd-perl     Perl script
  37     application/x-httpd-php      PHP script
  38     application/x-httpd-python   Python script
  39
  40 In order to enable the corresponding type, you must create a new
  41 /etc/cups/cgi.types file which maps the filename extensions to
  42 the appropriate MIME type, for example:
  43
  44     application/x-httpd-cgi cgi
  45     application/x-httpd-php php
  46
  47 CGI scripts/programs (application/x-httpd-cgi) also must have
  48 execution permissions to be treated as a CGI script or program.
  49
  50
  51 LIMITATIONS
  52
  53 CUPS implements most of the CGI/1.1 specification, with the
  54 following limitations:
  55
  56     - No Location: redirection support.
  57     - No PATH_INFO or PATH_TRANSLATED support.
  58     - Limited HTTP field support; only the Content-Length
  59       (CONTENT_LENGTH), Cookie (HTTP_COOKIE), and User-Agent
  60       (HTTP_USER_AGENT) fields are placed in environment
  61       variables at this time.
  62
  63
  64 REPORTING PROBLEMS
  65
  66 If you have problems, READ THE DOCUMENTATION FIRST!  If the
  67 documentation does not solve your problems please send an email
  68 to "cups-support@cups.org".  Include your operating system and
  69 version, compiler and version, and any errors or problems you've
  70 run into. The "/var/log/cups/error_log" file should also be sent,
  71 as it often helps to determine the cause of your problem.
  72
  73 If you are running a version of Linux, be sure to provide the
  74 Linux distribution you have, too.
  75
  76 Please note that the "cups-support@cups.org" email address goes
  77 to the CUPS developers; they are busy people, so your email may
  78 go unanswered for days or weeks.  In general, only general build
  79 or distribution problems will actually get answered - for
  80 end-user support see the "README.txt" for a summary of the
  81 resources available.