CGI - Common Gateway Interface

The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is a standard for interfacing external applications with information servers, such as the Apache Web Server. An HTML document is static, which means it exists in a constant state. It is a text file that doesn't change. A CGI program, on the other hand, is executed in real-time so that it can provide dynamic output.

Installation

Your Virtual Private Server features full CGI support. Many common CGI's are available on the VPS v2. You can also install and use your own custom CGI scripts.

• CGI Library

• FreeBSD Ports Collection

• vinstall Library

• Installing and Debugging Your Own CGIs

Configuration

The default location for CGI scripts on your VPS v2 is in the /www/cgi-bin/ directory. In addition, your subhosts can have their own cgi-bin. For security reasons, it is a good idea to keep all your scripts inside a designated directory which is separate from your HTML and other files. Because CGI scripts run with the permissions of the owner of the script, you will need to make sure that the appropriate file permissions and ownership are set for both the scripts and any files the scripts may need to access.