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Chapter 4. Working with Apache modules

The httpd service is a modular application, and you can extend it with several Dynamic Shared Objects (DSO). You can dynamically load or unload DSO modules at runtime as necessary. You can find these modules in the /usr/lib64/httpd/modules/ directory.

4.1. Loading a dynamic shared object module
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To configure the functionality for the Apache HTTP Server, you can load Dynamic Shared Object (DSO) modules. You need to use the LoadModule directive to load a particular DSO module. A separate package has modules with their own configuration file stored in the /etc/httpd/conf.modules.d/ directory.

Prerequisites

  • You have installed the httpd package.

Procedure

  1. Search for the module name in the configuration files in the /etc/httpd/conf.modules.d/ directory: 

    # grep mod_ssl.so /etc/httpd/conf.modules.d/*
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  2. Uncomment the LoadModule directive of the module in the configuration file where the module name is present: 

    LoadModule ssl_module modules/mod_ssl.so
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  3. If the module was not found, for example, because a Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) package does not include the module, create a configuration file, such as /etc/httpd/conf.modules.d/30-example.conf with the following directive: 

    LoadModule ssl_module modules/<custom_module>.so
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  4. Restart the httpd service: 

    # systemctl restart httpd
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Verification

  • Verify that the module is loaded and enabled: 

    # httpd -M | grep ssl
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4.2. Compiling a custom Apache module
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You can create your own module and build it by using the httpd-devel package, which has the include files, the header files, and the Apache Extension (apxs) utility required to compile a module.

Prerequisites

  • You have the httpd-devel package installed.

Procedure

  • Build a custom module: 

    # apxs -i -a -c module_name.c
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Verification

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