In this issue

Release: 1.1.3 (Released 14th January 1997)
Beta: 1.2b7 (Released 22nd February 1997)

• Report that some OSes may not be able to execute CGI scripts, only compiled binaries.
• AuthAuthoritative directive does not exist in mod_auth, but is documented

Bugs fixed in next release:

• Better error reporting in error_log after system errors - the error string (using errno) is now reported
• Under content negotiation, if clients requests a character set other than ISO-8859-1, and variant in that charset exists as well as one in ISO-8859-1, the latter was be preferred. Now the explicitly listed charset will be preferred.
• OS specific update for MachTen

Apache is currently in a 'beta release' cycle. This is where it is made available prior to full release for testing by anyone interested. Normally during the beta cycle no new major features will be added. The full release of Apache 1.2 is expected in April.

A searchable database of Apache bugs is now available. New bugs can be reported through a forms interface which directly inserts the report into the database. As and when bugs are fixed they will be updated in the database, and the original submitter will be automatically notified of the fix. This replaces the old 'apache-bug' email address (although this address will still work for people who cannot use the form to submit bugs).

If you think you have found a bug in Apache, the first thing to do is to make sure it really is an Apache bug. There can be several other causes of apparent bugs, such as incorrect configurations, browser bugs, bugs in previous betas which are now fixed, or bugs in third-party modules or patches. So if you think you have found a bug, try and identify exactly what is causing it. If you are using additional modules, compile up a version of Apache without them and see if the problem still occurs. If you configuration is causing a problem, make sure that you have configured apache correctly according to the documentation on the Apache site (in Apache 1.2, this documentation is distributed in the htdocs directory for ease of use). If you are using an old version, check the latest release (for 1.* versions, updated to 1.1.3, and for 1.2 betas check the latest beta release).

If that has not fixed the problem, the best thing to do is to ask in the comp.infosystems.www.servers.unix newsgroup. You will probably get a better response there to common configuration and other non-bug problems.

If the newsgroup does not help, go to the Apache bug report page. First check to see if the problem is a known bug. Also check it has not already been reported by searching the bug database. If your bug has not been reported, submit it on the bug report form . When filling in the bug report form, remember that the easier you make it to understand and reproduce, the more likely it is that someone will look into it. So take time to select the correct option from the drop-down boxes and make sure that the description of the problem and 'how to reproduce' are consice and clear. If possible, include a URL where the problem can be seen.

You should try to select an appropriate category for the report. If the bug is related to a specific module, select that module. If you think it is related to a specific operating system (or version of an operating system), select that OS as the category. If you do not select an OS as the category, include full details of the OS and system in the environment text box. Also in the box enter the exact version of Apache you are using (for example, "1.1.3" or "1.2b7"). If you are using any patches or extra modules, list them here.

After you have submitted your report, it will be added to the bug database and mailed to the Apache developers. If you entered your correct email address on he form you will be notified every time that the status of your bug report is updated.

Note that the bug report form can also be used to report problems with other parts of the Apache distribution, including programs in the support and cgi-bin directories, and problems (typos, omissions etc) in the Apache documentation.

A new draft of the PEP Extension Mechanism for HTTP draft is now available (version 02). This proposes an extension mechanism for HTTP/1.1 so that servers, browsers and proxies can agree which extensions apply to particular URIs.