FAQs

What is the difference between a gateway and a reverse proxy?

    HTTP gateways and their requirements are defined the HTTP
    specification.  Reverse proxy is a looser term without, as far as
    I know, no standardized definition.  The terms are similar.

How does C<Apache::Gateway> differ from B<apache-rproxy>?

    Apache::Gateway is a big memory-hogging mod_perl module with
    lots of random features that I find useful.  apache-rproxy was,
    I believe, a stripped down special purpose server which first
    implemented the ProxyPassReverse and rnd map features (both now
    officially part of Apache since 1.3b6).  Additional features
    Apache::Gateway provides include automatic failover, gatewaying
    of LWP protocols, and mirror timestamp correction.

How does Apache::Gateway differ from Apache::SiteSwitch?

    I do not know much about Apache::SiteSwitch, but it sounds very
    interesting.  Apache::SiteSwitch is supposed to allow server
    balancing based upon bandwidth.  Perhaps Apache::Gateway could
    call Apache::SiteSwitch when choosing servers instead of the
    current round-robin technique.

LWP often sets file types incorrectly.  What can I do?

    For example, LWP will assume that a .../README file downloaded via
    FTP has type application/octet-stream.  One way to override the
    type is with an Apache ForceType directive as follows:
    
      <LocationMatch "^/gateRoot/.*README">
      SetHandler perl-script
      PerlHandler Apache::Gateway
      PerlSetVar GatewayConfig /etc/apache/gateway/thisGate
      PerlSetupEnv Off
      ForceType text/plain
      </LocationMatch>