About Apache
Last modified: September 26, 2024
Overview
EasyApache 4 installs and manages the Apache® web server and all of its components. When you install cPanel & WHM, the installation process automatically runs EasyApache 4, which installs Apache with the basic requirements for a functional web server.
To modify your Apache configuration, use WHM’s EasyApache 4 interface (WHM » Home » Software » EasyApache 4).
Important:
The Apache Software Foundation develops the Apache HTTP Server Project, which provides the Apache web server software. For an introduction to the Apache web server, read Apache’s Getting Started documentation.
Apache versions
EasyApache 4 only supports Apache 2.4.
When Apache releases a new version, we test and update the EasyApache 4 packages. Minor version number changes do not impact functionality, but major updates may require changes to your configuration.
Apache configuration
The Apache configuration we provide includes the following components by default:
- The core Apache modules — These include the modules necessary to perform the basic duties of a web server.
- The most common Apache modules — These include the modules that most web servers use.
- A Multi-Processing Module (MPM) — Our default Apache configuration uses MPM Prefork. The MPM that you select determines how Apache handles requests.
- PHP — PHP versions 8.1 and 8.2 are included by default. For more information, read our About PHP documentation.
Apache file locations
The following table provides a list of the most common Apache file paths:
| File path | Description |
|---|---|
/usr/sbin/httpd |
The Apache binary file. |
/var/log/apache2/ |
This directory contains Apache log files. |
/etc/apache2/ |
This directory contains Apache’s configuration directories for its includes, modules, and configuration files. |
/etc/apache2/conf/httpd.conf |
The primary Apache configuration file. |
/etc/apache2/conf.d/ |
The primary Apache configuration file directory. |
/etc/apache2/conf.d/includes/ |
The directory that contains the include files that add content to the httpd.conf file. You can modify these configuration files via the command line interface (CLI) or WHM’s Include Editor interface (WHM » Home » Service Configuration » Apache Configuration » Include Editor). |
/usr/lib64/apache2/modules/ |
This directory contains all of the dynamic modules for Apache. Some servers use the /usr/lib/apache2/modules/ directory instead. |
/etc/apache2/logs/access_log |
This file contains HTTP requests that the server received and that did not go to a domain. |
/etc/apache2/logs/domlogs/ |
This directory contains a log of HTTP requests that the system routed to a domain. |
/etc/apache2/logs/error_log |
This file contains error information. |
/var/www/html/ |
This directory contains the document root for the server. It contains default pages that users can see. |
/etc/apache2/logs/ |
This directory contains an alias to the /var/log/apache2/ directory. |
/etc/apache2/modules/ |
This directory contains an alias to the /usr/lib64/apache2/modules/ directory. |
For more information about Apache configuration and file paths, read our Advanced Apache Configuration and Advanced Apache Configuration — The paths.conf documentation.
Apache modules
Default Apache modules
When you install cPanel & WHM, the system installs the cPanel Default EasyApache 4 profile. This profile provides the basic components for a web server.
The cPanel Default profile includes the following Apache modules by default:
| Apache module | Description |
|---|---|
mod_cgi |
Handles CGI requests. |
mod_deflate |
Compresses content before delivery to the client. |
mod_expires |
Generates Expires and Cache-Control HTTP headers with user-specified criteria. |
mod_headers |
Customization of HTTP request and response headers. |
mod_mpm_prefork |
Implements a non-threaded, pre-forking web server. |
mod_proxy |
HTTP/1.1 proxy/gateway server. |
mod_proxy_fcgi |
FastCGI proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_ruid2 |
Allows a domain’s HTTP requests to run as the owner of that domain. For more information, read our Apache Module: Ruid2 documentation. |
mod_security2 |
A web application firewall. For more information, read our Apache Module: ModSecurity® documentation. |
mod_ssl |
Handles security through the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocols. |
mod_unique_id |
Provides an environment variable with a unique identifier for each request. |
Other available Apache modules
You can select other Apache modules in the Apache Modules section of WHM’s EasyApache 4 interface (WHM » Home » Software » EasyApache 4) when you customize a profile.
Click to view...
| Apache module | Description |
|---|---|
mod_allowmethods |
Restrict which HTTP methods the server can use. |
mod_asis |
As-is provider module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_auth_digest |
HTTP Digest Authentication module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authn_anon |
Anonymous-user authentication module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authn_dbd |
DBD-based authentication module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authn_dbm |
DBM-based authentication module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authn_socache |
Shared-memory authentication caching module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authnz_ldap |
LDAP authentication/authorization module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authz_dbd |
DBD-based group authorization module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authz_dbm |
DBM-based group authorization module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_authz_owner |
Ownership-based authorization module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_buffer |
Request buffering module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_brotli |
Compression module for the Apache HTTP server. If you install this module, it applies to all virtual hosts. For more information, read our Apache Module: Brotli documentation. |
mod_bw |
Bandwidth limitation options for the Apache HTTP server. This module includes the /usr/local/cpanel/scripts/setbwlimit script to modify bandwidth limits. For more information, run the /usr/local/cpanel/scripts/setbwlimit —help command. |
mod_cache |
Content caching module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_cache_disk |
Disk-based caching module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_cache_socache |
Shared-memory caching module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_cgid |
CGI module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_charset_lite |
Character-set conversion module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_cpanel |
Improves how Apache processes requests. |
mod_data |
RFC2379 data URL generation module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dav |
DAV module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dav_fs |
DAV filesystem provider module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dav_lock |
Generic DAV locking module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dbd |
Database connection module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dialup |
Bandwidth rate-limiting module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_dumpio |
Debug logging module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_env |
Environment variable module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_evasive |
DoS, DDoS, and brute force attack protection for the Apache HTTP server. For more information, read our Apache Module: Evasive documentation. |
mod_ext_filter |
Generic filter module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_file_cache |
Static file caching module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_heartbeat |
Status reporting module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_heartmonitor |
Heartbeat monitoring module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_http2 |
The http2 module for the Apache HTTP server. For more information, read our Apache Module: HTTP2 documentation. |
mod_imagemap |
Server-side imagemap module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_info |
Provides a comprehensive overview of server configuration. We do not recommend this module for shared servers. |
mod_lbmethod_bybusyness |
Busyness load-balancing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_lbmethod_byrequests |
Request load-balancing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_lbmethod_bytraffic |
Traffic load-balancing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_lbmethod_heartbeat |
Heartbeat load-balancing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_ldap |
LDAP connection-handling module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_log_debug |
Debug logging module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_log_forensic |
Forensic logging module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_lua |
The Lua language extension module for the Apache HTTP server. We do not recommend this module for shared servers. For more information, read our Apache Module: Lua documentation. |
mod_macro |
Configuration macro module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_mime_magic |
MIME-type autosensing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod-passenger |
The Phusion Passenger® package. For more information, read our Using Passenger Applications documentation. |
mod_pagespeed |
Improve web page latency. |
mod_proxy_ajp |
Apache JServ Protocol 1.3 proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_balancer |
Load-balancing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_connect |
CONNECT HTTP method proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_express |
Dynamic reverse-proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_fdpass |
File descriptor-passing proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_ftp |
FTP proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_hcheck |
Dynamic health check of Balancer members (workers) for mod_proxy. |
mod_proxy_html |
HTML and XML content filters for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_http |
HTTP/HTTPS proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_scgi |
SCGI module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_uwsgi |
Websockets proxy support for the WSGWI protocol for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_proxy_wstunnel |
Websockets proxy module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_qos |
Quality-of-service module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_ratelimit |
Client bandwidth limiting module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_reflector |
Filter-as-service module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_remoteip |
IP address replacement module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_reqtimeout |
Request timeout module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_request |
Request body retention module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_sed |
Regex replacement content filter module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_session |
Session interface for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_slotmem_plain |
Slot-based memory module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_socache_memcache |
Memcache-based object cache module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_speling |
URL fallback module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_substitute |
Response body substitution module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_suexec |
Per-user/group execution module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_suphp |
This module executes PHP scripts with the permissions of their owners. |
mod_usertrack |
Cookie tracking module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_version |
Version comparing module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_vhost_alias |
Dynamic mass virtual hosting module for the Apache HTTP server. |
mod_watchdog |
Periodic task module for the Apache HTTP server. |
Apache security
EasyApache 4 provides a web application firewall, the ModSecurity® Apache module.
You must install and configure a ruleset with WHM’s ModSecurity® Configuration interface (WHM » Home » Security Center » ModSecurity® Configuration) to use ModSecurity. For more information about the ModSecurity Apache module, read our Apache Module: ModSecurity® documentation.
We strongly recommend that you read Apache’s Security Tips documentation.