You can use .htaccess
and .htpasswd to prevent your web pages from being viewed by
unauthorized web users.
Web documents
can be protected on a directory-by-directory basis. All files in a
directory have the same restrictions. Access is controlled by a file
named .htaccess that must reside in the directory that is
being protected. The NCSA HTTPD Mosaic
User Authentication Tutorial is a straightforward guide to configuring
your server's security.
For example,
to restrict access so that any users connecting from the fsu.edu
domain can load the files, create a .htaccess file that looks
like
AuthUserFile /dev/null
AuthGroupFile /dev/null
AuthName AllowFromFSU
AuthType Basic
<Limit GET POST PUT>
order deny,allow
deny from all
allow from .fsu.edu
</Limit>
To password protect
a directory so that only the user "pumpkin" can load the files, use
something like
AuthUserFile /otherdir/.htpasswd
AuthGroupFile /dev/null
AuthName ByPassword
AuthType Basic
<Limit GET POST PUT>
require user pumpkin
</Limit>
The username
"pumpkin" and password will be in the file /otherdir/.htpasswd,
and the full Unix path to .htpasswd must be provided.
To password protect
a directory so that only users listed in .htpasswd can load
the files, use
AuthUserFile /otherdir/.htpasswd
AuthGroupFile /dev/null
AuthName ByPassword
AuthType Basic
<Limit GET POST PUT>
require valid-user
</Limit>
Passwords can
be created with the htpasswd utility that is provided with
the web server software. On Mailer and Garnet, it is stored in the
directory /usr/local/etc/httpd/support. You
can create a pasword file for the user "pumpkin" with the command
/usr/local/etc/httpd/support/htpasswd -c /otherdir/.htpasswd pumpkin
or add a new user
with
/usr/local/etc/httpd/support/htpasswd /otherdir/.htpasswd username
The .htpasswd
file must be readable by "other users", so put it out of the web server
directory.
Non-UCS servers
running NCSA or Apache web software should have the same capabilities
for limiting access. Ask the system administrator about how to access
the htpasswd program. Further information is provided at
NCSA's and Apache's
websites.
***** If you need additional help, please see our list of help
resources.
Please NOTE: The Technology Services Help Desk will NOT help students with websites related to coursework.