Apple Mac OS X Server (Administrator’s Guide) - Manual (Page 338)

338 Chapter 8
Before You Begin
This section provides information you need to know before you set up Web service for the
first time. You should read this section even if you are an experienced Web administrator, as
some features and behaviors may be different from what you expect.
Configuring Web Service
You can use Server Settings to set up and configure the most frequently used features of Web
service. If you are an experienced Apache administrator and need to work with features of
the Apache Web server that aren’t included in Server Settings, you can modify the
appropriate configuration files. However, Apple does not provide technical support for
modifying Apache configuration files. If you choose to modify a file, be sure to make a
backup copy first. Then you can revert to the copy should you have problems.
For more information about Apache modules, see the Apache Software Foundation Web site at
www.apache.org
Providing Secure Transactions
If you want to provide secure transactions on your server, you should set up Secure Sockets
Layer (SSL) protection. SSL lets you send encrypted, authenticated information across the
Internet. If you want to allow credit card transactions through your Web site, for example,
you can use SSL to protect the information that’s passed to and from your site.
For instructions on how to set up secure transactions, see “Setting Up Secure Sockets Layer
(SSL) Service” on page 361.
Setting Up Web Sites
Before you can host a Web site, you must
m register your domain name with a domain name authority
m create a folder for your Web site on the server
m create a default page in the folder for users to see when they connect
m verify that DNS is properly configured if you want clients to access your Web site by name
When you are ready to publish, or enable, your site, you can do this using Server Settings. The
Sites pane in the Configure Web Service window lets you add a new site and select a variety of
settings for each site you host. See “Managing Web Sites” on page 349 for more information.