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Reply-To: dev@httpd.apache.org
Date: Thu, 15 Aug 2002 09:40:06 -0700 (PDT)
From: Rasmus Lerdorf <rasmus@apache.org>
To: Justin Erenkrantz <jerenkrantz@apache.org>
cc: dev@httpd.apache.org
Subject: Re: Thread-unsafe libraries in httpd-2.0
In-Reply-To: <20020815162757.GG10466@apache.org>
Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.44.0208150930250.7641-100000@www.lerdorf.com>
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On Thu, 15 Aug 2002, Justin Erenkrantz wrote:

> [ Moving to dev@httpd where this belongs ]
>
> On Thu, Aug 15, 2002 at 07:10:02AM -0700, Rasmus Lerdorf wrote:
> > Correct.  From the feedback I am getting, users do not adequately
> > understand the implications of choosing a threaded MPM.  We need to do a
> > better job educating them to the fact that we simple cannot guarantee
> > which libraries are threadsafe and which are not.
>
> Precisely which libraries are the core of httpd-2.0 using in a
> thread-unsafe manner?  At least in the core distribution, we
> should have knowledge of which libraries are thread-unsafe and
> prevent this.  To my knowledge, I haven't seen a single problem
> related to this.  If you have actual cases where httpd-2.0 is
> doing something unsafe, please let us know!
>
> I think perhaps your concern is simply to PHP which may bring
> in thread-unsafe libraries not httpd-2.0.  -- justin

As I have stated a dozen times now.  Yes, I am talking about PHP and any
other add-on module people may use.  I think the attitude of most people
here sucks.  "Apache doesn't have a problem, why should we do anything?"

The reality is that a big chunk of our Apache community uses Apache to
serve up complex dynamic content using PHP, mod_perl, other 3rd-party
modules and homegrown modules as well. PHP and mod_perl alone are on well
over 50% of all Apache servers. People don't look to Apache for simply
serving up static content. A lot of sites replaced Apache long ago with
thttpd/Zeus/boa/Tux/khttpd for that.  All I am after is a simple very
visible addition to the Apache 2 distribution which explains that the
threaded mpms may not be suitable for serving up dynamic content due to
the unknown thread safety of the libraries these dynamic solutions rely
on.

-Rasmus