Problem with Alias Placement

[tjrush]

I have installed xampp for windows. I would like to direct calls to http://localhost/caa/ to J:\caa instead of htdocs.

I believe this is the correct code

Alias /caa "J:/caa/"
<Directory "J:/caa">
Option Indexes
Order allow,deny
Allow from all
</Directory>

Would someone please tell me where to insert this code.

Thanks,
Tom

[Sharley]

...Would someone please tell me where to insert this code...

C:\xampp\apache\conf\extra\httpd-xampp.conf <-- your path to xampp may be different.

BTW the <Directory> directive can contain any number of additional directives that may be required in your alias folder.
http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/mod/quickreference.html
http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/mod/core.html#directory

Alternatively you can add your alias to this section of your httpd.conf file

Code: Select all

<IfModule alias_module>
    #
    # Redirect: Allows you to tell clients about documents that used to
    # exist in your server's namespace, but do not anymore. The client
    # will make a new request for the document at its new location.
    # Example:
    # Redirect permanent /foo http://www.example.com/bar

    #
    # Alias: Maps web paths into filesystem paths and is used to
    # access content that does not live under the DocumentRoot.
    # Example:
    # Alias /webpath /full/filesystem/path
Alias /caa "J:/caa/"
<Directory "J:/caa">
Option Indexes
Order allow,deny
Allow from all
</Directory>
    # If you include a trailing / on /webpath then the server will
    # require it to be present in the URL.  You will also likely
    # need to provide a <Directory> section to allow access to
    # the filesystem path.

    #
    # ScriptAlias: This controls which directories contain server scripts.
    # ScriptAliases are essentially the same as Aliases, except that
    # documents in the target directory are treated as applications and
    # run by the server when requested rather than as documents sent to the
    # client.  The same rules about trailing "/" apply to ScriptAlias
    # directives as to Alias.
    #
    # ScriptAlias /cgi-bin/ "C:/xampp/cgi-bin/"

</IfModule>

[tjrush]

Sharley:

I have tried both your suggestions with the same negative result. After I insert the code, I try to start Apache with the control panel. The "running" button will light up momentarily and go out. Sometimes it won't even light up. If I then remove the code and try again, all works well. Is there something else I need to do? My J:\xampp\apache\conf\httpd.conf file look like this after the alias is added:

Code: Select all

#
# This is the main Apache HTTP server configuration file.  It contains the
# configuration directives that give the server its instructions.
# See <URL:http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/> for detailed information.
# In particular, see
# <URL:http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/mod/directives.html>
# for a discussion of each configuration directive.
#
# Do NOT simply read the instructions in here without understanding
# what they do.  They're here only as hints or reminders.  If you are unsure
# consult the online docs. You have been warned. 
#
# Configuration and logfile names: If the filenames you specify for many
# of the server's control files begin with "/" (or "drive:/" for Win32), the
# server will use that explicit path.  If the filenames do *not* begin
# with "/", the value of ServerRoot is prepended -- so "logs/foo.log"
# with ServerRoot set to "J:/xampp/apache" will be interpreted by the
# server as "J:/xampp/apache/logs/foo.log".
#
# NOTE: Where filenames are specified, you must use forward slashes
# instead of backslashes (e.g., "c:/apache" instead of "c:\apache").
# If a drive letter is omitted, the drive on which Apache.exe is located
# will be used by default.  It is recommended that you always supply
# an explicit drive letter in absolute paths, however, to avoid
# confusion.
#

# ThreadsPerChild: constant number of worker threads in the server process
# MaxRequestsPerChild: maximum  number of requests a server process serves
ThreadsPerChild 250
MaxRequestsPerChild  0

#
# ServerRoot: The top of the directory tree under which the server's
# configuration, error, and log files are kept.
#
# Do not add a slash at the end of the directory path.  If you point
# ServerRoot at a non-local disk, be sure to point the LockFile directive
# at a local disk.  If you wish to share the same ServerRoot for multiple
# httpd daemons, you will need to change at least LockFile and PidFile.
#
ServerRoot "J:/xampp/apache"

#
# Listen: Allows you to bind Apache to specific IP addresses and/or
# ports, instead of the default. See also the <VirtualHost>
# directive.
#
# Change this to Listen on specific IP addresses as shown below to
# prevent Apache from glomming onto all bound IP addresses (0.0.0.0)
#
#Listen 12.34.56.78:80
Listen 80

#
# Dynamic Shared Object (DSO) Support
#
# To be able to use the functionality of a module which was built as a DSO you
# have to place corresponding `LoadModule' lines at this location so the
# directives contained in it are actually available _before_ they are used.
# Statically compiled modules (those listed by `httpd -l') do not need
# to be loaded here.
#
# Example:
# LoadModule foo_module modules/mod_foo.so
#
LoadModule actions_module modules/mod_actions.so
LoadModule alias_module modules/mod_alias.so
LoadModule asis_module modules/mod_asis.so
LoadModule auth_basic_module modules/mod_auth_basic.so
LoadModule auth_digest_module modules/mod_auth_digest.so
LoadModule authn_anon_module modules/mod_authn_anon.so
#LoadModule authn_dbm_module modules/mod_authn_dbm.so
LoadModule authn_default_module modules/mod_authn_default.so
LoadModule authn_file_module modules/mod_authn_file.so
#LoadModule authnz_ldap_module modules/mod_authnz_ldap.so
#LoadModule authz_dbm_module modules/mod_authz_dbm.so
LoadModule authz_default_module modules/mod_authz_default.so
LoadModule authz_groupfile_module modules/mod_authz_groupfile.so
LoadModule authz_host_module modules/mod_authz_host.so
LoadModule authz_user_module modules/mod_authz_user.so
#LoadModule autoindex_module modules/mod_autoindex.so # don't load because of mod_autoindex_color.so
#LoadModule bucketeer_module modules/mod_bucketeer.so
#LoadModule cache_module modules/mod_cache.so
#LoadModule disk_cache_module modules/mod_disk_cache.so
#LoadModule file_cache_module modules/mod_file_cache.so
#LoadModule mem_cache_module modules/mod_mem_cache.so
#LoadModule cern_meta_module modules/mod_cern_meta.so
#LoadModule charset_lite_module modules/mod_charset_lite.so
LoadModule cgi_module modules/mod_cgi.so
LoadModule dav_module modules/mod_dav.so
LoadModule dav_fs_module modules/mod_dav_fs.so
#LoadModule deflate_module modules/mod_deflate.so
LoadModule dir_module modules/mod_dir.so
#LoadModule dumpio_module modules/mod_dumpio.so
LoadModule env_module modules/mod_env.so
LoadModule expires_module modules/mod_expires.so
#LoadModule ext_filter_module modules/mod_ext_filter.so
LoadModule headers_module modules/mod_headers.so
#LoadModule ident_module modules/mod_ident.so
#LoadModule imagemap_module modules/mod_imagemap.so
LoadModule include_module modules/mod_include.so
LoadModule info_module modules/mod_info.so
LoadModule isapi_module modules/mod_isapi.so
LoadModule ldap_module modules/mod_ldap.so
#LoadModule logio_module modules/mod_logio.so
LoadModule log_config_module modules/mod_log_config.so
#LoadModule log_forensic_module modules/mod_log_forensic.so
LoadModule mime_module modules/mod_mime.so
LoadModule mime_magic_module modules/mod_mime_magic.so
LoadModule negotiation_module modules/mod_negotiation.so
#LoadModule proxy_module modules/mod_proxy.so
#LoadModule proxy_ajp_module modules/mod_proxy_ajp.so
#LoadModule proxy_balancer_module modules/mod_proxy_balancer.so
#LoadModule proxy_connect_module modules/mod_proxy_connect.so
#LoadModule proxy_http_module modules/mod_proxy_http.so
#LoadModule proxy_ftp_module modules/mod_proxy_ftp.so
LoadModule rewrite_module modules/mod_rewrite.so
LoadModule setenvif_module modules/mod_setenvif.so
LoadModule speling_module modules/mod_speling.so
LoadModule status_module modules/mod_status.so
#LoadModule unique_id_module modules/mod_unique_id.so
#LoadModule userdir_module modules/mod_userdir.so
#LoadModule usertrack_module modules/mod_usertrack.so
#LoadModule version_module modules/mod_version.so
LoadModule vhost_alias_module modules/mod_vhost_alias.so
LoadModule ssl_module modules/mod_ssl.so

LoadModule autoindex_color_module modules/mod_autoindex_color.so
#LoadModule mysql_auth_module modules/mod_auth_mysql.so
#LoadModule auth_remote_module modules/mod_auth_remote.so
#LoadModule sspi_auth_module modules/mod_auth_sspi.so
#LoadModule log_sql_module modules/mod_log_sql.so
#LoadModule log_sql_mysql_module modules/mod_log_sql_mysql.so
#<IfModule ssl_module>
#    LoadModule log_sql_ssl_module modules/mod_log_sql_ssl.so
#</IfModule>
#LoadModule proxy_html_module modules/mod_proxy_html.so
#LoadModule xmlns_module modules/mod_xmlns.so
#LoadModule proxy_xml_module modules/mod_proxy_xml.so
#LoadModule bw_module modules/mod_bw.so

### SVN 1.5.4 ###
#LoadModule dav_svn_module modules/mod_dav_svn.so
#LoadModule authz_svn_module modules/mod_authz_svn.so

# 'Main' server configuration
#
# The directives in this section set up the values used by the 'main'
# server, which responds to any requests that aren't handled by a
# <VirtualHost> definition.  These values also provide defaults for
# any <VirtualHost> containers you may define later in the file.
#
# All of these directives may appear inside <VirtualHost> containers,
# in which case these default settings will be overridden for the
# virtual host being defined.
#

#
# ServerAdmin: Your address, where problems with the server should be
# e-mailed.  This address appears on some server-generated pages, such
# as error documents.  e.g. admin@your-domain.com
#
ServerAdmin admin@localhost

#
# ServerName gives the name and port that the server uses to identify itself.
# This can often be determined automatically, but we recommend you specify
# it explicitly to prevent problems during startup.
#
# If your host doesn't have a registered DNS name, enter its IP address here.
#
ServerName localhost:80

#
# DocumentRoot: The directory out of which you will serve your
# documents. By default, all requests are taken from this directory, but
# symbolic links and aliases may be used to point to other locations.
#
DocumentRoot "J:/xampp/htdocs"

#
# Each directory to which Apache has access can be configured with respect
# to which services and features are allowed and/or disabled in that
# directory (and its subdirectories).
#
# First, we configure the "default" to be a very restrictive set of
# features. 
#
<Directory />
    Options FollowSymLinks
    AllowOverride None
    Order deny,allow
    Deny from all
</Directory>

#
# Note that from this point forward you must specifically allow
# particular features to be enabled - so if something's not working as
# you might expect, make sure that you have specifically enabled it
# below.
#

#
# This should be changed to whatever you set DocumentRoot to.
#
<Directory "J:/xampp/htdocs">
    #
    # Possible values for the Options directive are "None", "All",
    # or any combination of:
    #   Indexes Includes FollowSymLinks SymLinksifOwnerMatch ExecCGI MultiViews
    #
    # Note that "MultiViews" must be named *explicitly* --- "Options All"
    # doesn't give it to you.
    #
    # The Options directive is both complicated and important.  Please see
    # http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/mod/core.html#options
    # for more information.
    #
    Options Indexes FollowSymLinks Includes ExecCGI
   
    #
    # AllowOverride controls what directives may be placed in .htaccess files.
    # It can be "All", "None", or any combination of the keywords:
    #   Options FileInfo AuthConfig Limit
    #
    AllowOverride All

    #
    # Controls who can get stuff from this server.
    #
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from all

</Directory>




#
# DirectoryIndex: sets the file that Apache will serve if a directory
# is requested.
#
<IfModule dir_module>
    DirectoryIndex index.php index.php4 index.php3 index.cgi index.pl index.html index.htm index.shtml index.phtml
</IfModule>

#
# The following lines prevent .htaccess and .htpasswd files from being
# viewed by Web clients.
#
<FilesMatch "^\.ht">
    Order allow,deny
    Deny from all
</FilesMatch>

#
# ErrorLog: The location of the error log file.
# If you do not specify an ErrorLog directive within a <VirtualHost>
# container, error messages relating to that virtual host will be
# logged here.  If you *do* define an error logfile for a <VirtualHost>
# container, that host's errors will be logged there and not here.
#
ErrorLog logs/error.log

#
# LogLevel: Control the number of messages logged to the error_log.
# Possible values include: debug, info, notice, warn, error, crit,
# alert, emerg.
#
LogLevel warn

<IfModule log_config_module>
    #
    # The following directives define some format nicknames for use with
    # a CustomLog directive (see below).
    #
    LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\"" combined
    LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b" common

    <IfModule logio_module>
      # You need to enable mod_logio.c to use %I and %O
      LogFormat "%h %l %u %t \"%r\" %>s %b \"%{Referer}i\" \"%{User-Agent}i\" %I %O" combinedio
    </IfModule>

    #
    # The location and format of the access logfile (Common Logfile Format).
    # If you do not define any access logfiles within a <VirtualHost>
    # container, they will be logged here.  Contrariwise, if you *do*
    # define per-<VirtualHost> access logfiles, transactions will be
    # logged therein and *not* in this file.
    #
    CustomLog logs/access.log common

    #
    # If you prefer a logfile with access, agent, and referer information
    # (Combined Logfile Format) you can use the following directive.
    #
    #CustomLog logs/access.log combined
</IfModule>

<IfModule alias_module>
    #
    # Redirect: Allows you to tell clients about documents that used to
    # exist in your server's namespace, but do not anymore. The client
    # will make a new request for the document at its new location.
    # Example:
    # Redirect permanent /foo http://www.example.com/bar

    #
    # Alias: Maps web paths into filesystem paths and is used to
    # access content that does not live under the DocumentRoot.
    # Example:
    # Alias /webpath /full/filesystem/path
    Alias /caa "J:/caa/"
    <Directory "J:/caa">
    Option Indexes
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from all
    </Directory>
    #
    # If you include a trailing / on /webpath then the server will
    # require it to be present in the URL.  You will also likely
    # need to provide a <Directory> section to allow access to
    # the filesystem path.
    #   
      # ScriptAlias: This controls which directories contain server scripts.
    # ScriptAliases are essentially the same as Aliases, except that
    # documents in the target directory are treated as applications and
    # run by the server when requested rather than as documents sent to the
    # client.  The same rules about trailing "/" apply to ScriptAlias
    # directives as to Alias.
    #
    ScriptAlias /cgi-bin/ "J:/xampp/cgi-bin/"

</IfModule>

#
# "J:/xampp/cgi-bin" should be changed to whatever your ScriptAliased
# CGI directory exists, if you have that configured.
#
<Directory "J:/xampp/cgi-bin">
    AllowOverride None
    Options None
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from all
</Directory>

#
# Apache parses all CGI scripts for the shebang line by default.
# This comment line, the first line of the script, consists of the symbols
# pound (#) and exclamation (!) followed by the path of the program that
# can execute this specific script.  For a perl script, with perl.exe in
# the C:\Program Files\Perl directory, the shebang line should be:

   #!c:/program files/perl/perl

# Note you _must_not_ indent the actual shebang line, and it must be the
# first line of the file.  Of course, CGI processing must be enabled by
# the appropriate ScriptAlias or Options ExecCGI directives for the files
# or directory in question.
#
# However, Apache on Windows allows either the Unix behavior above, or can
# use the Registry to match files by extention.  The command to execute
# a file of this type is retrieved from the registry by the same method as
# the Windows Explorer would use to handle double-clicking on a file.
# These script actions can be configured from the Windows Explorer View menu,
# 'Folder Options', and reviewing the 'File Types' tab.  Clicking the Edit
# button allows you to modify the Actions, of which Apache 1.3 attempts to
# perform the 'Open' Action, and failing that it will try the shebang line.
# This behavior is subject to change in Apache release 2.0.
#
# Each mechanism has it's own specific security weaknesses, from the means
# to run a program you didn't intend the website owner to invoke, and the
# best method is a matter of great debate.
#
# To enable the this Windows specific behavior (and therefore -disable- the
# equivilant Unix behavior), uncomment the following directive:
#
#ScriptInterpreterSource registry
#
# The directive above can be placed in individual <Directory> blocks or the
# .htaccess file, with either the 'registry' (Windows behavior) or 'script'
# (Unix behavior) option, and will override this server default option.
#

#
# DefaultType: the default MIME type the server will use for a document
# if it cannot otherwise determine one, such as from filename extensions.
# If your server contains mostly text or HTML documents, "text/plain" is
# a good value.  If most of your content is binary, such as applications
# or images, you may want to use "application/octet-stream" instead to
# keep browsers from trying to display binary files as though they are
# text.
#
DefaultType text/plain

<IfModule mime_module>
    #
    # TypesConfig points to the file containing the list of mappings from
    # filename extension to MIME-type.
    #
    TypesConfig conf/mime.types

    #
    # AddType allows you to add to or override the MIME configuration
    # file specified in TypesConfig for specific file types.
    #
    #AddType application/x-gzip .tgz
    #
    # AddEncoding allows you to have certain browsers uncompress
    # information on the fly. Note: Not all browsers support this.
    #
    #AddEncoding x-compress .Z
    #AddEncoding x-gzip .gz .tgz
    #
    # If the AddEncoding directives above are commented-out, then you
    # probably should define those extensions to indicate media types:
    #
    AddType application/x-compress .Z
    AddType application/x-gzip .gz .tgz

    #
    # AddHandler allows you to map certain file extensions to "handlers":
    # actions unrelated to filetype. These can be either built into the server
    # or added with the Action directive (see below)
    #
    # To use CGI scripts outside of ScriptAliased directories:
    # (You will also need to add "ExecCGI" to the "Options" directive.)
    #
    AddHandler cgi-script .cgi

    # For files that include their own HTTP headers:
    #AddHandler send-as-is asis

    # For server-parsed imagemap files:
    #AddHandler imap-file map

    # For type maps (negotiated resources):
    #AddHandler type-map var

    #
    # Filters allow you to process content before it is sent to the client.
    #
    # To parse .shtml files for server-side includes (SSI):
    # (You will also need to add "Includes" to the "Options" directive.)
    #
   AddType text/html .shtml
   AddOutputFilter INCLUDES .shtml
</IfModule>

#
# The mod_mime_magic module allows the server to use various hints from the
# contents of the file itself to determine its type.  The MIMEMagicFile
# directive tells the module where the hint definitions are located.
#
#MIMEMagicFile conf/magic

#
# Customizable error responses come in three flavors:
# 1) plain text 2) local redirects 3) external redirects
#
# Some examples:
#ErrorDocument 500 "The server made a boo boo."
#ErrorDocument 404 /missing.html
#ErrorDocument 404 "/cgi-bin/missing_handler.pl"
#ErrorDocument 402 http://www.example.com/subscription_info.html
#

#
# EnableMMAP and EnableSendfile: On systems that support it,
# memory-mapping or the sendfile syscall is used to deliver
# files.  This usually improves server performance, but must
# be turned off when serving from networked-mounted
# filesystems or if support for these functions is otherwise
# broken on your system.
#
EnableMMAP off
EnableSendfile off

# Supplemental configuration
#
# The configuration files in the conf/extra/ directory can be
# included to add extra features or to modify the default configuration of
# the server, or you may simply copy their contents here and change as
# necessary.

# XAMPP specific settings
Include conf/extra/httpd-xampp.conf

# Server-pool management (MPM specific)
# Include conf/extra/httpd-mpm.conf

# Multi-language error messages
Include conf/extra/httpd-multilang-errordoc.conf

# Fancy directory listings
Include conf/extra/httpd-autoindex.conf

# Language settings
Include conf/extra/httpd-languages.conf

# User home directories
Include conf/extra/httpd-userdir.conf

# Real-time info on requests and configuration
Include conf/extra/httpd-info.conf

# Virtual hosts
Include conf/extra/httpd-vhosts.conf

# Local access to the Apache HTTP Server Manual
Include conf/extra/httpd-manual.conf

# Distributed authoring and versioning (WebDAV)
Include conf/extra/httpd-dav.conf

# Various default settings
Include conf/extra/httpd-default.conf

# Secure (SSL/TLS) connections
Include conf/extra/httpd-ssl.conf

#
# Note: The following must must be present to support
#       starting without SSL on platforms with no /dev/random equivalent
#       but a statically compiled-in mod_ssl.
#
<IfModule ssl_module>
SSLRandomSeed startup builtin
SSLRandomSeed connect builtin
</IfModule>


[Sharley]

Read the Apache error log file for clues:
j:\xampp\apache\logs\error.log

Try without the trailing slash - Alias /caa "J:/caa"

[Nobbie]

If J: points to a network device, you cannot start Apache as a service due to insufficient rights of the system user (J: is only "known" to the logged in user, not to the system user).

[tjrush]

I decided to start clean. I deleted the error.log and rebooted. I did not insert the code into http.conf. Upon starting apache all went well except an error log was generated indicating that there was an "unclean shutdown." I thought this might be caused by my previous bad attempt t o add the code so I shut down through the control panel and restarted. Apparently that shutdown was also unclean. at this point the error log was as follows:

Code: Select all

[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [warn] pid file J:/xampp/apache/logs/httpd.pid overwritten -- Unclean shutdown of previous Apache run?
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [notice] Digest: generating secret for digest authentication ...
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [notice] Digest: done
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [notice] Apache/2.2.11 (Win32) DAV/2 mod_ssl/2.2.11 OpenSSL/0.9.8i mod_autoindex_color PHP/5.2.8 configured -- resuming normal operations
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [notice] Server built: Dec 10 2008 00:10:06
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:47 2008] [notice] Parent: Created child process 1516
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Digest: generating secret for digest authentication ...
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Digest: done
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Child 1516: Child process is running
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Child 1516: Acquired the start mutex.
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Child 1516: Starting 250 worker threads.
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Child 1516: Starting thread to listen on port 80.
[Sat Dec 27 18:54:48 2008] [notice] Child 1516: Starting thread to listen on port 443.
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:40 2008] [warn] pid file J:/xampp/apache/logs/httpd.pid overwritten -- Unclean shutdown of previous Apache run?
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:40 2008] [notice] Digest: generating secret for digest authentication ...
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:40 2008] [notice] Digest: done
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:41 2008] [notice] Apache/2.2.11 (Win32) DAV/2 mod_ssl/2.2.11 OpenSSL/0.9.8i mod_autoindex_color PHP/5.2.8 configured -- resuming normal operations
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:41 2008] [notice] Server built: Dec 10 2008 00:10:06
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:41 2008] [notice] Parent: Created child process 4340
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:41 2008] [notice] Digest: generating secret for digest authentication ...
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:41 2008] [notice] Digest: done
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:42 2008] [notice] Child 4340: Child process is running
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:42 2008] [notice] Child 4340: Acquired the start mutex.
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:42 2008] [notice] Child 4340: Starting 250 worker threads.
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:42 2008] [notice] Child 4340: Starting thread to listen on port 443.
[Sat Dec 27 19:03:42 2008] [notice] Child 4340: Starting thread to listen on port 80.


At this point I inserted the code into the httpd.conf file and tried to restart apache. When i push the start button, nothing happens and no message is added to the log file.

FYI: My J drive is an external USB hard drive. There is no network. I tried with and without the trailing slash.

Tom

[Sharley]

The unclean shutdown is not a problem as this always happens when using the XCP to Stop Apache.

Did you run the setup-xampp.bat file when you installed to the USB drive?

[NOTE: Unpack the package to your USB stick or a partition of your choice.
There it must be on the highest level like E:\ or W:\. It will
build E:\xampp or W:\xampp or something like this. Please do not use the "setup_xampp.bat" for an USB stick installation!]

Try with no drive letter in your alias section:

Code: Select all

Alias /caa "./caa/"
    <Directory "./caa">
    Option Indexes
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from all
    </Directory>

It may be looking for a drive letter J on your USB drive not your PC drive. Not sure of the syntax but experiment using no drive letter.

[tjrush]

Sharley:

Did you run the setup-xampp.bat file when you installed to the USB drive?

No. I downloaded the windows installer and used that. When it asked where I wanted to install, I changed the c:\xampp to j:\xampp.

It may be looking for a drive letter J on your USB drive not your PC drive. Not sure of the syntax but experiment using no drive letter.

I will try without a drive letter but I am confused by this statement. The J drive is my external drive and not a partition on my primary hard drive.

Tom

[tjrush]

I tried with no drive letter and had no success. I also looked at the alias for phpmyadmin in the httpd-xampp.conf file and it uses the driveletter:

Code: Select all

Alias /phpmyadmin "J:/xampp/phpMyAdmin/"
    <Directory "J:/xampp/phpMyAdmin">
        AllowOverride AuthConfig
        Order allow,deny
        Allow from all
    </Directory>


Tom

[Sharley]

This old post may help you with understanding perhaps:
http://community.apachefriends.org/f/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=15354&p=65101

I know in the Forum database there are some very useful posts relating to USB installations but I have not the time to hunt them down but from memory they all say much the same thing about omitting the drive letter.

Just found this thread that may also help which seems to intimate that all drive letters and colons (J:) should be removed on a USB installed XAMPP - and IIRC installing using the zip or 7zip version is preferred over the Windows (no-brain) installer version as you have more control over the process.
http://community.apachefriends.org/f/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=20141

[tjrush]

Sharley:

Thanks for the help. I removed xampp from my C: drive because it was getting full. I'll have to decide whether to reinstall on my C drive or simply use the J htdocs which seems to work fine.

Tom

[Sharley]

Sharley:

Thanks for the help. I removed xampp from my C: drive because it was getting full. I'll have to decide whether to reinstall on my C drive or simply use the J htdocs which seems to work fine.

Tom

It is not possible to have running 2 instances of XAMPP at the same time which may have been the source of your original issue.

[Sharley]

Sharley:

Thanks for the help. I removed xampp from my C: drive because it was getting full. I'll have to decide whether to reinstall on my C drive or simply use the J htdocs which seems to work fine.

Tom

It is not possible to have running 2 instances of XAMPP at the same time which may have been the source of your original issue if that were the case.

[tjrush]

No. I uninstalled from the C drive then reinstalled to J.

Never had two installations at the same time.

Tom

[Sharley]

The method to install on your USB is not the same as installing on your PC drive.

Download the zip version and unpack/copy the xampp folder from the archive to the root of your USB drive.

Do not run the setup_xampp.bat file as this will add the offending drive letter and don't manually add the drive letter of the USB drive when creating your Alias section, or in any configuration or ini file in XAMPP.

Code: Select all

Alias /caa "/caa/"
    <Directory "/caa">
    Option Indexes
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from all
    </Directory>

This is what the httpd-xampp.conf file example you quoted above looks like when installing without running the setup_xampp.bat file:

Code: Select all

    Alias /phpmyadmin "/xampp/phpMyAdmin/"
    <Directory "/xampp/phpMyAdmin">
        AllowOverride AuthConfig
        Order allow,deny
        Allow from all
    </Directory>

That's it, all should now perform as intended and your USB will run XAMPP not only in your PC but will be totally portable and should run in any PC you insert it in to.

Good luck Tom.