Use Windows services to start IBM HTTP Server

This topic provides information about getting started with IBM HTTP Server on Windows operating systems.


Before you begin

Microsoft has introduced additional security into Windows operating systems newer than Windows 2003 via the User Account Control (UAC) feature. This additional security affects starting and stopping IBM HTTP Server from the start menu items. In order to use these menu items from an account that is not explicitly the administrator account, do one of the following actions even if the user ID being used is an administrator.

  • To invoke the menu item, right-click the menu item and select Run as administrator each time that you want to use it.

  • Configure the menu item to run as an administrator:

    1. Right click Start HTTP Server and select Properties.

    2. Select Compatibility.

    3. Select the check box for Run this program as an administrator.

    4. Click OK.

    The previous actions automatically set the same flag on the Stop HTTP Server menu item.

Using either of these options allows the IBM HTTP Server to be started and stopped using the menu items. However, the User Access Control will prompt the user on each invocation for permission to run the item. If you do not want to be prompted for permission at each use, then we can alter the Local Security Policy to allow the program to be run without prompting. Be aware that making this alteration is done at a system level and will affect all other applications for which this prompting occurs. Carefully consider any security ramifications before making this change. To make this change, we can complete the following actions:

  1. Click Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Local Security Policy.

  2. Expand Local Policies.

  3. Select Security Options.

  4. Double-click the policy of User Account Control: Behavior of the elevation prompt for administrators in Admin Approval Mode.

  5. Change the setting to Elevate without prompting.

  6. Click OK.


About this task

Use this task to start IBM HTTP Server as a Windows service.


Procedure

  1. Start the IBM HTTP Server.

    1. If you changed the menu item properties as described in the Before you begin section of this topic or you are using the Administrator account, click Start > All Programs > IBM HTTP Server V8.5 > Start HTTP Server.

    1. If you did not change the menu item properties, click Start > All Programs > IBM HTTP Server V8.5 > Start HTTP Server > Run as administrator.

  2. If you are prompted to run the application by User Access Control, then allow it to run.

  3. To confirm that IBM HTTP Server started successfully by opening a browser window and type in your server name in the URL box. If you use the non-Administrator installation option, then the IBM HTTP Server does not install as a service. You have to run the httpd.exe file from a command line.If IBM HTTP Server does not start:

    1. Go to Services in the Control Panel.

    2. Double-click IBM HTTP Server to start the server.

    3. To confirm that IBM HTTP Server started successfully, open a browser and type in your server name in the URL box.

    If you are going to run Application Response Measurement (ARM) agents, make sure you have the authority to run ARM agents when you start IBM HTTP Server.


Results

IBM HTTP Server starts successfully.


What to do next

We can configure your server for Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).


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