NAME
CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache - Allow CGI::Application to use
Apache::* modules without interference
SYNOPSIS
use base 'CGI::Application';
use CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache qw(:all);
# then later we join our hero in a run mode...
sub mode1 {
my $self = shift;
my $q = $self->query(); # $q is an Apache::Request obj not a CGI.pm obj
# do some stuff
# now we can bake a cookie using Apache::Cookie without interference
$cookie = Apache::Cookie->new(
$q,
-name => 'foo',
-value => 'bar',
-expires => '+2h',
);
$cookie->bake;
# now let's play with the content_type and other headers
$q->content_type('text/plain');
$q->header_out('MyHeader' => 'MyValue');
# do other stuff
return $content;
}
1;
DESCRIPTION
This plugin helps to try and fix some of the annoyances of using
CGI::Application in a pure mod_perl (1.0 or 2.0) environment (see
INSTALLATION for specific issues regarding installation under mod_perl
2.x). CGI::Application assumes that you use CGI.pm, but I wanted to
avoid it's bloat and have access to the performance of the Apache::*
modules so along came this plugin. At the current moment it only does
two things:
Use Apache::Request as the "$self->query" object thus avoiding the
creation of the CGI.pm object.
Override the way CGI::Application creates and prints it's HTTP headers.
Since it was using CGI.pm's "header()" and "redirect()" method's we
needed an alternative. So now we use the "Apache->send_http_header()"
method. This has a few additional benefits other than just not using
CGI.pm. It means that we can use other Apache::* modules that might also
create outgoing headers (e.g. Apache::Cookie) without CGI::Application
clobbering them.
EXPORTED METHODS
This module uses Exporter to provide methods to your application module.
Most of the time you will never actually use these methods since they
are used by CGI::Application itself, but I figured you'd like to know
what's going on.
No methods are exported by default. It is up to you to pick and choose,
but please choose wisely. You can import all of the methods by using:
use CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache qw(:all);
It is recommended that you import all of them since some methods will
require others. but the choice is yours. For instance, if you want to
override any method then you may not want to import it from here.
handler()
This method gives your application the ability to run as a straight
mod_perl handler. It simply creates an instance of you application and
then runs it (using "$app->new()" and "$app->run()"). It does not pass
any arguments into either method. It then returns an
"Apache::Constants::OK" value. If you need anything more than this,
please feel free to not import this method and write your own. You could
do it like this:
package MyApp;
use base 'CGI::Application';
use CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache qw(:all !handler);
sub handler {
# do what every you want here
}
cgiapp_get_query()
This overrides CGI:App's method for retrieving the query object. This is
the standard way of using something other than CGI.pm so it's no
surprise that we use it here. It simply creates and returns a new
Apache::Request object from "Apache->request".
_send_headers()
I didn't like the idea of exporting this private method (I'd rather
think it was a 'protected' not 'private) but right now it's the only way
to have any say in how the HTTP headers are created. Please see "HTTP
Headers" for more details.
HTTP Headers
We encourage you to learn the mod_perl way of manipulating headers and
cookies. It's really not that hard we promise. But incase you're easing
your way into it, we try and provide as much backward compatibility as
possible.
Cookies
HTTP cookies should now be created using Apache::Cookie and it's
"bake()" method not with "header_add()" or "header_props()".
You can still do the following to create a cookie
my $cookie = CGI::Cookie->new(
-name => 'foo',
-value => 'bar',
);
$self->header_add(-cookie => $cookie);
But now we encourage you to do the following
my $cookie = Apache::Cookie->new(
$self->query,
-name => 'foo',
-value => 'bar',
);
$cookie->bake();
Redirects
You can still do the following to perform an HTTP redirect
$self->header_props( uri => $some_url);
$self->header_type('redirect');
return '';
But now we encourage you to do the following
$self->query->header_out(Location => $some_url);
$self->query->status(REDIRECT);
return '';
But it's really up to you.
COMPATIBILITY
Upon using this module you completely leave behind the world of CGI.pm.
Don't look back or you might turn into a pillar of salt. You will have
to look at and read the docs of the Apache::* modules. But don't worry,
they are really easy to use and were designed to mimic the interface of
CGI.pm and family.
If you are trying to use this module but don't want to have to change
your previous code that uses "header_props()" or "header_add()" then we
try to help you out by being as CGI compatible as we can, but it is
always better to use the mod_perl api. If you still want to use
"header_props()" or "header_add()" remember that it will cause a
performance hit because it will use helper routines that try and emulate
CGI.pm.
If you wish to write code that performs well in both environments, you
can check the $ENV{MOD_PERL} environment setting and branch accordingly.
For example, to set a cookie:
if ($ENV{MOD_PERL}) {
require Apache::Cookie;
$cookie = Apache::Cookie->new(
$q,
-name => 'favorite',
-value => 'chocolate chip',
-expires => '+2h',
);
$cookie->bake;
}
else {
$cookie = $self->query->cookie(
-name => 'favorite',
-value => 'chocolate chip',
-expires => '+2h',
);
$webapp->header_add(-cookie => [$cookie]);
}
If for some reason you are using this plugin in a non-mod_perl
environment, it will try to do the right thing by simply doing nothing
:)
CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache::Request
Sometimes the default compatability is not enough. For instance, if you
are using plugins that use the cookies or upload features of CGI.pm then
you might need some extra help.
This is what CGI::Application::Plugin::Apache::Request is for. You can
make this your "query" object by setting the "CAPA_CGI_Compat" var to
"On" in your Apache config file:
PerlSetVar CAPA_CGI_Compat On
Please see that module for more documentation on what it does.
INSTALLATION
This module is designed to function equally under mod_perl 1.x and
mod_perl 2.x. The only real issue comes during the installation and
testing phase. In order to track dependencies, etc we need to know which
version you are trying to install this for. By default we assume
mod_perl 1.x unless we find mod_perl 2 installed on your system.
If you want to change this, you simple pass a "MP2" option to the
"Build.PL" script.
perl ./Build.PL MP2=1
That's pretty easy, right?
AUTHOR
Michael Peters <mpeters@plusthree.com>
Thanks to Plus Three, LP (http://www.plusthree.com) for sponsoring my
work on this module
CONTRIBUTORS
The following people have contributed to this module either through
docs, code, or ideas
William McKee <william@knowmad.com>
Cees Hek <ceeshek@gmail.com>
Drew Taylor <drew@drewtaylor.com>
Ron Savage <ron@savage.net.au>
SEE ALSO
* CGI::Application
* Apache
* Apache::Request / Apache2::Request
* Apache::Cookie / Apache2::Cookie
LICENSE
This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
under the same terms as Perl itself.