policy draft for web server modules, web applications, and database applications

abstract

as it stands now, there is no common set of rules and guidelines for the mainers of packages that interact with databases, web applications, and web server modules. this results in a large amount of code duplication, inconsistent package behavior, possible unexpected data loss, and security concerns. it is clearly evidenced that a common infrastructure and set of guidelines are needed to raise the overall quality of such packages.

terms and conventions

httpd

any server providing http

apache

most popular web server for apps and add-ons

httpd modules/add-ons

httpd server enhancements (libapache_mod_*)

static page

pages requiring no server interpretation/execution

cgi/dynamic pages

pages requiring server interpretation/execution

web application

suite of static/dynamic pages for common purpose

database

any server-side persistant data storage (relational or non)

database application

any application interacting with a database

goals

• policy reference for developers
• do's and don't's
• policy reference for users
• how these packages work in debian
• consistent/safe drop-in installation interface
• web applications
• database applications
• httpd modules

table of contents

policies

• web applications
• httpd add-ons/modules
• database applications

developer's reference

• packaging web applications
• packaging httpd add-ons/modules
• packaging database applications