loosing cookies under linux

ksandom

A wee while ago, I moved over to Redhat 9.0 from windows 98 where I was running PHPTriad (which includes Apache, MYSQL, PHP). I'm using the same php files as before and I can still boot into windows and the files still work there, however when I use them under Linux the cookies don't remain. Their are no errors produced at all.

I have managed to establish that the problem is on the server side. My reasoning for this: Same files on the same partition. Accessed from another computer on the network (windows or linux on client has same results). But on the server, if windows is running on the server, the cookies run fine on the server. If Linux is running, the cookies loose their value.

I know both PHP and MYSQL are running, since the pages are heavily reliant on them.

My suspicions:
- Security config/policy somewhere
- Bad compile (I've read on the apache site a while ago that apache compiled with a certain compiler that came with current (at that time) versions of linux had a bug(s).)
- Apache setting
- PHP setting (where is PHP configured?)
- Apache not liking FAT32 partition. Eliminated. Still has the same problem on ext3.
- File rights. Potentially elminiated. Write access is availble and tested throughout the folder and php files concerned.

I figured it would be valuable to find the versions of Apahce, PHP and MYSQL, but I'm not sure where to look under linux. I haven't done a lot of work with Apache under linux, but I have done a lot with it under windows, so it's only really the OS specific stuff which I'm new to with Apache, PHP etc.

This is a line from the httpd.conf file (generated by the "apacheconfig" (as labeled at the top of config file.)).
DocumentRoot "/var/www/html"
Yet in the "Apache Configuration" program (that comes with redhat 9.0) I've specified "/mnt/40g/bigpart/Files/Develop/web/htdocs/" which is where the files are stored. This address works, this is where the files are stored and seem to work from.
I wondered if this difference could mean that it isn't looking at this file (/etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf) and is infact looking at another file?
I did notice that some unique information in this file was correct, such as:
ServerName k1
I have comfirmed that this file is being written by the "Apache Configuration" program which I mentioned earlier.
I have wondered about putting the files into the /var/www/html folder. My main reservation about that is that I don't want to make a big mess, and I'm wondering why it's getting to the /mnt/40g/... .

Basically I'm running out of ideas to try. I've considered downloading and installing the latest stable versions of PHP and Apache, but from what I've read, this sounds like it could turn into a serveral hour job. If someone thinks this might solve the problem, I'm willing to do it.

Any ideas?

Thanks
- Kevin 🙂

planetsim

Im no Linux guru, but i have studied using apps in the OS. You'd probably get more response if you posted in the Linux forum, but anyway.

Windows and Linux have different file systems.

Windows 98 would use FAT32 unless you partitioned it in DOS which would be FAT16.

Linux on the other hand is EXT and Swap more likely to be EXT.

Now the reason they dont exist, is because the linux filesystem cant read the windows filesystem and vice versa. Also the cookies directory in Linux is different from that of Windows.

ksandom

sorry, I discovered the linux forum after I posted the message. Please do not consider this a grumpy reponse (since tone is not conveyed in text), I just need to straighten out some false assumptions.

Also, looking back at my message, I think I worded it badly. I will rewrite it and repost it in the linux forum later on. Unless I am advised otherwise, I will keep the original message here and post the answer here when I've sorted it out. A couple of corrections based on your response:

the old fat drive is mounted at:
/mnt/bigshared
(hence linux can read fat12,fat16,fat32 etc even ntfs with appropriate drivers)
I've copied the files needed to an ext3 partition with nesscessary rights to allow read, write and execute for basically everything (for diagnostic purposes). This eliminated postential compatibility issues.

Where cookies are stored should be irrelevant since that is handeled by each browser separatley.

I don't think this issue has anything to do with the operating system other than default versions and settings. These are the things I think I am trying to establish. As I mentioned in the previous post, I have eliminated the client (browser) from the equation, thus it being a server problem.

ksandom

As I suspected, this had nothing to do with the OS, and thus my original posting in the code section was the right place. As it turned out, when I changed over to a linux server, the version of PHP that came with the OS was significantly newer than the one I had been using under Windows.

I had been considering downgrading my version of PHP to one similar to what I had under windows, then I realised what a stupid idea that was and decided to do more exploration into how it should be done under the 2.3.x versions and beyond of PHP. After browsing some forums around phpbuilder, I found some links to:
http://ca3.php.net/manual/en/ref.session.php
http://ca3.php.net/manual/en/function.session-start.php
which had been recommened by another user. The first example in the first link was a big help.

Here is a working example which is based off the original example which I first used to learn about cookies a while back. I've adapted it to work with the newer versions of PHP. If people have suggestions for improvements, feel free to suggest away:

index.php (and nextpage.php (I just created a symbolic link to index.php)):

<?php
 session_start(); 
 if (!isset($_SESSION['count'])) {
     $_SESSION['count'] = 0;
 } else {
     $_SESSION['count']++;
 }
 $count=$_SESSION['count'];

 print("<html><head><title>Test area</title></head><body>");
?>

<p>Hello visitor, you have seen this page <? echo $count; ?> times.</p><p>
<p>To continue, 
<A HREF="index.php?<?=SID?>">click here</A><br>
<a href="nextpage.php?<?=SID?>">next page</a><br>
<a href="logout.php?<?=SID?>">Logout</a>
</p></body></html>

logout.php:

<?php
session_start();
unset($_SESSION['count']);
?>
<a href="index.php">Return</a>

Note that index.php and nextpage.php come from the same code. This is basically to demonstraight that the cookies are working accross different pages.

And now.... the final frontier.... to put this into the main project. Somewhere in the distance their echos a fait sound "Mwau ha ha haaaa!"

ksandom

Right, all the crutial stuff is working now. I only have a few tidy up things to do now.

The things that have helped me upgrade the code for the newer versions of PHP are:

Removing globals and replacing them with:
$SESSION['varname']
$POST['varname']

http://www.etronicscomputers.com/docs/phpforbeginners.htm
This site helped set me on track with the login script.