Servers
Configuring and managing the server that hosts your web site or web application can be a complex task, requiring some degree of familiarity with the operating system (typically Linux), shell scripting, HTTP server (such as Apache), application server (such as Mongrel), database server (such as MySQL), monitoring software, DNS, email servers, and a variety of other topics.
The Rebuilding and Scaling of YellowPages.com
John Straw, chief software architect at YellowPages.com, gave an excellent talk at RailsConf about YellowPages' conversion to Rails. John's talk covered the scaling issues, but the talk was just as much about the process of successfully doing a big rewrite of a critical application at a large company. continue...
Using SSL in Rails Applications
If your web application manages any private information, you should be using SSL (https://) for pages where that information is entered or displayed. Fortunately, implementing SSL isn't too hard, once you know what you need to do. continue...
New Articles
from around the Web
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Installing Sphinx on OS X Leopard
Building latest Sphinx on Mac OS 10.5.
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AUTO_INCREMENT MySQL
Work-around to problem of adding an alternate starting value for auto increment if IDs in your tables. Bug exists in MySQL.
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Ruby on Rails expert: Rails scales; Twitter shouldn’t taint Ruby
Interview with Ezra Zygmuntowicz discussing where typical scaling problems really occur (in the database layer) and that the Twitter blame game is a red herring.
- Running MySQL 5.1 on Mac OS X 10.5.2 [Client]
- Plugins - Seamless Database Pool
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Apache+SSL Win32 HOWTO
Setting up Apache and SSL on a variety of Windows Operating Systems
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Windows + Apache 2.0 + Ssl
Setting up Apache and SSL on Windows (2003)
- Announcing SQLite3/Ruby 1.2.0
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SQLite Tutorial
A general tutorial on using SQLite
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How to Use SQLite in Ruby on Rails
As with most of the Rails wiki, there's a mix of outdated and useful information on this page.
- SSH with Keys HOWTO
Related Books
Pro Apache, Third Edition
Comprehensive reference for Apache 1.3 and Apache 2 versions. Discusses setup, operation, customization, and general maintenance.
List: $49.99 Amazon price: $31.49 Buy
A Practical Guide to Linux( Commands, Editors, and Shell Programming
List: $49.99 Amazon price: $31.49 Buy
Links by Type
Documentation (8)
- Main - Nginx Wiki
Primary English documentation site for nginx. Contains many links to sample configuration files and other help.
- Mongrel
Mongrel Home Page
- Robby on Rails : Installing Ruby on Rails and PostgreSQL on OS X, Third Edition
Walks through installing Ruby and Rails, as well as Postgres, via ports on Mac OS X Leopard. This is an alternative to using the default Leopard installation.
- Thin - yet another web server
Home site of the Thin Rails application server. A extremely fast, lightweight replacement for mongrel.
- Backgroundrb
From the README: BackgrounDRb is a ruby job server and scheduler. It main intent is to be used with Ruby on Rails applications for offloading long running tasks. Since a rails application blocks while servicing a request it is best to move long running tasks off into a background process that is divorced from the http request/response cycle.
- Building Ruby, Rails, Subversion, Mongrel, and MySQL on Mac OS X
Step by step instructions for installing a full Ruby and Rails stack (with Mongrel and MySQL) on a Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) system. These instructions have you compile almost all of the code and install a copy of the applications into /usr/local. This process does not disturb Apple installed software.
- Log4r - Manual
Log4r is a comprehensive and flexible logging library written in Ruby for use in Ruby programs. It features a hierarchical logging system of any number of levels, custom level names, logger inheritance, multiple output destinations, execution tracing, custom formatting, thread safteyness, XML and YAML configuration, and more.
- OSX Leopard mysql gem for ruby
How to compile the mysql gem when using the Mac Ports install of MySQL and the native Mac OS X Leopard (10.5) Ruby and Rails (and gems) installs.
Software (18)
- lighttpd fly light
- mod_xsendfile
Apache 2 module that enables your application server to tell Apache when to send a static file. Use with Rails Xsendfile plugin.
- Mysql Replication Adapter
Rails database adapter that supports replicated MySQL databases.
- Overview — Phusion Passenger (a.k.a. mod_rails)
mod_rails is an Apache module that supports Rails applications without requiring a separate application server. This could be the biggest thing in Rails hosting since Mongrel.
- RubyWorks Production Stack
Open-source production server stack for Ruby on Rails applications, assembled by ThoughtWorks.
- SQLite Download Page
Links to precompiled binaries and source code for sqlite.
- BlogFish: Webistrano - Capistrano deployment the easy way
A web-based interface to Capistrano. Open source.
- Engine Yard Express
Engine Yard Express is an Engine Yard slice wrapped up to go. Useful for offline development work. Is a VMWare Image.
- Firefox Addon: SQLite Manager
Manages any SQLite database on your computer.
- LiteSpeed Technologies
A web server alternative that claims twice the performance of Apache.
- ruby-style
Supervisor for Rails apps, updates TCP sockets to new code versions and restarts dead processes.
- RubyForge: SQLite-Ruby: Project Info
Ruby bindings for SQLite
- SQLite JDBC Driver
You need a JDBC driver for SQLite if you want to use the Netbeans IDE database service UI.
- sqliteman: sqlite3 admin and devel tool
- Synaphy · Seesaw - High-Availability Mongrel Packs
- Virtualmin, Inc.
An open-source web-based web hosting control panel.
- Webistrano - Capistrano deployment the easy way
Web-based control panel for deploying Rails applications.
- Rails Analyzer
Doesn’t appear to have been updated in a while, but still lots of logging/analysis tools to check out.
FAQs & Resource Lists (2)
- SQLite3/Ruby FAQ
- MacOS Forge FAQ Ruby on Rails
Discusses the default installation of Ruby on Mac OS X, particularly Leopard’s default environment, how to override, etc.
Screencasts (2)
- Capistrano Concepts
- Railscasts - Filtering Sensitive Logs
Are you accepting sensitive user data? Passwords, credit card numbers, etc. By default, Rails stores all submitted parameters in plain text in the logs. This episode will show you how to filter this sensitive input so it doesn’t show up in the log file.
Presentation Slides (1)
Directories (1)
- Rails Hosting Info - Find Ruby on Rails hosting!
Directory of Rails hosting companies, sortable in various ways and with user reviews and ratings.
Groups (1)
- Rails Deployment
Group for discussion of Rails application deployment.
Hosted services (3)
- Web Log Analysis for Amazon S3 - S3STAT
Provides detailed analysis of your Amazon Web Services S3 account and generates nightly reports in Webalizer format.
- ADS Mantis Hosting for Ruby on Rails | Atlantic Dominion Solutions
- Heroku
Top Blogs
- MySQL Performance Blog
- BlogFish
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The Road to Enlightened Management
Blog from the developers of FiveRuns hosted system management application.
