PMDF System Manager's Guide

16.2.6 Web Interface

The following section documents the web-based interface for maintaining per-user, per-channel, or system-wide mailbox filters. Use of this facility requires both TCP/IP support and a web client. Moreover, the PMDF HTTP server must be configured to serve out this interface; see Section 16.2.6.1 for details.

The web interface is intended for use by individual users who have their mail delivered to them via one of the l (lowercase "L"), msgstore, or popstore channels, or by the PMDF manager for managing channel level filters or the system filter file. When users attempt to use the interface, they must supply their e-mail address and their password in order to access their mailbox filter. Typically, a l (lowercase "L") channel user will provide their login password, a msgstore channel user will provide their IMAP password, while a user whose mail is delivered by a popstore channel would provide their POP password. This behavior is controlled through the PMDF authentication services interface as described in Chapter 14. The PMDF manager must supply the "address" @channel-host-name for a channel level filter, where channel-host-name is the official host name of the channel in question, or the single character @ for the system filter file, and the password for the PMDF server account.

Note

For channels, the web interface creates only destination filters (see Section 16.2.2, destinationfilter keyword). You cannot use the web interface to create channel level source filters (sourcefilter keyword).

To connect to the interface with your web browser, open the URL

http://host:7633/mailbox_filters/

In place of host, use the actual IP host name of the system running the PMDF HTTP server. If you chose to run the PMDF HTTP server on a port other than port 7633, then specify that port number in place of 7633 in the above URL.

Once connected to the introductory web page, links to help and various mailbox filtering activities can be followed. A sample of the introductory web page and a few of the other default, Process Software supplied web pages can be found in the appropriate edition of the PMDF User's Guide.

16.2.6.1 Configuring the HTTP Server to Serve Out the Web Interface

If you have not already configured the PMDF Dispatcher, then do so now. See the Chapter on configuring the PMDF Dispatcher in the appropriate edition of the PMDF Installation Guide for directions on configuring the Dispatcher. As part of configuring the Dispatcher, the HTTP server is configured.

Configuring the HTTP server to serve out the web based interface is simply a matter of ensuring that the HTTP server's configuration file contains a proper mailbox filter path definition. The current version of the Dispatcher configuration utility generates an appropriate definition automatically; but if you have an older configuration generated in PMDF V5.1, you can need to add the definition manually and then restart the HTTP server. The http.cnf file in the PMDF table directory needs to include the lines

[PATH=/mailbox_filters/] GET=PMDF_MAILBOX_FILTERS_CGI POST=PMDF_MAILBOX_FILTERS_CGI

If these lines were not previously present, after adding them restart the HTTP server with the OpenVMS command

$ PMDF RESTART HTTP

or the UNIX command

# pmdf restart http

Or on NT restart the entire Dispatcher with the command

C:\> pmdf restart dispatcher

16.2.6.2 The Mailbox Filters Option File

An option file can be used to adjust various options for the web interface. On OpenVMS, the option file is

PMDF_TABLE:mailbox_filters_option.

On UNIX systems, it is the file

/pmdf/table/mailbox_filters_option

On NT systems, it is typically the file

C:\pmdf\table\mailbox_filters_option

Available options are:

AUTHENTICATION_ERROR (file-name)
Name of a formatting file in the pmdf_root:[www.mailbox_filters] (OpenVMS) or /pmdf/www/mailbox_filters/ (UNIX) or C:\pmdf\www\mailbox_filters\ (NT) directory to use for authentication errors. The default is
AUTHENTICATION_ERROR=auth_error.txt
DEFAULT_HOST (host-name)
Name of a host to append to a supplied username which lacks an "@". By default, the local host name is used.
GENERAL_ERROR (file-name)
Name of a formatting file in the pmdf_root:[www.mailbox_filters] (OpenVMS) or /pmdf/www/mailbox_filters/ (UNIX) or C:\pmdf\www\mailbox_filters\ directory to use for general errors which occur when either (1) no error_format file can be discerned from the HTTP command, or (2) when the HTTP command has not yet been processed. The default is
GENERAL_ERROR=error.txt

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