Try as they have, commercial software publishers have been unable to deny Apache its large slice of the Web server pie. As long as the community of developers keeps developing modules to give "a patchy server" new functionality while maintaining its rock-solid core, Apache is very likely to retain its market share. Which means you--as a system administrator, Web application developer, security administrator or anyone else with Web-related responsibilities--need to be conversant in the ways of Apache. Essential Apache for Web Professionals presents critical information about the open-source Web server in a concise and easily portable format. You'll find the same information in Apache's extensive archive of online documentation, but you may prefer a printed document and Scott Hawkins' style is fairly easy to follow. You might want to take a look at Apache: The Definitive Guide, as well, though that book is pretty elderly now.

In a typical section, Hawkins explains how to compile the mod-perl module into httpd, the Apache daemon. He explains why you'd want to do so, then shows how to do the compilation at the command line. He leaves out some details, though, when he uses some command line options and doesn't say what they do. Coverage of global behaviour directives is much better, though, and readers leave with a good idea of how to install and configure Apache (especially under Unix and Linux) and enable key features, like virtual hosting of multiple sites. --David Wall

Topics covered: how to install, configure and extend the Apache HTTP server. The author treats Apache in a generic way that should be relevant to any recent release of the server.