Availibility on NT

[Brent Fraser]

As Doug points out, mapserver is really meant to
be run in conjunction with a webserver.  If you want
to simply render GIF from a map configuration file
use the "shp2img" program included with mapserver.

Some Windows notes...

You can distribute parts of the mapserver system/site.
I've never tried moving the mapserv.exe from the
cgi-bin dir (web servers like/demand the executables
be located there).

But you can put the ".map" file wherever you like on
the server's filesystem (or mapped drives).  This may
look a little weird in the HTML since a drive letter is
a little unnatural for web sites.

A move practical example would be to specify the
drive letter in the path of the shape and image files
listed in the map file.  You can do this, just remember
to use double quotes around the entire path:

SHAPEPATH "M:\GeoData\"

Brent



----- Original Message -----
From: "Doug Nebert" <ddnebert at usgs.gov>
To: <bfischer at usgs.gov>
Cc: <mapserver-users at lists.gis.umn.edu>
Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2000 10:32 AM
Subject: Re: Availibility on NT


> I don't think you can do this on either platform because
> the relationship of the template, the .map file, and the mapserv
> executable are all well-known in a web server. It might be possible
> but you might have to dig in code to find the connections.
>
> I am running mapserver both on Linux and NT and pound for pound
> the Linux service seems a bit faster. On either one you will need
> to schedule garbage collection (literally deleting GIFs/PNGs made
> as requests in your scratch directory). I find this easier with
> cron than the "at" scheduler of NT.
>
> Doug.
>
> bfischer at usgs.gov wrote:
> >
> > Hi everyone,
> >
> >      I am a new user to mapserver.  I have a couple of initial
questions.
> > I have to make a decision about whether to develop my application on NT
or
> > UNIX.  Has anyone ran into any problems using the NT port of mapserver?
I
> > was also wondering if you have to have the application on the web
portion
> > of the server or can you just keep it on the file system and use path
> > names.  Like this
> >
file:///M:/00106/web_watershed/cgi-bin/mapserv?map=M:/00106/web_watersheds/b
asins.map
> >
> >      I tried this on the NT and it did not work.  Maybe I am not doing
it
> > right, but it doesn't seem to like the drive letter in the path.
> >
> > any help would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.
> >
> > Brian Fischer
> > USGS WRD
> > Mounds View, MN
>
> --
> Douglas D. Nebert
> Clearinghouse Coordinator
> FGDC Secretariat Phone: +1 703 648 4151 Fax: +1 703 648-5755
> Pager Messaging: http://fgdclearhs.er.usgs.gov/dougmsg.html