apache2 and ddclient

maxvenum · n00b Joined: 02 Mar 2006 Posts: 10 Location: Milpitas, CA

Hey,

Whenever I boot my gentoo server and it tries to start apache, apache balks and give an error (cannot assign requested address, could not bind to address xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx). I know exactly why this is happening: I have a dynamic ip address for my dsl modem, and I use ddclient to update my ip with dyndns. ddclient should do this immediately upon boot, but my system gets to the apache init script too quickly; dyndns hasn't updated my ip address by the time apache runs. I even have apache start at the tail-end of my initialization. Is there anyway I can get apache to wait until dyndns has updated my ipaddress? I realize I could put some arbitrary wait command into apache (ie sleep 5), but if dyndns occasionally updates faster than that, I don't want to be sitting there waiting if it doesn't have to. I would simply go around this whole problem and use "listen 80" in my httpd.conf, but I read somewhere that that is not the best security-wise (please correct me if I am wrong). Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Tobyn

eXess · Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 6:40 am Post subject:

I don't know why this would not be secure to use "Listen 80" or "Listen *:80" in your httpd.conf. Except if you want apache to be reacheable only by internet IP's and not the local Network (but why would you want to do that?). Then maybe it could be possible to make apache listen to an IP range ? Or to all IP's and use iptables to restrict access from the local IP range? Anyway, if there is no reason for restricting access from local network to apache, Listen *:80 is fine...
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eXess

eXess · Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 7:51 pm Post subject:

Erm. I guess I was not wide awake this morning when I posted that :s

ok, so to sum things up : is your DNS modem connected directly to your computer? I guess so, because if you were behind a router you would use a local IP address with NAT in the router to accept incoming connections. Therefore I don't see any reason why "Listen 80" would not be right and secure. Port 80 will be open and your computer will only get one IP at a time over the DSL connection. Or do you also have a local network that you don't want Apache to listen to?
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eXess