Setting Up Virtual Hosts

To create a name-based virtual host, it is best to use the virtual host container provided in httpd.conf as an example.

The virtual host example read as follows:

#NameVirtualHost *:80
#
#<VirtualHost *:80>
# ServerAdmin webmaster@dummy-host.example.com
# DocumentRoot /www/docs/dummy-host.example.com
# ServerName dummy-host.example.com
# ErrorLog logs/dummy-host.example.com-error_log
# CustomLog logs/dummy-host.example.com-access_log common #</VirtualHost>

To activate name-based virtual hosting, uncomment the NameVirtualHost line by removing the hash mark (#) and replace the asterisk (*) with the IP address assigned to the machine.

Next, configure a virtual host by uncommenting and customizing the <VirtualHost> container.

On the <VirtualHost> line, change the asterisk (*) to the server's IP address. Change the ServerName to a valid DNS name assigned to the machine, and configure the other directives as necessary.

The <VirtualHost> container is highly customizable and accepts almost every directive available within the main server configuration.

If configuring a virtual host to listen on a non-default port, that port must be added to the Listen directive in the global settings section of /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf file.

To activate a newly created virtual host, the Apache HTTP Server must be reloaded or restarted. Refer to "Starting and Stopping httpd" for further instructions.

Comprehensive information about creating and configuring both name-based and IP address-based virtual hosts is provided online at http://httpd.apache.org/docs/2.2/vhosts/.