TrustRadius Insights for Apache HTTP Server are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.
Business Problems Solved
Apache HTTP Server is a versatile and widely-used web server that offers numerous benefits to its users. With its ability to efficiently handle a large number of HTTP requests and configure access restrictions, it is the go-to choice for serving clients' websites requiring a LAMP stack. Additionally, users appreciate the real-time graph feature that allows them to monitor network and hardware resource utilization, enabling informed decisions to optimize system performance.
One of the key use cases of Apache HTTP Server is hosting web applications on public domains as well as local development and testing on developer machines. It seamlessly operates on both Linux and Windows operating systems, making it a flexible option for various environments. Setting up multiple virtual hosts is made convenient with Apache HTTP Server, which simplifies the installation and maintenance processes compared to alternative options like Nginx. Its reliability, ease of use, and long-standing presence in the industry have made it a popular choice for hosting company websites, client websites, development sites, and personal projects.
The support for PHP in Apache HTTP Server is particularly valued for hosting WordPress sites and providing essential functions for site administration such as FTP and URL rewriting. It is relied upon by users to run various web servers for different purposes including help desk ticketing, intranet sites, project management, network monitoring, and conference room scheduling. Moreover, Apache's ability to display websites, set up secure websites using SSL certificates, reroute directories, and control file visibility makes it an ideal option for ensuring security and managing file access.
In addition to its widespread use in Linux servers, Apache HTTP Server is also implemented on embedded platforms like Raspberry Pi where it serves as a central part of infrastructure across various projects including data science. Its solid performance, extensive language support for server-side scripting languages like PHP, Perl, and Ruby makes it highly regarded in the industry. Furthermore, organizations value Apache HTTP Server as a cost-effective solution for hosting websites on virtual servers due to its reliability and ability to handle high traffic volumes.
Apache HTTP Server is utilized by both Enterprise IT departments and other teams for hosting internal web applications, partner/customer facing web applications, and fine-tuned web servers. It ensures the smooth functioning of these critical web-based services and enables organizations to direct traffic into their websites while ensuring security and preventing unauthorized access. Overall, Apache HTTP Server proves to be a powerful and dependable web server solution that caters to a wide range of use cases in the industry.
We use Apache HTTP Server to Host our Web Applications on Public Domains. We also use it for local development and testing on Developer Machines. It is used on both Linux and Windows Operation Systems. It is useful in Setting up several Virtual Hosts.
Pros
Used to Host Web Applications
Used as a Proxy Server
Used to Host several Virtual Hosts.
Cons
it should support multiple versions of PHP out of the box.
Its official documentation needs improvement. It is not user-friendly.
configuration of the XML conf file is complex
Likelihood to Recommend
Apache HTTP Server is very stable and Secure. It is easy to install on both Linux and Windows. Its Proxy module works great! It needs improvement in the official documentation and in simplifying the XML configuration.
I use Apache extensively in my hosting company. All my websites and the websites I host for clients are hosted with Apache. We use virtual servers to host multiple websites on one server and Apache serves us well, without incurring any cost. All in all it is a very good solution.
Pros
Very flexitble
Easy to setup
Lot's of support available
Cons
Sometimes too many options
Examples online can be wrong
Likelihood to Recommend
Apache is really great at hosting websites using all kinds of server ware like PHP to serve the websites and make them dynamic. Apache is free to install and so it does not come with a hefty license fee which is great. It is very flexible and can almost do anything you need it to do.
VU
Verified User
Consultant in Information Technology (1-10 employees)
We use exclusively Apache HTTP Server on all our webservers across our department on our division. I have knowledge that other branches also use it. On our area, we come from Windows Servers and Apache give us a solid web server, with a lot of options that are useful for the kind of websites we have. On the past IIS was great, but at scale, and specially with PHP websites, was not great, so HTTPD help us to serve several websites with absolutely no problem.
Pros
PHP Integration.
Powerful configuration.
Redirects made easy.
Cons
Configuration files are located on different places depending on your Linux distro.
If you have an error on one configuration file, apache refuses to start and sometimes is difficult to know why.
Security is not great by default, but making a todo list help when you configure a new server.
Likelihood to Recommend
We use dedicated AWS EC2 Instances for websites that don't server almost any static content, and each instance is behind an AWS Load balancer. On that scenario, Apache works great.
We came from serving several websites on one server using Apache, and that was not great, neither to administrate or scale. Please try to avoid using Apache to serve several Websites at once. It works, but you don’t want to do it. If you want to serve several websites from one server, use a server control app, like CloudPanel or Vesta.
The Apache HTTP Server is probably the most widely used web server on the entire Internet. We mainly use it for server-side scripting languages such as PHP, Perl or Ruby. However, these are not part of the server, but have to be installed separately. The Apache HTTP Server is a central part of our infrastructure. I myself was already involved with the HTTP server during my studies.
Pros
Easy to configure, although many options are available.
High performance
Industry standard, many colleagues have know-how
Cons
Performance of the competitor (Nginx) is a bit better
Incorrect configuration can lead to security risks
Modules that are not needed are difficult to identify
Likelihood to Recommend
<div>As I mentioned earlier, the Apache HTTP Server has a small disadvantage compared to the competition (Nginx) in terms of performance. If you run websites that really have a lot of visitors, Nginx might be the better alternative.</div><div>
</div><div>On the other hand, the Apache HTTP Server is open source and free. Further functionalities can be activated via modules. The documentation is really excellent.</div>
VU
Verified User
Employee in Information Technology (10,001+ employees)
We have some published websites at some servers, some of them are based on [Apache] HTTP Server.
However, it is more like encyclopedic or Wikipedia style use, as it allows to share information about certain products that are used within our organization.
The Apache HTTP Server makes sharing information about services easier.
Moreover, we support a number of clients who have various web servers, I found that Apache HTTP Server is the most convenient in installation and maintenance , comparing with alternatives like Nginx, etc.
Pros
It does good with virtual hosts implementation
It has good easy to read intuitive documentation and tutorials
It is widely used so in the Internet there are many examples that could be adopted
Cons
Some specific modules might be difficult to install
Marketing could be more informative; some people prefer nginx because they do not know how to do it with apache
Likelihood to Recommend
<ul><li>It is more stable than contestants.</li></ul><ul><li>Log files are easier to read and troubleshoot</li></ul><ul><li>It is well suited both for beginners and advanced users.</li></ul><ul><li>It has a diverse customization support so it could be tuned in multiple ways.</li></ul>
We use Apache HTTP Server to support our infrastructure in different sites, services, and web systems, which are in a DMZ or exposed to the Internet, for which we use modules of load balancers, virtual hosts, SSL among others. Currently, Apache HTTP is being used in my department for over ten years with great success.
The ease of working with own and third-party modules
Implementation as a load balancer is particularly good and helpful
Cons
A descriptive graphical interface
Native tool for statistics of use, access, error among others
How hard it is to find something that Apache HTTP Server can improve is really great
Likelihood to Recommend
Publish a web page quickly and easily or configure access to various web systems or services that can be accessed from a private network or from the Internet, as well as balance the load between services and servers. Even though Apache HTTP Server is diverse in its applications and implementations, it should not be confused with specialized tools such as intrusion prevention or
Apache HTTP Server is our web server of choice for all of our projects. We use it to host our company website, client websites, development sites, and lots of personal projects. Its been our go-to thanks to its familiarity, maturity, reliability, and ease of use.
Pros
Ease of use
Well documented
Mature
Cons
Optimization
Not as flexible as new alternatives.
Likelihood to Recommend
Apache HTTP Server is great for smaller projects or for those who just want to pop a file in and watch it change. Apache is very old school in this regard which has its benefits over more application-driven servers but makes it not as flexible. Apache also doesn't scale very well as you need more complex stuff and have more users.
Apache Web Server is used for hosting some of our internal web applications and database instances including a few partner/customer facing web applications and websites that need fine tuned web servers and performance.
Pros
Apache Web Server provides detailed configuration options that makes it great for web applications where performance and a high level of security are a consideration.
It works well even with reasonable compute / hardware for infrastructure.
Cons
Although it has detailed configuration and administration capabilities, there is a steep learning curve to be able to configure Apache Web Server. It is not for beginners.
The management console / dashboard can certainly be made better with default parameters in place.
Likelihood to Recommend
Apache Web Server is well suited when the system admin installing and deploying the web server has at least 4+ years experience in Linux and/or using Apache Web Server. It is well suited where you need fine tuned web server performance with minimal overhead or where the workloads and web application are handling sensitive data.
VU
Verified User
Analyst in Information Technology (51-200 employees)
I have been using the Apache webserver for over 20 years. At my current organization, we use it all over the place. From serving static pages to full-blown web applications. We also use it as a proxy to pass traffic to tomcat applications. It is used across the whole organization and it is our goto web server. It is incredibly configurable and robust. Never a problem. We use it to serve https and use PHP extensively.
Pros
Apache is Open Source, governed well (the foundation) and probably the most stable computing platform ever.
Apache is probably one of the most customizable and configurable pieces of software that I have ever run across in more than 30 years of development.
If there is something that Apache can not do, then you need to ask yourself; should I be doing that? The point here is that it is a solid solution and seems to only integrate other technologies that are of the highest caliber.
Apache will live forever and you can not go wrong with it.
Cons
The one thing that I worry about Apache is the PHP language which is integrated into the platform. I am not sure if PHP has a relevant future. I worry about this because Python is becoming very popular.
Some, not so sharp developers, might complain about the configuration file. Yes, it is complex. You need to learn it.
Apache SSL documentation can be better.
I would like to see video streaming, that would be fantastic.
Likelihood to Recommend
The Apache web server is most of the LAMP. The environment is a fantastic development platform that can be used to achieve almost anything. I would say that custom development is where Apache excels. PHP is fantastic and has a rather low learning curve. From a system administration perspective, Apache is a stable work-course. For example, I have several instances that have been up and running for more than 500 days. The only time that we need to reboot is to do an update. You can not go wrong with Apache.
We have implemented Apache Web Server in <i>many</i> projects: Everything from configuring Apache ourselves, to the bread and butter of most of our projects: data science. While we have also implemented other open source web Servers (lighttpd, et al), Apache is a package we come back to time and again. Our favorite toolchain is to implement a small, custom Linux distribution running nothing but Apache WS.
We have virtualized/containerized Apache, ran Apache on bare-metal, and even found some uses on embedded platforms such as Raspberry PI, Commodity (i.e. cheap) x86 hardware, pfSense (which includes its own Apache version, which we update and upgrade out of the box), firewalls, routers, gateways, and other devices. Additionally, with IoT related projects, we even load a small version of Apache to run PhP scripts, or upload environmental data from remote locations.
Pros
Street Cred: Apache Web Server is the Founder for all of Apache Foundation's other projects. Without the Web Server, Apache Foundation would look very different. That being said, they have done a good job of maintaining the code base, and keeping a lot of what makes Apache so special
Stability: Apache is rock-solid. While no software is perfect, Apache can parse your web sources quickly and cleanly.
Flexibility: Need to startup your own Webpage? Done. Wordpress? Yup. REST Endpoint? Check. Honeypot? Absolutely.
Cons
Large Attack Surface: Since Apache WS has been around so long, it's easy for villains to attack a public instance and find a vulnerability that may have existed for a lengthy period of time. With the rise of Platforms such as MetaSploit and Linux distro's like ParrotOS and Kali, finding those types of bugs / holes becomes much easier and cheaper.
Configuration Scheme: While it's easy to configure Apache, it's a bit strange if you have never been exposed to it: Most software packages (indeed, even competing Web Servers) enable / disable webpages by a simple config file, Apache has a multistep process to setting up Websites. And while this might be great for larger websites, it's a lot of work for a simple webpage (say, something that simply vomits a report or informational page). I feel like this could be simplified greatly.
Configuration Fatigue: Iterating off of the last point: The configuration files themselves are extensive, and lengthy. They resemble XML, but are not quite: They are actually sort of their own Markup, so that makes configuration a little more costly, in units of time.
Likelihood to Recommend
Well Suited: Perfect for hosting your own website. And, I don't mean just an individual with a port of MySpace. I mean an industrial strength, commercial grade replacement for Microsoft IIS.
If you need a web server that provides a feature-rich environment with support for multiple sites (hosted in the same server), with such features as virtual hosting, and modular feature design, than Apache Web Server is right on the money.
Less Well-Suited:
Single page, small feature-set websites. Apache is a lot of trouble for developers to set up, just to send/receive JSON strings of a few bytes. You're really better off using something smaller and faster/simpler (lighttpd for example).
