Why can't I access my server with its IP address or its hostname?

The reason for this is that you have not included these other namesfor the virtual server in its aliases list. Zeus Web Server treats IPbound virtual servers and software virtual servers exactly thesame. If the server receives a request for a page on a particular IPaddress, it will always check the HTTP host header. If the hostheader is different to the virtual server's URL, the server willreturn a 400 Bad Request error. When you request a page by entering thehostname or IP number of the server into the Location field of yourbrowser, the HTTP host header is set to this rather than the fullyqualified domain name. The table below illustrates the problem.

At this stage, you might be thinking why this is the case, why doesn'tthe server just accept all connects regardless of the host header?Well imagine a situation where you have two software virtual servers,for two different companies which you are hosting. Both thesecompanies are in competition with each other. If for some reason youstop the server for company A, company B's server suddenly becomes anIP bound server. Any requests for company A would go to company B.

Additional aliases can be added to a virtual server in the GeneralConfiguration section of the virtual server's controller page.Aliases are listed in sequence, separated by spaces. If you require avirtual server to answer requests regardless of the hostname, enter a"*" character in the list.

If the client does not send the HTTP host header, the server willcheck to see if the virtual server is IP bound, if it is, it willreturn the page, if not, it will return the error. You should be awarethat some older browsers are susceptible to the problems mentionedabove. It is now a requirement of the HTTP/1.1 specification that aclient provides the HTTP host header line.

Content Manager [Administrator] 19 September 2005