httpd

httpd [options]

httpd is the Apache HTTP Server daemon. It serves web content using HTTP/HTTPS protocols, handling static files, CGI scripts, and reverse proxying.Apache is highly configurable through modules and configuration directives, supporting virtual hosts, access control, and numerous authentication methods.

-t

Test configuration syntax.

Start without document check.

Run in single-process debug mode.

Specify configuration file.

List loaded modules.

Show version and build info.

Send signal to running instance: start, stop, restart, graceful, graceful-stop.

Define a runtime configuration parameter.

Set the ServerRoot directory.

Set startup log level (debug, info, notice, warn, error, crit, alert, emerg).

Set the service name (Windows only).

List compiled-in modules (static modules only).

Configuration can be complex for beginners due to the large number of directives and modules. Module compatibility varies between major versions. Performance tuning (MPM selection, worker/thread limits) is needed for high-traffic sites. On many Linux distributions, apachectl or systemctl is the preferred way to manage the service rather than invoking httpd directly. On Debian/Ubuntu, the binary is named apache2 instead of httpd.

Apache HTTP Server was started in 1995 based on NCSA HTTPd, becoming the most popular web server for decades. The Apache Software Foundation grew around it. The name comes from "a patchy server" due to its patch-based origins.

nginx(1), apache2(1), apachectl(1), a2enmod(1), htpasswd(1), caddy(1)