This project has been created as part of the 42 curriculum by vpushkar, omizin and psmolin.

Webserv

Description

Webserv is a lightweight HTTP/1.1 server written in C++17. It handles GET, POST, and DELETE requests, serves static files, supports file uploads, CGI execution (Python, Shell), cookie-based session management, and virtual hosting on multiple ports. All network I/O is non-blocking and driven by a single poll() loop.

Instructions

Build

make

Run

./webserv [configuration_file]

If no configuration file is provided, config/default.conf is used by default.

Configuration

The configuration file follows an NGINX-inspired syntax. Example:

server {
    listen 8080;
    host 0.0.0.0;
    server_name localhost;
    client_max_body_size 1048576;
    error_page 404 /errors/404.html;

    location / {
        root www;
        index index.html;
        methods GET POST;
        autoindex on;
    }

    location /uploads {
        root www/uploads;
        methods GET POST DELETE;
        upload_dir www/uploads;
    }

    location .py {
        cgi_path /usr/bin/python3;
        cgi_ext .py;
        methods GET POST;
    }
}

Testing

make test          # Full test suite
make test-edge     # Edge case tests

Resources

• RFC 7230 HTTP/1.1: Message Syntax and Routing
• RFC 7231 HTTP/1.1: Semantics and Content
• RFC 3875 CGI

AI Usage

AI tools were used for:

• Code review and identifying potential bugs (FD management, race conditions)
• Generating test scripts for edge cases and protocol compliance
• Debugging specific issues found by the school tester (413 errors, CGI handling)
• Explaining HTTP protocol nuances (Expect/100-continue, chunked transfer encoding)