Publius


PUBLIUS Publishing System

Publius Home | Download Paper | Download Client Software ]

Becoming A Publius Server (two month commitment)

WARNING: Publius is an experimental system, therefore we do not recommend it be run on critical machines. If you are unfamiliar with how a Publius server functions please read the Publius Paper and Publius Server FAQ (below) before deciding to participate.

Publius Trial - Key Dates

6/30-7/21 Request For Volunteers
7/21-7/27 Publius Software Distribution and Installation
7/28-9/28 Live Trial of Publius

A Publius Server is a computer that hosts Publius Content - files that have been published using the Publius client software. The hosting computer must be running an HTTP server, allow the execution of CGI scripts and have Perl installed. You should set aside at least 100 megabytes (more if possible) of disk space for Publius Content. The computer should be connected to the internet 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Publius Server FAQ

What language is the Publius Server written in?
The Publius Server is written in Perl 5. If you have an earlier version of Perl you will need to upgrade.
Do I need root access to install the Publius Server software?
No. Root access is not neccessary to install Publius. You just need to be able to run Perl CGI scripts.
Is the Publius Server software easy to install?
The Publius Server software consists of a single perl CGI script. This file must be placed in the CGI appropriate directory of your WWW server. In addition, you must create a directory that will hold the stored Publius Content. You may want to set up a separate disk partition for Publius so that if the partition runs out of space the rest of the disk is unaffected.
Could the Publius Server Software completely fill my disk with Publius Content?
Yes, the Publius Server could completely fill your disk with Publius Content. For this reason you may want to have Publius Content stored on its own partition or disk. The Publius Server limits the size of individually published files to 100K.
Can I "wrap" the Publius Server CGI script?
Yes, you can execute the Publius Server CGI script within a wrapper program. This will allow you to constrain and perhaps monitor the actions of the Publius Server software. We don't provide the wrapper software. For a brief introduction to CGI wrapper software visit the WWW Security FAQ

Send any questions or comments to the Publius Project (publius@cs.nyu.edu)

If you wish to host Publius content please fill out the form below and then press the "SUBMIT" button at the bottom of the page. We will contact you via e-mail to verify your participation as a Publius server if we can sucessfully "ping" your HTTP server. Server code will be available for download at http://www.cs.nyu.edu/~waldman/publius.html

Server Administrator Contact Information

First Name:

Last Name:

E-mail Address:

We may need to contact you via e-mail sometime between 7/21 and 7/27. If you will unavailable during that time could you please enter the name and e-mail address of an alternate contact person in the following text box. Please feel free to add any additional relevant comments as well.

Server Information

Server IP Address:

Server Domain Name:

Would you also be willing to run a Publius proxy for publishing and retrieval?
The name of the Publius CGI script is "publius_server.pl". We need the full URL that will be used to execute this CGI script on your server. For example, if your server was named www.myserver.com the URL might be http://www.myserver.com/cgi-bin/publius_server.pl"

PUBLIUS Publishing System