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  1. ColdFusion User Guide
  2. Introduction to ColdFusion
    1. About Adobe ColdFusion
    2. Download Adobe ColdFusion
    3. What's new in ColdFusion (2021 release)
    4. ColdFusion (2021 release) Release Notes
    5. Deprecated Features
    6. REST enhancements in ColdFusion (2018 release)
    7. Server Auto-Lockdown
    8. Asynchronous programming
    9. Docker images for ColdFusion
  3. Adobe ColdFusion (2021 release)
    1. Install ColdFusion- Zip Installer
    2. Install ColdFusion- GUI Installer
    3. ColdFusion Licensing and Activation
    4. ColdFusion Package Manager
    5. CFSetup configuration tool
    6. SAML in ColdFusion
    7. ColdFusion and Amazon S3
    8. ColdFusion and DynamoDB
    9. ColdFusion and Amazon SQS
    10. ColdFusion and Amazon SNS
    11. ColdFusion and MongoDB
    12. ColdFusion and Azure Blob
    13. ColdFusion and Azure Service Bus
    14. New and updated language enancements
    15. Multi-cloud storage services
    16. Multi-cloud RDS databases
    17. ColdFusion and Azure Cosmos DB
  4. Install ColdFusion
    1. ColdFusion server profiles
    2. Prepare to install ColdFusion
    3. Install the server configuration
    4. Install the JEE configuration
    5. Install ColdFusion Express
    6. Install integrated technologies
    7. Configure your system
    8. Troubleshoot installation issues
    9. Install ColdFusion silently
    10. Install Adobe ColdFusion (2016 release) hotfix
    11. ColdFusion (2018 release) - Install JEE configuration
  5. Use ColdFusion
    1. Command Line Interface (CLI)
    2. External session storage
    3. Generate Swagger documents
    4. Language enhancements
    5. NTLM support
    6. New and changed functions/tags in Adobe ColdFusion (2016 release)
    7. PDF enhancements
    8. Security enhancements in ColdFusion (2016 release)
  6. Performance Monitoring Toolset
    1. Auto-discovery of ColdFusion nodes and clusters
    2. Code profiler in ColdFusion Performance Monitoring Toolset
    3. Configure ColdFusion Performance Monitoring Toolset settings
    4. Install ColdFusion Performance Monitoring Toolset
    5. Overview of ColdFusion Performance Monitoring Toolset
    6. View cluster and node metrics
    7. View data source metrics
    8. View external services
    9. View incoming services
    10. View list of sites and busy connections
    11. View topology of sites
    12. Datastore Health Monitoring
    13. Performance Monitoring Toolset Update 1
    14. Secure Performance Monitoring Toolset with HTTPS/SSL
    15. Performance Monitoring Toolset deployment guide
  7. Use ColdFusion Builder
    1. About ColdFusion Builder
    2. System requirements | ColdFusion Builder
    3. Install ColdFusion Builder
    4. Edit code in ColdFusion Builder
    5. Manage servers in ColdFusion Builder
    6. Manage projects in ColdFusion Builder
    7. What’s new in Adobe ColdFusion Builder (2018 release)
    8. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) | Adobe ColdFusion Builder (2018 release)
    9. Debug applications in ColdFusion Builder
    10. ColdFusion Builder workbench
    11. ColdFusion Builder extensions
    12. Debugging Perspective in ColdFusion Builder
    13. Build mobile applications using ColdFusion Builder
    14. Bundled ColdFusion Server
    15. Debug mobile applications in ColdFusion Builder
    16. Use extensions in ColdFusion Builder
  8. Coldfusion API Manager
    1. Overview of Adobe ColdFusion API Manager
    2. Features in ColdFusion API Manager
    3. Get started with ColdFusion API Manager
    4. Install ColdFusion API Manager
    5. Authentication types
    6. Create and publish APIs
    7. Administrator
    8. Subscriber
    9. Throttling and rate limiting
    10. Notifications
    11. Connectors
    12. Set up cluster support
    13. Integrate ColdFusion and API Manager
    14. Metrics and Logging in API Manager
    15. Generate Swagger documents
    16. Configure SSL
    17. Known issues in this release
    18. Policies in ColdFusion API Manager
    19. Create a Redis cluster
    20. Multitenancy in API Manager
    21. Docker images for ColdFusion API Manager
  9. Configure and administer ColdFusion
    1. Administer ColdFusion
    2. Use the ColdFusion administrator
    3. Data Source Management for ColdFusion
    4. Connect to web servers
    5. Deploy ColdFusion applications
    6. Administer ColdFusion security
    7. Basic Troubleshooting and FAQs
    8. Work with Server Manager
    9. Use multiple server instances
    10. WebSocket Enhancements (ColdFusion 11)
    11. Security Enhancements (ColdFusion 11)
    12. Work with Server Monitor
    13. ColdFusion Administrator API Reference
  10. CFML Reference
    1. Introduction to CFML Reference
      1. New functions in ColdFusion (2018 release)
      2. New and changed functions/tags in Adobe ColdFusion (2016 release)
      3. Script supported tags and functions
      4. New and changed tags/functions in ColdFusion 11
    2. Reserved words and variables
      1. Reserved words and variables
      2. Reserved words
      3. Scope-specific built-in variables
      4. Custom tag variables
      5. ColdFusion tag-specific variables
      6. CGI environment (CGI Scope) variables
    3. ColdFusion tags
      1. ColdFusion tags
      2. Tags in ColdFusion 10
      3. Tag summary
      4. Tags by function
      5. Tag changes since ColdFusion 5
      6. Tags a-b
      7. Tags c
      8. Tags d-e
      9. Tags f
      10. Tags g-h
      11. Tags i
      12. Tags j-l
      13. Tags m-o
      14. Tags p-q
      15. Tags r-s
      16. Tags t
      17. Tags u-z
    4. ColdFusion functions
      1. ColdFusion functions
      2. New functions in ColdFusion 10
      3. ColdFusion functions by category
      4. Function changes since ColdFusion 5
      5. Functions a-b
      6. Functions c-d
      7. Functions e-g
      8. Functions h-im
      9. Functions in-k
      10. Functions l
      11. Functions m-r
      12. Functions s
      13. Functions t-z
      14. BooleanFormat
    5. Ajax JavaScript functions
      1. Ajax JavaScript functions
      2. Function summary Ajax
      3. ColdFusion.Ajax.submitForm
      4. ColdFusion.Autosuggest.getAutosuggestObject
      5. ColdFusion.Layout.enableSourceBind
      6. ColdFusion.MessageBox.getMessageBoxObject
      7. ColdFusion.ProgressBar.getProgressBarObject
      8. ColdFusion.MessageBox.isMessageBoxDefined
      9. JavaScriptFunctionsinColdFusion9Update1
    6. ColdFusion ActionScript functions
      1. ColdFusion ActionScript functions
      2. CF.http
      3. CF.query
    7. ColdFusion mobile functions
      1. ColdFusion Mobile Functions
      2. Accelerometer Functions
      3. Camera Functions
      4. Connection Functions
      5. Contact Functions
      6. Event Functions
      7. File System Functions
      8. Geolocation Functions
      9. Media and Capture Functions
      10. Notification Functions
      11. Splash Screen Functions
      12. Storage Functions
    8. Application.cfc reference
      1. Application.CFC reference
      2. Application variables
      3. Method summary
      4. onAbort
      5. onApplicationEnd
      6. onApplicationStart
      7. onMissingTemplate
      8. onCFCRequest
      9. onError
      10. onRequestEnd
      11. onRequest
      12. onRequestStart
      13. onServerStart
      14. onSessionEnd
      15. onSessionStart
    9. Script functions implemented as CFCs
      1. Script Functions Implemented as CFCs
      2. Accessing the functions
      3. Function summary
      4. ftp
      5. http
      6. mail
      7. pdf
      8. query
      9. Script functions implemented as CFCs in ColdFusion 9 Update 1
      10. storedproc
    10. ColdFusion Flash Form style reference
      1. Styles valid for all controls
      2. Styles for cfform
      3. Styles for cfformgroup with horizontal or vertical type attributes
      4. Styles for box-style cfformgroup elements
      5. Styles for cfformgroup with accordion type attribute
      6. Styles for cfformgroup with tabnavigator type attribute
      7. Styles for cfformitem with hrule or vrule type attributes
      8. Styles for cfinput with radio, checkbox, button, image, or submit type attributes
      9. Styles for cftextarea tag and cfinput with text, password, or hidden type attributes
      10. Styles for cfselect with size attribute value of 1
      11. Styles for cfselect with size attribute value greater than 1
      12. Styles for cfcalendar tag and cfinput with dateField type attribute
      13. Styles for the cfgrid tag
      14. Styles for the cftree tag
      15. ColdFusion Flash Form Style Reference
    11. ColdFusion event gateway reference
      1. ColdFusion Event Gateway reference
      2. addEvent
      3. CFEvent
      4. CFEventclass
      5. Constructor
      6. Gateway development interfaces and classes
      7. getStatus
      8. setCFCPath
      9. setCFCMethod
      10. getOriginatorID
      11. getLogger
      12. getBuddyList
      13. getBuddyInfo
      14. IM gateway message sending commands
      15. IM Gateway GatewayHelper class methods
      16. onIncomingMessage
      17. onIMServerMessage
      18. onBuddyStatus
      19. onAddBuddyResponse
      20. onAddBuddyRequest
      21. IM Gateway CFC incoming message methods
      22. IM gateway methods and commands
      23. CFML CFEvent structure
      24. warn
      25. info
      26. setOriginatorID
      27. data command
      28. submit Multi command
      29. submit command
      30. setGatewayType
      31. setGatewayID
      32. setData
      33. setCFCListeners
      34. outgoingMessage
      35. getStatusTimeStamp
      36. numberOfMessagesReceived
      37. numberOfMessagesSent
      38. removeBuddy
      39. removeDeny
      40. removePermit
      41. setNickName
      42. setPermitMode
      43. setStatus
      44. SMS Gateway CFEvent structure and commands
      45. SMS Gateway incoming message CFEvent structure
      46. getStatusAsString
      47. getProtocolName
      48. getPermitMode
      49. getPermitList
      50. getNickName
      51. getName
      52. getDenyList
      53. getCustomAwayMessage
      54. getQueueSize
      55. getMaxQueueSize
      56. getHelper
      57. getGatewayType
      58. getGatewayServices
      59. getGatewayID_1
      60. getGatewayID
      61. getData
      62. getCFCTimeout
      63. setCFCTimeout
      64. getCFCPath
      65. getCFCMethod
      66. GatewayServices class
      67. Gateway interface
      68. GatewayHelper interface
      69. addPermit
      70. addDeny
      71. addBuddy
      72. error
      73. debug
      74. Logger class
      75. stop
      76. start
      77. CFML event gateway SendGatewayMessage data parameter
      78. restart
      79. fatal
      80. SMS gateway message sending commands
    12. ColdFusion C++ CFX Reference
      1. C++ class overview
      2. Deprecated class methods
      3. CCFXException class
      4. CCFXQuery class
      5. CCFXRequest class
      6. CCFXStringSet class
      7. ColdFusion C++ CFX Reference
    13. ColdFusion Java CFX reference
      1. ColdFusion Java CFX reference
      2. Class libraries overview
      3. Custom tag interface
      4. Query interface
      5. Request interface
      6. Response interface
      7. Debugging classes reference
    14. WDDX JavaScript Objects
      1. WDDX JavaScript objects
      2. JavaScript object overview
      3. WddxRecordset object
      4. WddxSerializer object
  11. Develop ColdFusion applications
    1. Introducing ColdFusion
      1. Introducing ColdFusion
      2. About ColdFusion
      3. About Internet applications and web application servers
      4. About JEE and the ColdFusion architecture
    2. Changes in ColdFusion
      1. Changes in ColdFusion
      2. Replacement of JRun with Tomcat
      3. Security enhancements
      4. ColdFusion WebSocket
      5. Enhanced Java integration
      6. ColdFusion ORM search for indexing and search
      7. Solr enhancements
      8. Scheduler enhancements
      9. Integration with Microsoft Exchange Server 2010
      10. RESTful Web Services in ColdFusion
      11. Lazy loading across client and server in ColdFusion
      12. Web service enhancements
      13. Displaying geolocation
      14. Client-side charting
      15. Caching enhancements
      16. Server update using ColdFusion Administrator
      17. Secure Profile for ColdFusion Administrator
    3. Introduction to application development
      1. Introduction to application development using ColdFusion
      2. Using the Developing ColdFusion Applications guide
      3. About Adobe ColdFusion documentation for Developers
    4. The CFML programming language
      1. The CFML programming language
      2. Elements of CFML
      3. ColdFusion variables
      4. Expressions and number signs
      5. Arrays and structures
      6. Extend ColdFusion pages with CFML scripting
      7. Regular expressions in functions
      8. ColdFusion language enhancements
      9. Built-in functions as first class citizen
      10. Data types- Developing guide
    5. Building blocks of ColdFusion applications
      1. Building blocks of ColdFusion applications
      2. Create ColdFusion elements
      3. Write and call user-defined functions
      4. Build and use ColdFusion Components
      5. Create and use custom CFML tags
      6. Build custom CFXAPI tags
      7. Use the member functions
      8. Object Oriented Programming in ColdFusion
    6. Develop CFML applications
      1. Develop CFML applications
      2. Design and optimize a ColdFusion application
      3. Handle errors
      4. Use persistent data and locking
      5. Use ColdFusion threads
      6. Secure applications
      7. Client-side CFML (for mobile development)
      8. Use the ColdFusion debugger
      9. Debugging and Troubleshooting Applications
      10. Develop globalized applications
      11. REST enhancements in ColdFusion
      12. Authentication through OAuth
      13. Social enhancements
    7. Develop mobile applications
      1. Mobile application development
      2. Build mobile applications
      3. Debug mobile applications
      4. Inspect mobile applications
      5. Package mobile applications
      6. Troubleshoot mobile applications
      7. Device detection
      8. Client-side CFML
      9. Mobile Templates
      10. Code samples to build a mobile application
    8. Access and use data
      1. Access and use data
      2. Introduction to Databases and SQL
      3. Access and retrieve data
      4. Update database
      5. Use Query of Queries
      6. Manage LDAP directories
      7. Solr search support
    9. ColdFusion ORM
      1. ColdFusion ORM
      2. Introducing ColdFusion ORM
      3. ORM architecture
      4. Configure ORM
      5. Define ORM mapping
      6. Work with objects
      7. ORM session management
      8. Transaction and concurrency
      9. Use HQL queries
      10. Autogenerate database schema
      11. Support for multiple data sources for ORM
      12. ColdFusion ORM search
    10. ColdFusion and HTML5
      1. ColdFusion and HTML 5
      2. Use ColdFusion Web Sockets
      3. Media Player enhancements
      4. Client-side charting
      5. Display geolocation data
    11. Flex and AIR integration in ColdFusion
      1. Flex and AIR integration in ColdFusion
      2. Use the Flash Remoting Service
      3. Use Flash Remoting Update
      4. Offline AIR application support
      5. Proxy ActionScript classes for ColdFusion services
      6. Use LiveCycle Data Services ES assembler
      7. Use server-side ActionScript
    12. Request and present information
      1. Request and present information
      2. Retrieve and format data
      3. Build dynamic forms with cfform tags
      4. Validate data
      5. Create forms in Flash
      6. Create skinnable XML forms
      7. Use Ajax data and development features
      8. Use Ajax User Interface components and features
    13. Office file interoperability
      1. Office file interoperability
      2. Using cfdocument
      3. Using cfpresentation
      4. Using cfspreadsheet
      5. Supported Office conversion formats
      6. SharePoint integration
    14. ColdFusion portlets
      1. ColdFusion portlets
      2. Run a ColdFusion portlet on a JBoss portal server
      3. Run a ColdFusion portlet on a WebSphere portal server
      4. Common methods used in portlet.cfc
      5. ColdFusion portlet components
      6. Support for JSR-286
    15. Work with documents, charts, and reports
      1. Work with documents, charts, and reports
      2. Manipulate PDF forms in ColdFusion
      3. Assemble PDF documents
      4. Create and manipulate ColdFusion images
      5. Create charts and graphs
      6. Create reports and documents for printing
      7. Create reports with Report Builder
      8. Create slide presentations
    16. Use web elements and external objects
      1. Use web elements and external objects
      2. Use XML and WDDX
      3. Use web services
      4. Use ColdFusion web services
      5. Integrate JEE and Java elements in CFML applications
      6. Use Microsoft .NET assemblies
      7. Integrate COM and CORBA objects in CFML applications
    17. Use external resources
      1. Send and receive e-mail
      2. Interact with Microsoft Exchange servers
      3. Interact with remote servers
      4. Manage files on the server
      5. Use event gateways
      6. Create custom event gateways
      7. Use the ColdFusion extensions for Eclipse
      8. Use the data services messaging event gateway
      9. Use the data management event gateway
      10. Use the FMS event gateway
      11. Use the instant messaging event gateways
      12. Use the SMS event gateway

 

You can connect Adobe ColdFusion to the built-in web server and to external web servers, such as Apache, IIS, and Sun ONE Web Server (formerly known as iPlanet).

About web servers in ColdFusion

The web server is a critical component in your ColdFusion environment, and understanding how ColdFusion interacts with web servers can help you administer your site. ColdFusion provides the following web server options:

  • Built-in web server A Coyote is Tomcat's HTTP Connector component that supports the HTTP 1.1 protocol for the web server or application container. Coyote listens for incoming connections on a specific TCP port on the server and forwards the request to the Tomcat Engine. Tomcat Engine processes the request and send back a response to the requesting client. For more information, see Using the built-in web server.
  • External web server A customized web server connector module that forwards requests for ColdFusion pages from an external web server to ColdFusion. For more information, see Using an external web server.

Using the built-in web server

The ColdFusion server configuration is built on top of Tomcat, also called the built-in web server. The built-in web server is useful in the following cases:

  • Coexistence/transition The built-in web server lets you run a previous version of ColdFusion (using an external web server) and ColdFusion (using the built-in web server) on the same computer while you migrate your existing applications to ColdFusion.

  • Development If your workstation runs ColdFusion but does not run an external web server, you can still develop and test ColdFusion applications locally through the built-in web server. All web servers listen on a TCP/IP port, which you can specify in the URL. By default, web servers listen for HTTP requests on port 80 (for example, http://www.adobe.com and http://www.adobe.com:80 are the same). Similarly, port 443 is the default port for https requests.By default in the server configuration, the built-in web server listens on port 8500. For example, to access the ColdFusion Administrator through the built-in web server, specify http://_servername_:8500/CFIDE/administrator/index.cfm.

    Whenever possible, configure your external web server as part of the ColdFusion installation, except for the two cases mentioned previously (coexistence with a previous ColdFusion version, and when the computer has no web server). If you select the built-in web server by mistake, run the Web Server Configuration Tool manually to configure your external web server after the installation. For information about the Web Server Configuration Tool, see Web server configuration.If you enable the built-in web server during the installation process and the port is already in use, the installer automatically finds the next-highest available port and configures the built-in web server to use that port. To determine the port number used by the built-in web server, open the cf_root/runtime/conf/server.xml file in a text editor and examine the port attribute of the connector. For example, <Connector port="8504" protocol="org.apache.coyote.http11.Http11Protocol>.Keep in mind the following when using the built-in web server:

    • The default web root when using the built-in web server is cf_root/cfusion/wwwroot (server configuration). By default, the ColdFusion Administrator (CFIDE directory) is under this web root.

    • If you want the built-in web server to serve pages from a different web root directory, define a virtual mapping in the cf_root/cfusion/runtime/conf/server.xml file. Search for the string, "To add virtual directory." Uncomment the entry context path below. To add a virtual directory, add the aliases attribute as shown below:

<Context path="/" docBase="<absolute_path_to_CF_install_directory>\wwwroot" WorkDir="<cf_home>\runtime\conf\Catalina\localhost\tmp" aliases="/path1=<absolute_path_to_directory1>,/path2=<absolute_path_to_directory2>"></Context>
Note:

If you have CFML pages under your external web server's root, ensure that ColdFusion is configured to serve these pages through the external web server. If you did not configure ColdFusion_ to use an external web server, your external web server serves ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML) source code for ColdFusion pages saved under its web root._

Using an external web server

ColdFusion uses the Tomcat web server connector to forward requests from an external web server to the ColdFusion runtime system.

When a request is made for a CFM page, the connector on the web server opens a network connection to the Tomcat proxy service. The ColdFusion runtime system handles the request and sends its response back through the proxy service and connector. The web server connector uses web-server-specific plug-in modules, as the following table describes:

Web server

Connector details

Apache

The Web Server Configuration Tool adds the following elements to the Apache httpd.conf file:

  • A LoadModule directive defines the connector.
  • An AddHandler directive tells Apache to route requests for ColdFusion pages through the connector.
    For Apache 2.x, the connection module is mod_jk.so.

IIS

The Web Server Configuration Tool adds the following elements at either the global level (default) or website level:

  • Creates a folder 1 in cf_root\config\wsconfig, that contains all connector-related files.
  • Creates a virtual directory Jakarta in cf_root\config\wsconfig (in IIS).
  • Adds an entry, tomcat, under the{{ ISAPI FILTERS}}. This points to cf_root\config\wsconfig\1\ isapi_redirect.dll.
  • Adds an entry, tomcat, to cf_root\config\wsconfig\1\isapi_redirect.dll with permission allowed under ISAPI and CGI Restrictions. This is applicable for global sites in IIS manager.
  • Adds the following isapi handlers: cfcHandler, cfmHandler, cfmlHandler, cfrHandler, and cfswfHandler.
  • For debugging issues, set the log level to debug, in the isapi_redirect.properties file present in the {{cf_roots\config\wsconfig\1\ }}directory.
  • To disable webserver buffer, change the is_buffer_enable to false in the cf_root\config\wsconfig\1\isapi_redirect.properties file. Do this if you want cfflush to work over an IIS connector. If your application does not use cfflush, set this to true. This may increase the performance.

Sun ONE Web Server

The Web Server Configuration Tool adds the following elements to Sun ONE Web Server configuration files:

  • Creates a folder 1 in the ColdFusion10\config\wsconfig folder that contains all connector-related files.

  • Adds the following entry in the magnus.conffile of Sun ONE. Change the log level to{{ debug}} for debugging issues.

    Init fn="load-modules" shlib="C:/ColdFusion10/config/wsconfig/2/nsapi_redirect.dll" funcs="jk_init,jk_service"
    Init fn="jk_init" worker_file="cf_root/config/wsconfig/2/workers.properties" log_level="info" log_file="cf_root/config/wsconfig/2/nsapi.log" shm_file="cf_root/config/wsconfig/2/jk_shm"

    Adds the entries for all extensions in the obj.conffile of Sun ONE. For example,

    NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfc/*" name="jknsapi"
    NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfc" name="jknsapi"
    NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfml" name="jknsapi"
    <Object name="jknsapi">
    Service fn="jk_service" method="*" worker="server1"
    </Object>
Note:

Note that the connector needs to be re-configured, if new sites are added after the connector has been configured with the 'All Sites' option in IIS. 

Web server configuration

ColdFusion uses the Web Server Configuration Tool to configure an external web server with the modules and settings that the connector requires connect to ColdFusion. You can run the Web Server Configuration Tool through either the command-line interface or the graphical user interface (GUI). In either case, the Web Server Configuration Tool configures your external web server to interact with a ColdFusion server.

Using GUI mode

The Web Server Configuration Tool includes a GUI mode, which you can use to specify external web server configuration settings through a graphical interface.

Note:

When you use the Web Server Configuration Tool in GUI mode, select the Configure Web Server for ColdFusion Applications check box.

Run the Web Server Configuration Tool in GUI mode

  1. Open a console window.

    Note:

    In Windows, to start the Web Server Configuration Tool, select Start > All Programs > Adobe > ColdFusion 2016 > Web Server Configuration Tool.

  2. Change to the cf_root/cfusion/runtime/bin.

  3. Start the Web Server Configuration Tool using the wsconfig.exe (Windows) or wsconfig (UNIX) command. The Web Server Configuration Tool window appears.

  4. Click Add.

  5. Select Configure Web Server For ColdFusion Applications.

  6. Provide the application server host and the application server cluster.

    Note:

    The server or cluster does not have to reside on the web server computer. In this case, enter the IP address or server name of the remote computer.

  7. In the Web Server Properties area, enter web-server-specific information, and click OK.

  8. (Optional) The web server connector does not serve static content (such as HTML files and images) from the built-in web server's root directory. If your ColdFusion web application has an empty context root  and you want to serve pages from the built-in web server's root directory, you can create a web server mapping to the corresponding directory under the built-in web server.

Using the command-line interface

  1. Open a console window.

  2. Change to the cf_root/runtime/bin (server configuration) directory.

  3. Execute the wsconfig.exe (Windows) or wsconfig (UNIX) command:

    wsconfig.exe [-options]

    ./wsconfig [-options]

    The following table describes the options:

    Option

    Description

    -ws

    Specifies the web server, as follows:

    • IIS
    • Apache
    • SunOne
      The web server name you supply is not case sensitive.

    {{-dir }}

    Specifies the path to the configuration directory (SunONE config).

    -site

    Specifies the IIS website name (case-sensitive). Specify All or 0 to configure the connector at a global level, which applies to all IIS websites.

    {{-host }}

    Specifies the ColdFusion server address. The default value is localhost.

    -norestart

    Specifies not to restart the web server.

    -cluster

    Specifies the Tomcat cluster name. Use this option to define a connection to a Tomcat cluster instead of a single server.

    -l

    Enables verbose logging for the connector.

    -upgrade

    Upgrades existing configured connectors with newer modules from a newer wsconfig.jar file.

    -service

    Specifies the Apache Windows service name. The default value is Apache.

    -bin

    Specifies the path to the Apache server binary file (apache.exe in Windows, httpd on UNIX).

    -script

    Specifies the path to the Apache UNIX control script file (apachectl, but slightly different with certain Apache variants, such as Stronghold).

    -v

    Enables verbose output from the Web Server Configuration Tool.

    -list

    Lists all configured web servers.

    -list -host server-host

    Lists all Tomcat servers on the specified host.

    -remove

    Removes a configuration. Requires the ws and either the dir or site options.

    -uninstall

    Removes all configured connectors.

    {{-h }}

    		 Lists all parameters.

Using the batch files and shell scripts

The ColdFusion server configuration includes batch files and shell scripts that implement typical command-line connector configurations. These files are in the cf_root/bin/connectors directory. For example, the IIS_connector.bat file configures all sites in IIS to site 0, which establishes a globally defined connector so that all sites inherit the filter and mappings.

If you use Apache or Sun ONE Web Server, use these files as prototypes, editing, and saving them as appropriate for your site.

Command-line interface examples

  1. Configure a specific IIS site:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig.exe -ws iis -site "web31" -v

    On systems where all sites run ColdFusion, there is generally no need to configure an individual site.

  2. Configure all existing IIS sites (ISPs):

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig.exe -ws iis -site 0 -v

  3. Configure Apache on UNIX #1:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig -ws Apache -bin /opt/apache2/bin/httpd -script /opt/apache2/bin/apachectl -dir /opt/apache2/conf -v

  4. Configure Apache on UNIX #2:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig -ws Apache-bin /usr/bin/httpd -script /usr/bin/httpd -dir /etc/httpd/conf -coldfusion -v

  5. Configure Apache in Windows:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig.exe -ws apache -dir "c:\program files\apache group\apache2\conf" -coldfusion -v

  6. Configure Sun ONE Web Server on UNIX:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig -ws sunone -dir [path to config] -coldfusion -v

Configuration files

Each time you run the Web Server Configuration Tool, it creates a configuration file and directory. For example, the first time you run the tool in the server configuration, it creates files under cf_root/config/wsconfig/1; the second time, it creates cf_root/config/wsconfig/2; and so on. Each of these subdirectories contains the appropriate platform-specific connector module and web-server-specific supporting files.

Backing up connector files

WS Config backs up the connector files when you un-configure or reconfigure the connector. It helps you to compare the new connector files with the backed up files and redo the required customization. 

All files available under connector directory (../ColdFusion/config/wsconfig/magicnumber) are backed up in a directory named magicnumber.1 or magicnumber.2  and so on, depending on the number of previous backup directories that are available for same connector. These directories are available in backup directory (../ColdFusion/config/wsconfig/backup) . For instance, if you are about to un-configure a connector which is configured under ../wsconfig/2/ , its files are backed up in ../wsconfig/backup/2.1. If this is the second time you are un-configuring the connector, then ../wsconfig/backup/2.1 is already present. In that case files are saved under ../wsconfig/backup/2.2. 

Note:

In case of Apache connector, mod_jk.conf , which is present in Apache conf directory is also backed up under ../wsconfig/backup/2.2 directory. Also, if you are un-configuring from command line then connector is backed up by default but if you are un-configuring using WS Config UI tool, you get an option to either accept or deny the backup before un-configuring the connector. This is valid for all connectors and in all the supported platforms.

Sample configuration files

The following are some examples of connector-specific web server properties that help describe the web server configuration file parameters. These examples assume that Tomcat and the web server are on the same computer.

Apache configuration file

The following is a typical httpd.conf file for an installation of ColdFusion on the same computer as an Apache 2.0 web server. The httpd.cof file includes the following entry:

Include "Apache_install\Apache Software Foundation\Apache2.2\conf\mod_jk.conf"

The mod_jk.conf file has the following:

# # Load mod_jk module
LoadModule jk_module "CF_install\config\wsconfig\1\mod_jk.so"
# Where to find workers.properties
JkWorkersFile "CF_install\config\wsconfig\1\workers.properties"
JkMountFile "CF_install\config\wsconfig\1\uriworkermap.properties"
# Where to put jk logs
JkLogFile "CF_install\config\wsconfig\1\mod_jk.log"
# Where to put jk shared memory
JkShmFile "CF_install\config\wsconfig\1\jk_shm"
# Set the jk log level [debug/error/info]
JkLogLevel info
# Select the timestamp log format
JkLogStampFormat "[%a %b %d %H:%M:%S %Y] "
AddHandler jakarta-servlet .cfm .cfml .cfc .cfr .cfswf
Alias /CFIDE "CF_install\cfusion\wwwroot\CFIDE"
<Directory "CF_install\cfusion\wwwroot\CFIDE">
Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
AllowOverride None
Order allow,deny
Allow from all
</Directory>
<Files ~ ".hbmxml$">
Order allow,deny
Deny from all
</Files>

Sun ONE configuration file

The following is a typical obj.conf file for iPlanet, or Sun ONE Web Server:

Init fn="load-modules" shlib="CF_install/config/wsconfig/2/nsapi_redirect.dll" funcs="jk_init,jk_service"
Init fn="jk_init" worker_file="CF_install/config/wsconfig/2/workers.properties" log_level="info" log_file="CF_install/config/wsconfig/2/nsapi.log" shm_file="CF_install/config/wsconfig/2/jk_shm"

The following is a typical magnus.conf file for iPlanet, or Sun ONE Web Server:

<Object name="default">
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.hbmxml" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.jsp" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.sws" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfswf" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfr" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfc/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfc" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfml" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.swc" name="jknsapi"NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfm/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfm" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.as" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.mxml" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/*.cfml/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/rest/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/flex-internal/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/flashservices/gateway/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/cfform-internal/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/CFFileServlet/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/cffileservlet/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/flex2gateway" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/flex2gateway/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/CFFormGateway/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="assign-name" from="/cfformgateway/*" name="jknsapi"
NameTrans fn="pfx2dir" from="/CFIDE" dir="C:/ColdFusion2016/cfusion/wwwroot/CFIDE"
AuthTrans fn="match-browser" browser="*MSIE*" ssl-unclean-shutdown="true"
NameTrans fn="ntrans-j2ee" name="j2ee"
NameTrans fn="pfx2dir" from="/mc-icons" dir="C:/Program Files/Oracle/WebServer7/lib/icons" name="es-internal"
PathCheck fn="uri-clean"
PathCheck fn="check-acl" acl="default"
PathCheck fn="find-pathinfo"
PathCheck fn="find-index-j2ee"
PathCheck fn="find-index" index-names="index.html,home.html,index.jsp"
ObjectType fn="type-j2ee"
ObjectType fn="type-by-extension"
ObjectType fn="force-type" type="text/plain"
Service method="(GET|HEAD)" type="magnus-internal/directory" fn="index-common"
Service method="(GET|HEAD|POST)" type="*~magnus-internal/*" fn="send-file"
Service method="TRACE" fn="service-trace"
Error fn="error-j2ee"
AddLog fn="flex-log"
</Object>

Multihoming

You typically use the Web Server Configuration Tool to configure a connection between the web server and ColdFusion server running on the same computer. However, you can use the web server connector to route requests to multiple virtual sites to a single ColdFusion server. This is known as multihoming.

In a multihomed environment, you have multiple virtual hosts (also known as virtual sites) connected to a single ColdFusion server. You might use these virtual hosts for separate applications, such as Human Resources (HR), payroll, and marketing, or for separate users in a hosting environment.

Multihoming configuration tasks include:

  • Enabling access to the ColdFusion Administrator If any of the applications under a virtual host need to access the ColdFusion Administrator, create a web server mapping (Alias directive in Apache) for /CFIDE that points to the original CFIDE directory. Alternatively, you can copy the entire CFIDE directory to the virtual website.
  • Enabling access to the cfform.js file If you do not create a web server mapping for /CFIDE, and any of the applications under a virtual host use the cfformtag, enable the virtual host to find the JavaScript files under the CFIDE/scripts directory. To enable access to the scripts, use one of the following options:
    • Copy the original_web_root/CFIDE/scripts directory to a CFIDE/scripts directory on your virtual host.
    • Modify all cfform tags to use the scriptsrc attribute to specify the location of the cfform.js file.
  • Disabling the cacheRealPath attribute To ensure that ColdFusion always returns pages from the correct server, disable Cache Web Server Paths in the Caching page of the ColdFusion Administrator. The procedures you perform to enable multihoming differ for each web server.

IIS

When you use IIS, you run the IIS Administrator to create additional websites and run the Web Server Configuration Tool. You store ColdFusion pages under the web root of each virtual website.

Connect multiple virtual sites on IIS to a single ColdFusion server

  1. Use the IIS Administrator to create virtual websites, as necessary. The web root directory should enable read, write, and execute access. For more information, see your IIS documentation.

  2. Configure DNS for each virtual website, as described in your IIS documentation.

  3. Test each virtual website to ensure that HTML pages are served correctly.

  4. Run the Web Server Configuration Tool, as follows:

    • GUI - Select IIS for the Web Server, select All from the IIS Web Site drop-down list, and select the Configure Web Server for ColdFusion Applications check box.

    • Command line - Specify the -site 0option, as the following server configuration example shows:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig.exe -ws iis -site 0 -v

  5. Test each virtual website to ensure that ColdFusion pages are served correctly.

Apache

When you use Apache, you modify the apache_root/conf/httpd.conf file to create virtual hosts and run the Web Server Configuration Tool. You store ColdFusion pages under the web root of each virtual website.

Connect multiple Apache virtual hosts on a web server to a single ColdFusion server

  1. Configure DNS for each virtual website, as described in your web server documentation.

  2. Open the apache_root/conf/httpd.conf file in a text editor and create virtual hosts, as necessary. For more information, see your Apache documentation. For example:

    ...
NameVirtualHost 127.0.0.1
<VirtualHost 127.0.0.1>
ServerAdmin admin@yoursite.com
DocumentRoot "C:/Program Files/Apache Group/Apache2/htdocs"
ServerName SERVER02
ErrorLog logs/error.log
</VirtualHost>
<VirtualHost 127.0.0.1>
ServerAdmin admin@yoursite.com
DocumentRoot "C:/Program Files/Apache Group/Apache2/htdocs2"
ServerName mystore
ErrorLog logs/error-store.log
</VirtualHost>
<VirtualHost 127.0.0.1>
ServerAdmin admin@yoursite.com
DocumentRoot "C:/Program Files/Apache Group/Apache2/htdocs3"
ServerName myemployee
ErrorLog logs/error-employee.log
</VirtualHost>
...

  3. Test each virtual host to ensure that HTML pages are served correctly.

  4. Run the Web Server Configuration Tool, as follows:

    • GUI - Specify Apache for the Web Server, specify the directory that contains the httpd.conf file, and select the Configure Web Server for ColdFusion Applications check box.

    • Command line - Specify -wsapacheand the directory that contains the httpd.conf file, as the following example shows:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig.exe -ws apache
    -dir "c:\program files\apache group\apache2\conf" -v

    For additional UNIX command-line examples, see Using the command-line interface. The Web Server Configuration Tool updates the httpd.conf file. For a sample, see Apache.

  5. Restart Apache. You store ColdFusion files for each virtual host in the directory specified by the DocumentRoot directive.

  6. Test each virtual host to ensure that ColdFusion pages are served correctly.

Note:

On Ubuntu, the bundled Apache Server will be configured with ColdFusion. The request for CFFileServlet and other servlet mapping requests will fail. This is because the default Apache Server running on 80, uses default virtual host. So the connector configuration with bundled Apache Server needs additional steps for user to manually add JkMountFile entry of uriworkermap.properties found in mod_jk.conf to default virtual host setting found in /etc/apache2/sites-available/default.

Configuring ColdFusion Connector with Apache Virtual Hosts

To configure a connector:

Individually:

  • Windows: wsconfig.exe -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost <vhost server name>
  • Non-windows: ./wsconfig  -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost <vhost server name>

All:

  • Windows: wsconfig.exe -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost All
  • Non-windows: ./wsconfig  -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost All

All-individually:

  • Windows: wsconfig.exe -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost All-individually
  • Non-windows: ./wsconfig  -ws Apache -dir <path to apache conf> -vhost All-individually

Configuring ColdFusion Connector with Apache Virtual Hosts (Community Video)

Click this link to access the video.

Sun ONE Web Server and iPlanet

Note:

Sun One/iPlanet support is not available in ColdFusion (2016 release).

When you use Sun ONE Web Server version 6, you use the Server Administrator to create virtual servers and run the Web Server Configuration Tool. You store ColdFusion pages under the web root of each virtual server.

Note:

Earlier versions of Sun ONE/iPlanet creates separate server instances for each site. Run the Web Server Configuration Tool once for each site.

Connect multiple Sun ONE Web Server virtual hosts to a single ColdFusion server

  1. Using the Sun ONE Web Server Administrator, create virtual web servers for ColdFusion to use. For more information, see your Sun ONE Web Server documentation.

  2. Configure DNS for each virtual website, as described in your web server documentation.

  3. Test each virtual server to ensure that HTML pages are served correctly.

  4. Run the Web Server Configuration Tool, as follows:

    • GUI - Specify Sun ONE for the web server, specify the directory that contains the obj.conf and magnus.conf files, and select the Configure Web Server for ColdFusion Applications check box.

    • Command line - Specify -ws sunoneand the directory that contains the obj.conf file, as the following example shows:

    cf_root/runtime/bin/wsconfig -ws sunone -dir [path to config] -coldfusion -v

  5. Test each virtual server to ensure that ColdFusion pages are served correctly.

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