Tomcat installation Notes

When running WebDav, it is necessary to run as the 'root' app (just the URL, no extra path information) on the default http(s) port. This is a requirement for client compatibility. Here is a guide to setting up Tomcat with webdav as the root app.

Install Tomcat7

Set the container (in server.xml) to run at port 80 (or 443)

 <!-- A "Connector" represents an endpoint by which requests are received
         and responses are returned. Documentation at :
         Java HTTP Connector: /docs/config/http.html (blocking & non-blocking)
         Java AJP  Connector: /docs/config/ajp.html
         APR (HTTP/AJP) Connector: /docs/apr.html
         Define a non-SSL HTTP/1.1 Connector on port 8080
    -->
    <Connector port="80" protocol="HTTP/1.1"
               connectionTimeout="20000"
               redirectPort="443" />

Set the context

Add the following to /etc/tomcat/server.xml, right inside the stanza

  <Context path="" docBase="irods-webdav">
                <!-- Default set of monitored resources -->
                <WatchedResource>WEB-INF/web.xml</WatchedResource>
        </Context>

Install authbind

Then configure authbind in the /etc/default/tomcat7 file

# If you run Tomcat on port numbers that are all higher than 1023, then you
# do not need authbind.  It is used for binding Tomcat to lower port numbers.
# NOTE: authbind works only with IPv4.  Do not enable it when using IPv6.
# (yes/no, default: no)
AUTHBIND=yes