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What Is the Common Gateway Interface (CGI)?

The Common Gateway Interface lets an HTTP server pass request details to an external program and deliver its response. It defines an interface, not a programming language.
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The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is a set of rules that lets an HTTP server pass a client request to an external program and return that program’s response. The server handles the network exchange; the CGI program handles application work such as processing data or generating a document. CGI is an interface specification, not a programming language.

What CGI defines

CGI describes how a web server and an external program share responsibility for answering HTTP requests. A program can be written in different languages, provided it follows the CGI conventions expected by the server. Apache describes CGI as a way for a web server to interact with external content-generating programs. Apache’s CGI documentation

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The formal definition appears in RFC 3875, “The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) Version 1.1”, published in October 2004. It is an Informational RFC, not an Internet Standards Track standard.

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How a CGI request is handled

  1. A client sends an HTTP request to the server.
  2. Server configuration determines whether and how to invoke a CGI program for that request.
  3. The server makes request information available to the program as CGI meta-variables. The request may also include a message body.
  4. The program performs application processing and returns a CGI response to the server.
  5. The server sends the resulting response to the client.

Meta-variables can describe details such as the request method, query string, server, and path. RFC 3875 specifies that on UNIX-compatible systems these values are passed as identically named environment variables, accessible to a program through mechanisms such as getenv() or environ. The RFC also recognizes that implementation details vary by system, so this environment-variable behavior should not be assumed for every platform. RFC 3875, section 4.1

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What the server does and what the CGI program does

The server manages the connection and the network, transport, and data-transfer work associated with the client request. The CGI program handles the application-specific work, such as accessing data or processing documents. This division lets a server use an external program to create dynamic content without making CGI itself a programming language or a server.

CGI in Apache HTTP Server 2.4

Apache HTTP Server 2.4 documents CGI as a way to use external programs for dynamic content. CGI execution must be allowed by the server’s configuration; CGI is not automatically enabled in every Apache setup. Apache documents two modules for CGI support, with different execution models. Apache HTTP Server 2.4: Dynamic Content with CGI

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Apache module Execution model and context
mod_cgid Uses a dedicated external daemon. Apache requires it with threaded MPMs such as event and worker.
mod_cgi Runs programs directly from the server process. Apache uses it with the non-threaded prefork MPM, or on Windows.

These are Apache-specific implementation choices, not competing definitions of CGI or requirements that apply to every web server.

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What to remember

  • CGI stands for Common Gateway Interface.
  • It specifies how a server and an external program exchange request information and responses.
  • The server handles the network-facing exchange; the program handles application processing.
  • CGI programs may be written in different languages if they follow the interface conventions.
  • Environment-variable handling and execution modules depend on the platform and server implementation.

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