Using the built-in web server

The ColdFusion MX server configuration is built on top of JRun, which includes the JRun web server (JWS), also called the built-in web server. Although not intended for use in a production environment, the built-in web server is particularly 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 MX (using the built-in web server) on the same computer while you migrate your existing applications to ColdFusion MX.

Development If your workstation runs ColdFusion MX 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.macromedia.com and http://www.macromedia.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 MX Administrator through the built-in web server, specify http://servername:8500/CFIDE/administrator/index.cfm. In the multiserver configuration, the default port for the built-in web server is 8300.

Note: URLs are case-sensitive on UNIX operating systems.

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/servers/coldfusion/SERVER-INF/jrun.xml file in a text editor and examine the port attribute of the WebService service. In the multiserver configuration, the path is jrun_root/servers/cfusion/SERVER-INF/jrun.xml.

Note: When you install ColdFusion MX Enterprise Edition using the multiserver configuration, the installation wizard always configures the built-in web server, even if you select an external web server.

Keep in mind the following when using the built-in web server:

• Whenever possible, you should choose to configure your external web server as part of the ColdFusion MX installation, except for the two cases mentioned at the beginning of this section (coexistence with a previous ColdFusion version and when there is no web server on the computer). If you select the built-in web server by mistake, you must 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.
• The default web root when using the built-in web server is cf_root/wwwroot (server configuration) or jrun_root/servers/cfusion/cfusion-ear/cfusion-war (multiserver configuration). By default, the ColdFusion MX 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/wwwroot/WEB-INF/jrun-web.xml file (jrun_root/servers/cfusion/cfusion-ear/cfusion-war/WEB-INF/jrun-web.xml in the multiserver configuration), as the following example shows:

   <virtual-mapping>
     <resource-path>/*</resource-path>
     <system-path>C:/myApps/wwwroot</system-path>
   </virtual-mapping>
  

  Warning: If you have CFML pages under your external web server's root, ensure that ColdFusion MX has been configured to serve these pages through the external web server. If you have not configured ColdFusion MX to use an external web server, your external web server will serve ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML) source code for ColdFusion pages saved under its web root.

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