Hi,

I started to install TWiki for our corporate intranet and realized that controlling documents (that come as links in most HTML's) could be improved in TWiki.

With this in mind, I installed mod_dav (Apache) in the same Apache server that houses the TWiki.In this arrangement, HTML additions/editing is being done using TWiki, and on clicking of any of the document links, I get to edit the documents using the relevant Microsoft Office 2000 editor plugins (that are webdav clients).

This way editing pages as well as documents, may be done from the web page itself, and no need to change documents from explorer and pushing it to the document folders.

This needs no coding.

So my point is, if the above methodology is useful, can TWiki come up with a ready to deploy solution alongwith webdav in Apache, or is it already there

-- AdityaChoudhuri - 28 Nov 2003

Such a methodology is not already documented. It would be fantastic if you could write this up for us!

-- MartinCleaver - 28 Nov 2003

Setting up TWiki alongwith WEBDAV in Apache 1.3X

Environments

Twiki deployed in Apache (1.3)...have also tried out 2.0 for readily available mod_dav support. However TWiki apparently has some problems with Apache 2.0, so best to stick with 1.3X Apache. In case of Apache 1.3X, to enable mod_dav see link http://www.webdav.org/mod_dav/install.html#apache

Authentication Set up

Twiki and Apache mod_dav can share the same Basic authentication by means of .htpasswd file. As an alternative, we can have NTLM authentication set up using mod_ntlm see http://twiki.org/cgi-bin/view/Codev/WindowsInstallModNTLM#mod_ntlm_Apache_1_3x_

Typically users/groups may be created with separate DAV folders, and permissions given per user or group basis. [see section --Limiting DAV Access to Authorized Users-- under http://www.webdav.org/mod_dav/install.html

Let us create a new user "HrAdmin" using Twiki registration form, so that .htpasswd file is updated with user id and password.

For example, in the snippet below, user "HrAdmin" is given rights to edit content available in the DAV folder ~/pub/hr. This snippet is to be pasted in the httpd.conf file of Apache.

 
<Location /pub/hr>
    DAV On
    AuthType Basic
    AuthName "WebDAV Restricted"
    AuthUserFile "C:/twiki/data/.htpasswd"  ## asking Apache to use Twiki password file for authentication
    <Limit PUT POST DELETE PROPFIND PROPPATCH MKCOL COPY MOVE>
      Require user HrAdmin
    </Limit>
</Location>

Set up .htaccess file depending how you would want the intranet to be used.

Miscellaneous

Create Twiki Variables to denote root folder path for each user.

e.g. "HrAdmin" user could have root folder defined as a TWiki variable WEBDAVHRBASEURL.

Set WEBDAVHRBASEURL = http://yourdomain.com/pub/hr

Likewise "EngineeringAdmin" user could have root folder defined as a TWiki variable WEBDAVENGGBASEURL.

Set WEBDAVENGGBASEURL = http://yourdomain.com/pub/engineering

This variable is only to save some typing for the users when creating document links.

Using Web-Dav to create a document

See webdav documentations, on how to use explorer to create new documents. Or how to create new documents using Microsoft 2000 office clients such as Word, Excel Powerpoint etc. These are intrinsically Web-Dav clients as well.

Let's say the "HrAdmin" creates a document under webdav (webfolder) as "ListOfEmployeesHavingTooMuchCoffee.doc"

For hooking up the above document from a link created on a Twiki Topic

To see the above document published through Twiki collaboration... The "HrAdmin" would need to paste the following snippet of code (other html riff raffs not considering) on his/her topic

<li>
    <a href="%WEBDAVHRBASEURL%/ListOfEmployeesHavingTooMuchCoffee.doc">
        <b>Cough up for your Coffee</b>
    </a>
</li>

The document is now under webdav. So "HrAdmin" can later visit this page and edit the topic using Twiki edit mechanisms. To edit the document itself, he/she simply clicks on the document link, fills up authentication details (when prompted), edits and saves the document.

TODO

Unfortunately webdav still does not have the V working. However there appears to be a Delta-V project that is putting version control into webdav. Should this happen, using maybe, autoversioning, the naive user will find it really easy to edit html pages as well as documents in this set up alongwith implicit version control for htmls as well as documents.

Hope this helps:)

-- AdityaChoudhuri - 10 Dec 2003