PHP 8.3 Coming to IBM i This Year
I had to chuckle when someone at a recent conference seemed surprised that PHP was still a vital force in web and API development. He hadn’t heard much about PHP lately at conferences. My explanation:...
View ArticleHow to Update the Code for i Extension
Code for IBM i has been moving quickly. As the popularity of this Visual Studio Code extension has grown, updates and enhancements have arrived regularly. If you encounter a bug or issue, installing...
View ArticleHow to Report an Issue with VS Code for IBM i
If you believe you have found a bug or other issue with the Code for IBM i extension, you can post it to the Code for i issue tracker. The maintainers are very good about resolving issues. Before...
View ArticleHow to Resolve Yum Command FTP Errors on IBM i
While installing packages from IBM’s original open source repository, ibm, users may encounter errors, including: [Errno 12] Timeout on:...
View ArticleCelebrating Another Year of iChime
Having just celebrated the 35th anniversary of the origins of the IBM i platform, it’s time to celebrate another milestone: the fourth year of iChime, the online meeting of IBM i friends begun by...
View ArticlePHP_FCGI_MAX_REQUESTS Solves Job Cleanup Issues
One of PHP’s strengths is that each PHP job or process cleans itself up after every request. This makes PHP very reliable and stable. On occasion, though, an extension may have a bug that leaks memory...
View ArticleUsing SSH Keys with VS Code for IBM i
To make our IBM i servers more secure, our system administrator has configured our SSH services to require public key authentication rather than password-based logins. To comply with this security...
View ArticleIBM i Apache Directives Measure Request Speeds
Speed is critical when serving APIs and web pages from IBM i. How can we measure our speed? The IBM HTTP Server (powered by Apache) for i can log the speed of each request, but this capability needs to...
View ArticleIBM i Apache Security Setting: RequestReadTimeout
A client asked for help addressing a Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerability that their security company discovered. The company found it could slow down the Apache web server by sending it incorrect...
View ArticleVS Code for IBM i Repositories
Those of us who help support Code for i, the popular IDE for IBM i based on VS Code, often need to look at the code that makes it work. Fully open source, the code that runs Code for i is available on...
View ArticleOlder Non-RPM Versions of PHP & PASE Apps Can Break in IBM i 7.5
NOTE This alert was originally published in Seiden Group’s July 2023 Support Bulletin. Seiden Group’s CP+ PHP fully supports IBM i 7.5. IBM i 7.5 provides an updated OpenSSL version, going from 1.0.2...
View ArticlePHP 8.3: How the Community Helps PHP Evolve
The recent addition to PHP 8.3 of two enhancements by Seiden Group’s own Calvin Buckley* inspired me to write this post. The open source PHP language is moved forward by its community. Each year there...
View ArticleRebuilding the Tomcat Plugin in IBM i 7.5
Open source saves the day once again. When one of our open source support clients discovered that Tomcat plugin for Apache was not supported on their test IBM i 7.5 system, they needed a solution. They...
View ArticleUse grep to Search IBM i Source Members (RPG, CL, COBOL, more)
From the Seiden SmartSupport mailbag: One issue I keep coming across is the inability to search for text in source members across all libraries. We use a commercial tool, but it is expensive and...
View ArticleURL Rewriting with Apache Web Server
The Apache web server—included on IBM i as HTTP Server for i—contains a powerful feature known as mod_rewrite that can convert URLs (API or Web) from their original versions to any format you need....
View ArticleRead-only Mode in VS Code for IBM i
If you are using the Code for i extension and would like to “browse” or view certain source members without the risk of modifying them, use the “Read only” or “Protected” capability. Possible reasons...
View ArticleOur Favorite ibm_db2 Settings for PHP
When supporting our Seiden CP+ PHP, we found that documentation for the “classic” ibm_db2 extension for IBM i wasn’t easy to find. To help ourselves as well as others, we updated the PHP.net manual to...
View ArticleFinding Security Fixes for Apache on IBM i
The Apache-based IBM HTTP Server for i is a vital defense in web and API security for IBM i. As such, it requires regular attention. IBM Support’s PCI Compliance web page is a resource we use to help...
View ArticleAPCu Extension Added to Seiden CP+ PHP
PHP sites and APIs on IBM i have a new way to run even faster. As noted in our CP+ PHP Changelog, we have added the APCu extension to our PHP distribution. The APC User Cache (APCu) extension is an...
View ArticleWhat IBM i Users Should Check when Learning of an Open Source Security...
A client asked about a vulnerability found in libwebp, which is used by PHP’s image-handling gd extension. My first step was to find a reputable source for details. According to this trusted article...
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