Warning: open_basedir restriction in effect

[Ver17]

I have a client who is trying to set up a froogle feeder for OS Commerce and is getting an error saying there are directory restrictions "Warning: open_basedir restriction in effect".

When doing multiple Google and cPanel searches for a solution I find a number of things including this.... "For security purposes, your host is running PHP in safe mode. If you are tying to install a script that will allow the outside world to upload files to the server, this will be disallowed by default. Create a vhost.conf file that will allow uploading via PHP.".... I also found more info on the vhost.conf but I can not find it on our server.

Is this file created by default or do I have to create it? If I have to create it where do I put it so it fixes this clients issue but does not comprimise the overall server?


Thanks for any help.

[Blue|Fusion]

In WHM Security tweaks, you must exlude that site's virtualhost in the open_basedir protection page.

[RickG]

Ver17:

By default, the open_basedir restriction prevents users from running PHP scripts outside of their /home/accountname/ directory. As Blue|Fusion indicated, you can remove the restriction on that account if needed through the WHM.

However, you can also control this through an entry in .htaccess or php.ini (depending if phpsuexec is running), as well as in the httpd.conf file. In fact, if you look in /usr/local/apache/conf/httpd.conf, you will find a directive in the account's VirtualHost container that is something like this:

<IfModule mod_php4.c>
php_admin_value open_basedir "/home/AccountName:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php:/tmp"
</IfModule>

Basically the above states the account can only run PHP scripts in the directories indicated (or anything below them).

I'm not familiar with this froogle feeder ... but I'd want to know what they are trying to do that would install something outside of their home directory. I've had a case where it made sense to install "shared" php scripts (for all accounts) in a directory such as /home/common/ ... but you then have to adjust the open_basedir directive above to include this directory otherwise they will not run.

Hope this is of some help -