Name

Name is a position-independent directive that normally appears toward the top of config.txt/ezproxy.cfg. In the absence of a Name directive, EZproxy will take its hostname from the operating system. If multiple Name directives appear in config.txt/ezproxy.cfg, the last Name directives takes priority.

Name should be followed by the hostname of your EZproxy server. Ports used by EZproxy (e.g. :2048) should not be included.

The use of numeric hostnames is not recommended.

Determining what name EZproxy is calling itself

During startup, EZproxy records a message similar to this to messages.txt/ezproxy.msg:

Server name ezproxy.yourlib.org


Since this line appears after every startup of EZproxy, you should locate the last such line in messages.txt/ezproxy.msg to determine the name EZproxy is currently using.

Avoid the use of underscore (_) in hostnames

Internet Explorer will block EZproxy's cookie if your hostname contains an underscore (_).

Naming for two-letter, international domain

When naming an EZproxy server for a two-letter, international domain, the EZproxy server name should contains at least four hostname components (e.g. ezproxy.library.yourlib.xy). Using only two hostname components will always fail.

When using Internet Explorer with only three hostname components, Internet Explorer may block the cookie if the domain is short (e.g., library.ab.xy). When this occurs, there is no work-around other than renaming the server to use four hostname components.

When using Safari 2.0 and later with only three hostname components, Safari defaults to blocking the cookie. With EZproxy 3.6c GA (2006-03-10) or later, you can add add:

Option SafariCookiePatch


to config.txt/ezproxy.cfg to work around this Safari restriction.

Naming for all other domains

For all other domains, a minimum of three hostname components are required (e.g., yourlib.org is invalid, ezproxy.yourlib.org and ezproxy.library.yourlib.org are valid).

Blocked cookie error page

If these guidelines for naming your EZproxy server are not followed, you may still be able to see the login page, but once you enter a valid username and password, EZproxy will present a page about its cookie being blocked.

DNS requirements

Simply choosing a name for your EZproxy server and adding a Name directive to config.txt/ezproxy.cfg is not enough to allow the name to be used. In addition, you must coordinate with your network administrator to have the name registered in your Domain Name Server (DNS). Attempting to use a name that is not registered will lead to page not found errors.

Example

Name ezproxy.yourlib.org

See also

FirstPort LoginPort LoginPortSSL P3P