Open source developers behind the Apache Web server, used by more than half the world's Web sites, have stopped new developments for Apache 2.0 and begun work on version 2.1.
The move is intended to boost migration to version 2.0 which, nine months after its introduction, is used by less than one percent of sites. Most users have been reluctant to upgrade from earlier releases due to concerns over the maturity of Apache 2.0. Frequent changes to its application programming interface (API) have made it hard to obtain add-in modules to support advanced functions such as Perl and PHP scripting.
In future, the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) will add new features to version 2.1. This will stabilise the APIs for version 2.0 so firms can build production Web farms with the software. The ASF will still develop bug-fixes for version 2.0 and 1.3.x, but will not add new functionality.
A posting on the Apache developers mailing list said: "I hope version 2.0 stays in pretty much its present state, with only definite fixes and no clean-ups or tuning."
However, Neil Macehiter of analyst firm Ovum said that despite the development freeze, companies might still be reluctant to upgrade, since the benefits of version 2.0 might not outweigh the risks.
"The issue is whether the [2.0] functionality is compelling enough to risk migrating from what is likely to be a mission-critical part of a firm's infrastructure, facing customers," he said. "Apache 2.0 may be able to run across multiple platforms, but this is not a compelling argument. Support for version 1.3 is there from the open-source community."
Macehiter said firms making the move would incur costs when testing, and there were doubts about how well the new software would scale. He added that a lack of modules could remain a problem. "Unfortunately this is a horse-and-cart situation, as people will only invest in developing modules if there are enough users to warrant building them," he said.
The ASF's move also brings in a new method of numbering Apache software to make it easier for firms to distinguish between stable versions for production Web sites and development versions to test enhancements. Odd-numbered versions from 2.1 onwards will indicate test and development versions, and even-numbered versions will indicate stable versions for use on production systems.
Eventually, version 2.0 of Apache will be replaced by version 2.2, at which point new testing and development will be begin on Apache version 2.3.
Apache was originally created for Linux and Unix systems; version 2.0 was developed to improve the Web server performance under Windows. Currently, Apache version 1.3.x is used by about 60 percent of Web sites, while only about 0.5 percent use Apache 2.0, according to Securityspace.com.
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