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LocalServer

Overview

Finally, you are going to understand how the internet works from the server side. The Hypertext Transfer Protocol was created in order to ensure a reliable way to communicate on a request/response basis.

This protocol is used by servers and clients (usually browsers) to serve content, and it is the backbone of the World Wide Web. Still, it is also used in many other cases that are far beyond the scope of this exercise.

For this project, you must use Java.

Role Play

You are a backend engineer at a startup building a lightweight web server to handle internal APIs and static content with minimal dependencies. Your goal is to deliver a highly available, crash-proof solution that can be extended to support dynamic content via CGI scripts and configured to suit multiple environments.

Learning Objective

By the end of this project, learners will be able to:

  • Design and implement a custom HTTP/1.1-compliant server in Java
  • Utilize non-blocking I/O mechanisms
  • Parse and construct HTTP requests and responses manually
  • Configure server routes, error pages, uploads, and CGI scripts
  • Evaluate performance under stress and ensure memory and process safety

Technical skills:

  • Socket programming
  • Asynchronous I/O
  • File and process management
  • Configuration parsing

Instructions

  • The project must be written in Java.
  • Use Java Core Libraries, namely the java.nio package for non-blocking I/O and java.net for network handling.
  • Make use of an event-driven API for handling connections.

The Server

Your goal is to write your own HTTP server to serve static web pages to browsers.

It must:

  • Never crash.
  • Timeout long requests.
  • Listen on multiple ports and instantiate multiple servers.
  • Use only one process and one thread.
  • Receive requests and send HTTP/1.1-compliant responses.
  • Handle GET, POST, and DELETE.
  • Receive file uploads.
  • Handle cookies and sessions.
  • Provide default error pages for: 400, 403, 404, 405, 413, 500.
  • Use an event-driven, non-blocking I/O API.
  • Manage chunked and unchunked requests.
  • Set the correct HTTP status in responses.

The CGI

  • Execute one type of CGI (e.g., .py) using ProcessBuilder.
  • Pass the file to process as the first argument.
  • Use the PATH_INFO environment variable to define full paths.
  • Ensure correct relative path handling.

Configuration File

Support configuration for:

  • Host and multiple ports.
  • Default server selection.
  • Custom error page paths.
  • Client body size limit.
  • Routes with:
    • Accepted methods.
    • Redirections.
    • Directory/file roots.
    • Default file for directories.
    • CGI by file extension.
    • Directory listing toggle.
    • Default directory response file.

No need for regex support.

Testing

  • Use siege -b [IP]:[PORT] for stress testing (target 99.5% availability).
  • Write comprehensive tests (redirections, configs, error pages, etc.).
  • Test for memory leaks.