How to run a .cgi files on a server ? I have a major problem when running python scripts along with html form because the browser was showing the source code on the browser window. How to print output by running html on the server side and not exposing it to the browser on the client side?
I found the answer to my question:
Step 1: Name your python files as .cgi instead of .py..py files only run inside python terminal or if you could edit the server configuration file to show .py files extensions as if they are .cgi files.If you don't have that priviledge you can use .cgi as your file extension to run python on your server and print the output on the client side.
NOTE:You can use your python code on the server side it is not possible for you to run it on client side so always know what you are doing .cgi gives you that power
Step-2: Linking you .html code with the python code you can do that by simply giving the link of your .cgi file into the action attribute of form element. See Below:-
<form action="server_action.cgi">
<input name="Message" type="input">
</form>This is just an example I have not linked a real .cgi file above.
Note : To print your output in the same html page just use this code
print('Content-Type:text/html')
print()
print(AFTER THE ABOVE TWO LINES just copy and paste you html code inside this brackets)
function. Just copy and paste the code above TO SEE HOW IT WORKS.
NOTE THE " should be written as \" inside the the brackets or else python will close its print " befor the whole code is rendered. Also it will produce an error on the client side.
Step-3:(Most Important)PROCESSING : This step is where python functions play their role to understand what the user is saying in its input and carry output as you wish. I have written an example below DO NOT RUN THIS CODE HERE IT WILL NOT PRODUCE OUTPUT BECAUSE PYTHON LIBRARIES ARE NOT Installed ON STACKOVERFLOWS EDITOR.[SKIP THIS CODE BELOW IF YOU ALREADY HAVE XAMPP INSTALLED AND KNOW HOW TO RUN CGI FILES ON IT]
Install https://www.apachefriends.org/index.html XAMPP if you do not have a hosted server.
Run Python in xampp for windows below is the explanation how to setup xampp for running .cgi files:
STEP-1:[Download Python]
Download & install the latest version of python from www.python.org Download
Python & click on the windows installer of any version [ex. python-3.6.2]
STEP 2: [Install Python] Install in any directory of your harddrive [ex.
D:\python-3.6.2]
Click on config button just right to the Start Button and open `httpd.conf`
file and make the changes as said in the linked post BELOW ⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇
[RUN PYTHON SCRIPTS WITH XAMPP][1]
Running Python scripts with Xampp
The code for server_action.cgi which i was talking about before the
Installation of XAMPP Note that #!C:\Python39\python.exe is use at the beginning of your code. Which is the location of your python interpreter (Although it is not needed if your server provides its own libraries to interpret cgi files)
#!C:\Python39\python.exe
import cgi
import cgitb
import cgitb
cgitb.enable()
import cgitb
cgitb.enable(display=0, logdir="/path/to/logdir")
print("<TITLE>CGI script output</TITLE>")
print("<H1>This is my first CGI script</H1>")
print("Hello, world!")
print("""<form action="server_action.cgi">
<input name="Message" type="input">
</form>""")
form = cgi.FieldStorage()
text=form["Message"].value
#'Message' is the value of my 'name' attribute used in my <input name=""> tag
Use
print("""
this
format
""") to print multiple lines in one print output.
import cgitb
cgitb.enable(display=0, logdir="/path/to/logdir")
This was used
to prevent displaying error on the clients browser if any occured.
```/path/to/logdir``` is the path where you want to store the error that was
prevented directly on the browser window ```display=0```