Documentation improvements (issues #334, #324, #343)

- Remove obsolete INSTALL file (issue #334): The generic autoconf INSTALL
  file incorrectly mentioned `make -f Makefile.cvs` instead of `./bootstrap`.
  README.md already contains accurate build instructions.

- Add args_processing.cpp example (issue #324): Demonstrates how to use
  get_args() and get_args_flat() methods to iterate over all request
  arguments, including handling parameters with multiple values.

- Add bind_address(string) overload (issue #343): Allows binding to a
  specific IP address using a string (e.g., "127.0.0.1") instead of
  requiring manual sockaddr construction. Supports both IPv4 and IPv6.
  IPv6 mode is automatically enabled when an IPv6 address is provided.

- Document bind_address() methods in README.md (issue #343): Added
  documentation for both the sockaddr* and string overloads.

Author: etr

INSTALL

@@ -254,6 +254,8 @@ For example, if your connection limit is “1”, a browser may open a first con
 * _.connection_timeout(**int** timeout):_ Determines after how many seconds of inactivity a connection should be timed out automatically. The default timeout is `180 seconds`.
 * _.memory_limit(**int** memory_limit):_ Maximum memory size per connection (followed by a `size_t`). The default is 32 kB (32*1024 bytes). Values above 128k are unlikely to result in much benefit, as half of the memory will be typically used for IO, and TCP buffers are unlikely to support window sizes above 64k on most systems.
 * _.per_IP_connection_limit(**int** connection_limit):_ Limit on the number of (concurrent) connections made to the server from the same IP address. Can be used to prevent one IP from taking over all of the allowed connections. If the same IP tries to establish more than the specified number of connections, they will be immediately rejected. The default is `0`, which means no limit on the number of connections from the same IP address.
+* _.bind_address(**const struct sockaddr*** address):_ Bind the server to a specific network interface by passing a pre-constructed `sockaddr` structure. This gives full control over the address configuration but requires manual socket address setup.
+* _.bind_address(**const std::string&** ip):_ Bind the server to a specific network interface by IP address string (e.g., `"127.0.0.1"` for localhost only, or `"192.168.1.100"` for a specific interface). Supports both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. When an IPv6 address is provided, IPv6 mode is automatically enabled. Example: `create_webserver(8080).bind_address("127.0.0.1")`.
 * _.bind_socket(**int** socket_fd):_ Listen socket to use. Pass a listen socket for the daemon to use (systemd-style). If this option is used, the daemon will not open its own listen socket(s). The argument passed must be of type "int" and refer to an existing socket that has been bound to a port and is listening.
 * _.max_thread_stack_size(**int** stack_size):_ Maximum stack size for threads created by the library. Not specifying this option or using a value of zero means using the system default (which is likely to differ based on your platform). Default is `0 (system default)`.
 * _.use_ipv6() and .no_ipv6():_ Enable or disable the IPv6 protocol support (by default, libhttpserver will just support IPv4). If you specify this and the local platform does not support it, starting up the server will throw an exception. `off` by default.

README.md

@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 LDADD = $(top_builddir)/src/libhttpserver.la
 AM_CPPFLAGS = -I$(top_srcdir)/src -I$(top_srcdir)/src/httpserver/
 METASOURCES = AUTO
-noinst_PROGRAMS = hello_world service minimal_hello_world custom_error allowing_disallowing_methods handlers hello_with_get_arg setting_headers custom_access_log basic_authentication minimal_https minimal_file_response minimal_deferred url_registration minimal_ip_ban benchmark_select benchmark_threads benchmark_nodelay deferred_with_accumulator file_upload file_upload_with_callback
+noinst_PROGRAMS = hello_world service minimal_hello_world custom_error allowing_disallowing_methods handlers hello_with_get_arg args_processing setting_headers custom_access_log basic_authentication minimal_https minimal_file_response minimal_deferred url_registration minimal_ip_ban benchmark_select benchmark_threads benchmark_nodelay deferred_with_accumulator file_upload file_upload_with_callback
 
 hello_world_SOURCES = hello_world.cpp
 service_SOURCES = service.cpp
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ custom_error_SOURCES = custom_error.cpp
 allowing_disallowing_methods_SOURCES = allowing_disallowing_methods.cpp
 handlers_SOURCES = handlers.cpp
 hello_with_get_arg_SOURCES = hello_with_get_arg.cpp
+args_processing_SOURCES = args_processing.cpp
 setting_headers_SOURCES = setting_headers.cpp
 custom_access_log_SOURCES = custom_access_log.cpp
 basic_authentication_SOURCES = basic_authentication.cpp

examples/Makefile.am

@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+/*
+    This file is part of libhttpserver
+    Copyright (C) 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 Sebastiano Merlino
+
+    This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
+    modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
+    License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either
+    version 2.1 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+
+    This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+    but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+    MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
+    Lesser General Public License for more details.
+
+    You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
+    License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
+    Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA  02110-1301
+    USA
+*/
+
+#include <iostream>
+#include <memory>
+#include <sstream>
+#include <string>
+
+#include <httpserver.hpp>
+
+// This example demonstrates how to use get_args() and get_args_flat() to
+// process all query string and body arguments from an HTTP request.
+//
+// Try these URLs:
+//   http://localhost:8080/args?name=john&age=30
+//   http://localhost:8080/args?id=1&id=2&id=3  (multiple values for same key)
+//   http://localhost:8080/args?colors=red&colors=green&colors=blue
+
+class args_resource : public httpserver::http_resource {
+ public:
+    std::shared_ptr<httpserver::http_response> render(const httpserver::http_request& req) {
+        std::stringstream response_body;
+
+        response_body << "=== Using get_args() (supports multiple values per key) ===\n\n";
+
+        // get_args() returns a map where each key maps to an http_arg_value.
+        // http_arg_value contains a vector of values for parameters like "?id=1&id=2&id=3"
+        auto args = req.get_args();
+        for (const auto& [key, arg_value] : args) {
+            response_body << "Key: " << key << "\n";
+            // Use get_all_values() to get all values for this key
+            auto all_values = arg_value.get_all_values();
+            if (all_values.size() > 1) {
+                response_body << "  Values (" << all_values.size() << "):\n";
+                for (const auto& v : all_values) {
+                    response_body << "    - " << v << "\n";
+                }
+            } else {
+                // For single values, http_arg_value converts to string_view
+                response_body << "  Value: " << std::string_view(arg_value) << "\n";
+            }
+        }
+
+        response_body << "\n=== Using get_args_flat() (one value per key) ===\n\n";
+
+        // get_args_flat() returns a simple map with one value per key.
+        // If a key has multiple values, only the first value is returned.
+        auto args_flat = req.get_args_flat();
+        for (const auto& [key, value] : args_flat) {
+            response_body << key << " = " << value << "\n";
+        }
+
+        response_body << "\n=== Accessing individual arguments ===\n\n";
+
+        // You can also access individual arguments directly
+        auto name = req.get_arg("name");  // Returns http_arg_value (may have multiple values)
+        auto name_flat = req.get_arg_flat("name");  // Returns string_view (first value only)
+
+        if (!name.get_flat_value().empty()) {
+            response_body << "name (via get_arg): " << std::string_view(name) << "\n";
+        }
+        if (!name_flat.empty()) {
+            response_body << "name (via get_arg_flat): " << name_flat << "\n";
+        }
+
+        return std::make_shared<httpserver::string_response>(response_body.str(), 200, "text/plain");
+    }
+};
+
+int main() {
+    httpserver::webserver ws = httpserver::create_webserver(8080);
+
+    args_resource ar;
+    ws.register_resource("/args", &ar);
+
+    std::cout << "Server running on http://localhost:8080/args\n";
+    std::cout << "Try: http://localhost:8080/args?name=john&age=30\n";
+    std::cout << "Or:  http://localhost:8080/args?id=1&id=2&id=3\n";
+
+    ws.start(true);
+
+    return 0;
+}

examples/args_processing.cpp

@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
 AM_CPPFLAGS = -I../ -I$(srcdir)/httpserver/
 METASOURCES = AUTO
 lib_LTLIBRARIES = libhttpserver.la
-libhttpserver_la_SOURCES = string_utilities.cpp webserver.cpp http_utils.cpp file_info.cpp http_request.cpp http_response.cpp string_response.cpp basic_auth_fail_response.cpp digest_auth_fail_response.cpp deferred_response.cpp file_response.cpp http_resource.cpp details/http_endpoint.cpp
+libhttpserver_la_SOURCES = string_utilities.cpp webserver.cpp http_utils.cpp file_info.cpp http_request.cpp http_response.cpp string_response.cpp basic_auth_fail_response.cpp digest_auth_fail_response.cpp deferred_response.cpp file_response.cpp http_resource.cpp create_webserver.cpp details/http_endpoint.cpp
 noinst_HEADERS = httpserver/string_utilities.hpp httpserver/details/modded_request.hpp gettext.h
 nobase_include_HEADERS = httpserver.hpp httpserver/create_webserver.hpp httpserver/webserver.hpp httpserver/http_utils.hpp httpserver/file_info.hpp httpserver/details/http_endpoint.hpp httpserver/http_request.hpp httpserver/http_response.hpp httpserver/http_resource.hpp httpserver/string_response.hpp httpserver/basic_auth_fail_response.hpp httpserver/digest_auth_fail_response.hpp httpserver/deferred_response.hpp httpserver/file_response.hpp httpserver/http_arg_value.hpp
 

src/Makefile.am

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+/*
+    This file is part of libhttpserver
+    Copyright (C) 2011-2019 Sebastiano Merlino
+
+    This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
+    modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
+    License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either
+    version 2.1 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+
+    This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+    but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+    MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
+    Lesser General Public License for more details.
+
+    You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
+    License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
+    Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA  02110-1301
+    USA
+*/
+
+#define HTTPSERVER_COMPILATION
+
+#if defined(_WIN32) && !defined(__CYGWIN__)
+#define _WINDOWS
+#undef _WIN32_WINNT
+#define _WIN32_WINNT 0x600
+#include <winsock2.h>
+#include <ws2tcpip.h>
+#else
+#include <arpa/inet.h>
+#include <netinet/in.h>
+#include <sys/socket.h>
+#endif
+
+#include <cstring>
+#include <memory>
+#include <stdexcept>
+#include <string>
+
+#include "httpserver/create_webserver.hpp"
+
+namespace httpserver {
+
+create_webserver& create_webserver::bind_address(const std::string& ip) {
+    _bind_address_storage = std::make_shared<struct sockaddr_storage>();
+    std::memset(_bind_address_storage.get(), 0, sizeof(struct sockaddr_storage));
+
+    // Try IPv4 first
+    auto* addr4 = reinterpret_cast<struct sockaddr_in*>(_bind_address_storage.get());
+    if (inet_pton(AF_INET, ip.c_str(), &(addr4->sin_addr)) == 1) {
+        addr4->sin_family = AF_INET;
+        addr4->sin_port = htons(_port);
+        _bind_address = reinterpret_cast<const struct sockaddr*>(_bind_address_storage.get());
+        return *this;
+    }
+
+    // Try IPv6
+    auto* addr6 = reinterpret_cast<struct sockaddr_in6*>(_bind_address_storage.get());
+    if (inet_pton(AF_INET6, ip.c_str(), &(addr6->sin6_addr)) == 1) {
+        addr6->sin6_family = AF_INET6;
+        addr6->sin6_port = htons(_port);
+        _bind_address = reinterpret_cast<const struct sockaddr*>(_bind_address_storage.get());
+        _use_ipv6 = true;
+        return *this;
+    }
+
+    throw std::invalid_argument("Invalid IP address: " + ip);
+}
+
+}  // namespace httpserver

src/create_webserver.cpp

@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@
 #include <functional>
 #include <limits>
 #include <string>
+#include <variant>
 
 #include "httpserver/http_response.hpp"
 #include "httpserver/http_utils.hpp"
@@ -128,6 +129,8 @@ class create_webserver {
          return *this;
      }
 
+     create_webserver& bind_address(const std::string& ip);
+
      create_webserver& bind_socket(int bind_socket) {
          _bind_socket = bind_socket;
          return *this;
@@ -387,6 +390,7 @@ class create_webserver {
      validator_ptr _validator = nullptr;
      unescaper_ptr _unescaper = nullptr;
      const struct sockaddr* _bind_address = nullptr;
+     std::shared_ptr<struct sockaddr_storage> _bind_address_storage;
      int _bind_socket = 0;
      int _max_thread_stack_size = 0;
      bool _use_ssl = false;

src/httpserver/create_webserver.hpp

@@ -338,6 +338,32 @@ LT_BEGIN_AUTO_TEST(ws_start_stop_suite, custom_socket)
 
     ws.stop();
 LT_END_AUTO_TEST(custom_socket)
+
+LT_BEGIN_AUTO_TEST(ws_start_stop_suite, bind_address_string)
+    httpserver::webserver ws = httpserver::create_webserver(PORT).bind_address("127.0.0.1");
+    ok_resource ok;
+    LT_ASSERT_EQ(true, ws.register_resource("base", &ok));
+    ws.start(false);
+
+    curl_global_init(CURL_GLOBAL_ALL);
+    std::string s;
+    CURL *curl = curl_easy_init();
+    CURLcode res;
+    curl_easy_setopt(curl, CURLOPT_URL, "127.0.0.1:" PORT_STRING "/base");
+    curl_easy_setopt(curl, CURLOPT_HTTPGET, 1L);
+    curl_easy_setopt(curl, CURLOPT_WRITEFUNCTION, writefunc);
+    curl_easy_setopt(curl, CURLOPT_WRITEDATA, &s);
+    res = curl_easy_perform(curl);
+    LT_ASSERT_EQ(res, 0);
+    LT_CHECK_EQ(s, "OK");
+    curl_easy_cleanup(curl);
+
+    ws.stop();
+LT_END_AUTO_TEST(bind_address_string)
+
+LT_BEGIN_AUTO_TEST(ws_start_stop_suite, bind_address_string_invalid)
+    LT_CHECK_THROW(httpserver::create_webserver(PORT).bind_address("not_an_ip"));
+LT_END_AUTO_TEST(bind_address_string_invalid)
 #endif
 
 LT_BEGIN_AUTO_TEST(ws_start_stop_suite, single_resource)