New Helicon Ape 3.0.0.32 released

Hello, everyone.

Good news - we've just released the new build of Helicon Ape - 3.0.0.32.
So, what's new:

• from now on you can write mod_proxy directives inside .htaccess files (previously only global context was supported);
• "Zip and save Ape configuration" option in Ape Manager automatically saves and zips all Ape configs and logs for selected location (site, folder) so you could then send them to our support team;
• bug fix related to processing of long URLs.

Best wishes,
Anton, Helicon Tech Team

Helicon Ape 3.0.0.30. Happy new build!

Hello, everyone!
Happy holidays!
We've got some good news for you—the new build of Helicon Ape 3 is released and available for download.
And it's not just a couple of bug-fixes; we've introduced:

• three new modules:
  
  • mod_dbd which allows creation and management of SQL database connections;
  • mod_authn_dbd which provides user authentication by searching users in SQL tables; and
  • mod_dir which cares about "trailing slash" redirects and directory index files handling;
• really important and highly anticipated by the clients ErrorDocument directive that gives a possibility to set custom error pages upon error;
• two parameters for Options directive:
  
  • ShowErrorInResponse which tells Ape to show detailed error explanation or omit it;
  • StopOnError which regulates whether to ignore unknown directives or give out 500 error;
• some important fixes, in mod_linkfreeze in particular.

Helicon Ape 3.0.0.29 released

Just wanted to let you know that we have slightly improved Ape 3 and released a new build - 3.0.0.29. The enhancements relate to incorrect snap-in and License Manager behavior in certain situations and address improper installation package actions under specific conditions.

Feel free to download.

Best wishes,
HeliconTech Team

Helicon Ape 3 Release

New version of Helicon Ape has recently been released!

It offers:

• free use on up to 3 sites;
• 30+ Apache-like modules;
• admin-free installation on shared hosting;
• improved performance;
• redesigned, easier-to-use manager;
• license manager

Test Ape 3 for free during 45 days.
Looking forward to your feedback.

P.S. New articles on Ape 3 features are coming soon. Stay tuned!

New caching functionality in Helicon Ape 1.2.0.21

Helicon Ape is in the limelight again. This time it's boasting two new increadibly important and useful modules - mod_disk_cache and mod_mem_cache extending it's caching capabilities to the next level.

These modules allow to cache dynamically generated content on the hard disk or in RAM respectively.
The article covering all aspects of new caching modules is coming soon.

We are really grateful to our clients who help us discover unobvious bugs which we attempt to fix in the shortest terms possible.

P.S. The next module to be introduced is mod_linkfreeze implementing LinkFreeze features for Windows Server 2008 bypassing ISAPI limitations.

Stay with us!

HeliconTech Team.

Helicon Ape 1.2.0.20 - 3 new modules and even more

We are here again to let you know of a new Helicon Ape build - 1.2.0.20.
This build is quite a big step forward compared to the previos one. So... what has changed:

• 3 new modules added:


• mod_mime destined to associate requested filename extensions with the file's behavior (handlers and filters) and content (mime-type, language, character set and encoding);
• mod_evasive is an efficient instrument to get rid of DoS/DDoS and brute force attacks;
• mod_developer is a perfect HTTP-level tool for web developers providing a bunch of all-round information for the HTTP request.



• and some improvements implemented:


• enhanced algorithm for generation of web sites tree in Helicon Ape manager (does not cause delays even with hundreds of sites on your server);
• sites list in Helicon Ape manager tree in now sorted alphabetically;
• new core level directive - StopOnError - makes it possible to tell Helicon Ape how to process unknown directives: when it's on, the browser will throw 500 error; when it's off (default), unknown directives are ignored.

New fixes, new features - new build (Helicon Ape 1.2.0.19)

HeliconTech team is ready to present a report regarding the latest build of Helicon Ape 1.2.0.19.
We are grateful to our customers who greatly assist us in bug-catching.

So, our achievements in 1.2.0.19 are:
- new functionality: possibility to register Helicon Ape for specific sites/applications in Helicon Manager;
- implementation of special environment variable (on_auth_create_user) used to create ASP.NET request context user after successful basic or digest authentication (this capability may be useful if you need to know the user that has authenticated via basic or digest authentication but you don't use ASP.NET native authentication);
- case-insensitive map files processing (RewriteMap mapfile txt:mapfile.txt [NC]);
- fixed CacheStorePrivate directive processing;
- fixes for authz_groupfile_module and groups file processing.

We wish you successful testing of our freshest build and hope you'll be satisfied with it.

Regards,
HeliconTech Team

HeliconTech on Twitter

Dear customers,
We've opened an official twitter account: @helicontech. Please follow us to get some “fresh meat” news :)

Always yours,
HeliconTech Team

ISAPI_Rewrite 3.1.0.63 already available

We've recently released a new build (63rd) of ISAPI_Rewrite 3 that can't actually boast any significant changes or features, but has some really important fixes:

- now ISAPI_Rewrite deals well with map files paths with spaces (e.g. C:\Program Files\...);
- RewriteHeader directive is now correctly converted from v2 syntax using our syntax converting tool;
- and some improvements in Unicode representation in the rewrite log were made.

That's all for now:)

Helicon Ape 1.1.0.15 – what risen minor gives

Hello! About two months ago our technology peacemaker, Helicon Ape, has been released. Day after day we are improving existing features and designing the new ones. Two builds have already been released and now we are going to increase our product’s minor version number because this monkey is gonna be really fancy ;)

So what new features has Ape obtained? Well, this post will shed some light on this issue.

Helicon Manager

Server variables autocompletion was added to the editor. This feature can be very helpful for mod_rewrite and mod_setenvif users. Ctrl+Space combination is used to open autocompletion form:

mod_hotlink implemented (NEW)

The module is aimed at protecting your web server from people stealing your traffic by directly linking to the content on your server. This is especially important for those having image, video, documents archives and other downloadable content.

After enabling mod_hotlink your site will work as if nothing happened, all search engines and backward links will still be valid, all user’s favorites will remain working. But if someone tries to embed your stuff directly on their site, they will only see an error message or your site’s logo. You can save tons of traffic and thus money. You can even turn these hotlinks into real visitors by redirecting hotlink request to your site’s homepage.

We also recommend you to have a look at this article: Strong hotlink protection with Helicon Ape mod_hotlink module.

mod_filter implemented (NEW)

This module provides selective filter application depending on the content type. Currently mod_hotlink, mod_gzip and mod_deflate can be managed by mod_filter directives.

mod_deflate implemented (NEW)

We’ve added mod_deflate directives support. Please note that technically mod_deflate and mod_gzip have the same compression algorithm.

mod_expires

Regular expressions support for ExpiresByType directive.

mod_setenvif

• Extended conditions syntax implemented (AND, OR and grouping support). Now you can easily create smart conditions to control Helicon Ape modules
• Mime and Query_String attributes support implemented
• Server variable can be used as an attribute. Two syntaxes are possible. You may use mod_rewrite style: %{VARIABLE_NAME} or simply VARIABLE_NAME:

mod_cache and mod_gzip

Management through environment variables implemented.

ISAPI_Rewrite 3.1.0.60

We are happy to announce the release of new build of ISAPI_Rewrite!

We have fixes some bugs related to:

• conversion of RewriteProxy directive from v2 syntax
• multiple Set-Cookie: headers processing in proxy extension
• PathInfo processing in proxy extension, that earlier caused problems with some AJAX apps and web services

and added some new features:

• now error.log and rewrite.log correctly display Unicode characters
• option to set/unset .htaccess Hidden attribute optionally.

Notice that latest builds of ISAPI_Rewrite operate on Windows Server 2008 R2 (IIS7).

In this build we attempted to meet some of our customers’ frequently requested features. If you see any other possibilities to make our products better, please don’t hesitate to write proposals into Comments.

HotlinkBlocker 1.0.0.63 Released

New build of HotlinkBlocker acquired one important feature: from now on you may exclude client IP address from the process of signature generation.

This allows to prevent issues with AOL browser (not only with it actually) that sends requests to html and images from different IPs.

Helicon Ape released!

It has happened! Helicon Ape has been released and is now available for download and purchase!

Enjoy all Apache advantages on your IIS servers!

Best wishes,

HeliconTech Team

Helicon Ape 1.0.0.12 - firm step ahead!

Pretty much time has elapsed since the release of the first public build of Helicon Ape (1.0.0.10). We've made every effort to spend this time as efficiently as possible to make you a small Christmas gift. And here it is ready to rejoice you!

The main improvements in build 12 include:

• check of available updates
• kernel cache support
• password generator for basic/digest authentication
• NE, ENV flags processing in mod_rewrite

Here's the complete change log.

How we created Helicon Ape logo:)

HeliconJet 1.0.0.24 at your service!

Our new small but very useful product - HeliconJet - has got some features fixed. This includes correct ASP.NET pages processing and improved caching of requests with querystring.

Save traffic by compressing and caching files with new HeliconJet 1.0.0.24!

New LinkFreeze 2.1.0.81 released!

This version of LinkFreeze was built with new Boost 1.35.0.0 library.

And now it supports IPv6.

So, download and enjoy!

Striving for perfection - ISAPI_Rewrite 3.1.0.58 with new fixes

Greetings to everyone interested in SEO and looking for the ways to make your site more pretty for search engines!

We (HeliconTech) have just released a new build of ISAPI_Rewrite that has some small but rather useful enhancements: 

firstly, 

the problem with proxy re-registration upon update was eliminated, 

and secondly, 

from now on map file defined in httpd.conf may be accessed from any .htaccess. So, if you are using a single map file with different .htaccess files, now there's no need to define in each of them.

You may download and evaluate ISAPI_Rewrite 3.1.0.58 here.

ISAPI_Rewrite 3.1.0.57 with some important fixes

The latest, just-released build of ISAPI_Rewrite - 3.1.0.57 - has some important fixes:

• correct redirect to unicode URLs
• correct [NE] flag processing
• improved registration of 32 and 64-bit dlls for simultaneous operation of 32 and 64-bit sites on Windows 2008 x64. 
  

So, download and enjoy!

Helicon Jet 1.0 build 0023 released!

New build of Helicon Jet includes an important fix for correct processing of ASP.NET pages.

Feel advantages of using the latest versions of our products!