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Win32 Web Applications Overview
Win32 Web Application Support | Web Broker Overview | Web Snap Overview | Debugging With the Web Application Debugger | See Also
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This section covers:

- Web Application Support
- Web Broker Overview
- Web Snap Overview
- Debugging With the Web Application Debugger

For more detailed information on web applications, please see the Win32 Developers Guide in the Reference section of this Help system.
Win32 Web Application Support

The following types of web applications will be supported in RAD Studio.

- ISAPI
- CGI
- Web Application Debugger

Apache web applications are not supported for this release.
ISAPI

Selecting this type of application sets up your project as a DLL, with the exported methods expected by the Web server. It adds the library header to the project file, and the required entries to the uses list and exports clause of the project file.

CGI

Selecting this type of application sets up your project as a console application, and adds the required entries to the uses clause of the project file.

Web Application Debugger

Selecting this type of application sets up an environment for developing and testing Web server applications. This type of application is not intended for deployment.

Web Broker Overview

Web Broker components, located on the Internet tab of the Component Palette, enable you to create event handlers that are associated with a specific Uniform Resource Identifier (URI). When processing is complete, you can construct HTML or XML documents within your program and transfer them to the client. You can use Web Broker components for cross-platform application development.

Frequently, the content of Web pages is drawn from databases. You can use Internet components to automatically manage connections to databases, allowing a single DLL to handle multiple simultaneous, thread-safe, database connections.

Web Snap Overview

Note: WebSnap is being deprecated in RAD Studio. Although WebSnap is still documented in the online help, the WebSnap product is no longer fully supported. As an alternative, you should begin using IntraWeb (VCL for the Web). IntraWeb is documented in this online help. For more documentation on VCL for the Web, go to http://www.atozed.com/intraweb/docs/.
WebSnap augments Web Broker with additional components, wizards, and views, making it easier to build Web server applications that deliver complex, data-driven Web pages. WebSnap's support for multiple modules and for server-side scripting makes development and maintenance easier for teams of developers and Web designers. WebSnap allows HTML design experts on your team to make a more effective contribution to Web server development and maintenance.

The final product of the WebSnap development process includes a series of scriptable HTML page templates. These pages can be changed using HTML editors that support embedded script tags, like Microsoft FrontPage, or even a text editor. Changes can be made to the templates as needed, even after the application is deployed. There is no need to modify the project source code at all, which saves valuable development time. WebSnap’s multiple module support can be used to divide your application into smaller pieces during the coding phases of your project, so that developers can work more independently.

Debugging With the Web Application Debugger

The Web Application Debugger provides an easy way to monitor HTTP requests, responses, and response times. The Web Application Debugger takes the place of the Web server. Once you have debugged your application, you can convert it to one of the supported types of Web application and install it with a commercial Web server.

To use the Web Application Debugger, you must first create your Web application as a Web Application Debugger executable. Whether you are using Web Broker or WebSnap, the wizard that creates your Web server application includes this as an option when you first begin the application. This creates a Web server application that is also a COM server. The first time you run your application, it registers your COM server so that the Web Application Debugger can access it. Before you can run the Web Application Debugger, you will need to run bin\serverinfo.exe once to register the ServerInfo application.

Launching your application with the Web Application Debugger

Once you have developed your Web server application, you can run and debug it using the Web Application Debugger. You can set breakpoints in it just like any other executable. When you run your application, it displays the console window of the COM server that is your Web server application. Once you start your application and run the Web App Debugger, the ServerInfo page is displayed in your default browser, and you can select your application from a drop-down list. Once you have selected your application, click the Go button. This launches your application in the Web Application Debugger, which provides you with details on request and response messages that pass between your application and the Web Application Debugger.

Converting your application to another type of Web server application after debugging

When you have finished debugging your Web server application with the Web Application Debugger, you will need to convert it to another type that can be installed on a commercial Web server.

See Also

Building a WebSnap Application

Building a WebSnap "Hello world" Application

Debugging a WebSnap Application Using the Web Application Debugger

Converting Your Application to Another Type of Web Server Application

Using IntraWeb

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