# Ruby web servers, threads and sessions **URL:** \ **Category:** Ruby\ **Created:** [December 4, 2006, 8:22pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283 "2006-12-04T20:22:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 8:22pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/1 "2006-12-04T20:22:38Z")
Is there a pure ruby web server that can start a thread that performs some task and store it in a session allowing the user to control the task from the browser? Similar to a what I can do with a java web server? ---
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 8:34pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/2 "2006-12-04T20:34:41Z")
On Dec 4, 2006, at 11:20 , eching wrote: > Is there a pure ruby web server that can start a thread that performs > some task and store it in a session allowing the user to control the > task from the browser? Similar to a what I can do with a java web > server? WEBrick + your custom code. – Eric H. - removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid - [http://blog.segment7.net](http://blog.segment7.net) I LIT YOUR GEM ON FIRE! ---
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 8:36pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/3 "2006-12-04T20:36:43Z")
eching wrote: > Is there a pure ruby web server that can start a thread that performs > some task and store it in a session allowing the user to control the > task from the browser? Similar to a what I can do with a java web > server? Your question isn’t crystal clear, but look at webrick, see if it’s what you have in mind. Webrick is included in a standard Ruby installation. ---
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 8:50pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/4 "2006-12-04T20:50:45Z")
Eric H. wrote: > Eric H. - removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid - [http://blog.segment7.net](http://blog.segment7.net) > > I LIT YOUR GEM ON FIRE! Ah, looks pretty straight forward, thanks. Ok, so is it realistic to start up a Drb server and store it in a session? Really what I am looking to do is to be able to control ruby applications on various hosts from a web client using the web server as the central hub. The basic idea is a distributed log scanner app where the user can control (add files, remove files, change search string) “scanning agents” that are running on different hosts. ---
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 10:01pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/5 "2006-12-04T22:01:11Z")
> Yes, you can do this, but if the purpose is to govern the behavior of remote > machines, and if there are any security issues, I personally would do it > using SSH instead. > > You could set things up to tunnel the webrick content through an SSH > connection. That is a way to balance ease of use with good security. > > I am not perfectly clear about what you are trying to accomplish, but if > your description is a suitable guide, then maybe a text-based SSH remote > execution approach might be better than one based on a a Web server. Thanks for the responses. It’s all over the LAN, so security isn’t a concern at this point. I’ll guess I’ll go ahead with my initial idea. I really haven’t done much web/web based programming (or distributed programming, really, apart from basic sockets), so any other suggestions are welcome. ---
**Author:** ![ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@ericrchr](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/ericrchr)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2006, 9:41pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-web-servers-threads-and-sessions/78283/6 "2006-12-04T21:41:09Z")
eching wrote: > > > > the central hub. > > The basic idea is a distributed log scanner app where the user can > control (add files, remove files, change search string) “scanning > agents” that are running on different hosts. Yes, you can do this, but if the purpose is to govern the behavior of remote machines, and if there are any security issues, I personally would do it using SSH instead. You could set things up to tunnel the webrick content through an SSH connection. That is a way to balance ease of use with good security. I am not perfectly clear about what you are trying to accomplish, but if your description is a suitable guide, then maybe a text-based SSH remote execution approach might be better than one based on a a Web server.