PyThreadServe

A lightweight, multi-process HTTP/1.0 server implementation with worker processes and thread pooling. This server handles GET and POST requests with built-in concurrency management and file locking mechanisms.

Features

• HTTP/1.0 Implementation: Supports basic GET and POST methods
• Multi-Process Architecture:
  • Main process for request acceptance
  • Worker processes for request handling
  • Round-Robin load balancing between workers
• Concurrency Management:
  • Thread pooling for connection handling
  • Maximum 5 concurrent POST requests
  • File locking mechanism for thread-safe operations
• Request Handling:
  • GET: Serves files from static directory
  • POST: Creates new files with unique timestamps
  • Protection against directory traversal attacks
• Logging: Thread-safe logging of all requests with timestamps and status codes

Requirements

• Python 3.x
• Windows OS (due to msvcrt file locking)
• Required Python packages:

  requests (for testing only)
  

Project Structure

PyThreadServe/
├── server.py       # Main server implementation
├── test.py        # Test suite
├── static/        # Directory for serving static files
└── server.log     # Request log file

Installation

1. Clone the repository
2. Install required packages:

   pip install requests

Usage

Starting the Server

from server import HTTPServer

server = HTTPServer(host='localhost', port=8080, num_workers=5)
server.start()

Making Requests

GET Request

curl http://localhost:8080/filename.txt

POST Request

curl -X POST -d "Your content here" http://localhost:8080/upload

Testing

The project includes a comprehensive test suite that covers:

• Basic GET and POST functionality
• Error handling
• Concurrent request handling
• Security features
• Logging functionality

To run tests:

python test.py

Technical Details

Worker Process Management

• Main process distributes requests using Round-Robin scheduling
• Inter-Process Communication (IPC) via pipes
• Worker processes handle file operations and request processing

Concurrency Controls

• Thread pool for handling multiple connections
• Semaphore-like control for POST requests (max 5)
• File locking for thread-safe file operations

Security Features

• Directory traversal protection
• Request validation
• Error handling for malformed requests

Logging System

• Thread-safe logging mechanism
• Detailed request information including:
  • Timestamp
  • Worker ID
  • Request method
  • Path
  • Status code

Limitations

1. HTTP/1.0 only (no persistent connections)
2. Windows-specific file locking
3. Maximum 5 concurrent POST requests
4. No support for:
   • HTTP/1.1 features
   • HTTPS
   • Custom headers
   • Content-type handling

Performance Considerations

• Thread pool size: 20 threads
• Worker processes: 5 by default
• POST request limit: 5 concurrent requests
• File operations are synchronized using locks

Error Handling

The server handles various error cases:

• 400 Bad Request
• 404 Not Found
• 405 Method Not Allowed
• 503 Service Unavailable (POST limit reached)
• 500 Internal Server Error

License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.