awstats: 7.7 (upstream)
Debian: stretch (9.11)
apache2: 2.4.25
perl: 5.24.1

AWstats is a popular and powerfull Apache2 access-logfile analyser.

This document describes manual installation of “awstats”. Although there is a “awstats” Debian package, manual installation has the advantage of always using the latest upstream version and gives you more control over the installation process.

• perl >= 5.00503

• https://www.awstats.org/#DOWNLOAD

Download the .tar.gz file or the .zip archive.

Extract the archive in “/usr/local”:

# cd /usr/local

# tar --no-same-owner -xzf _path_to_archive/awstats-7.7.tar.gz

# mv awstats-7.7 awstats

Do NOT run the awstats_configure.pl configure script!
It doesn't handle the Debian apache2 configuration very well.

Central to the configuration of awstats is the concept of virtual hosting. Each virtual host must have a distinct access logfile:

/etc/apache2/sites-available/vhostX.conf:

CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access-vhostX.log combined

• Note: The logformat must be set to “combined”.

For each virtual host create an awstats config file:

# mkdir /etc/awstats

# cd /etc/awstats

# cp /usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/cgi-bin/awstats.model.conf awstats.vhostX.conf

Edit the required parameters in “/etc/awstats/awstats.vhostX.conf”:

LogFile="/var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log"

LogType=W

LogFormat=1

SiteDomain="www.somedom.com"

DirData="/var/lib/awstats"

DirCgi="/awstats"

DirIcons="/awstatsicons"

For each virtual host build the statistics database file.

Create the base directory to hold the awstats databases:

# mkdir /var/lib/awstats

Awstats comes with a tool to orderly process old log files: “logresolvemerge”. Awstats can read the resulting data via a pipe construct. ¹⁾

Modify the awstat config file to read all access files:

# Use logresolvemerge.pl for first time setup.
# LogFile="/var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log"
LogFile="/usr/local/awstats/tools/logresolvemerge.pl /var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log* |"

• Note: Don't forget the “|” at the end of the LogFile line!

Create the database for vhostX:

# /usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/cgi-bin/awstats.pl -config=vhostX -update

Create/Update database for config "/etc/awstats/awstats.vhostX.conf" by AWStats version 7.7 (build 20180105)
From data in log file "/var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log"...
Phase 1 : First bypass old records, searching new record...
Searching new records from beginning of log file...
Phase 2 : Now process new records (Flush history on disk after 20000 hosts)...
Jumped lines in file: 0
Parsed lines in file: 58
 Found 0 dropped records,
 Found 0 comments,
 Found 0 blank records,
 Found 0 corrupted records,
 Found 0 old records,
 Found 58 new qualified records.

After successfully creating the database restore the awstat config file for normal operation:

# Use logresolvemerge.pl for first time setup.
LogFile="/var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log"
# LogFile="/usr/local/awstats/tools/logresolvemerge.pl /var/log/apache2/access-vhostX.log* |"

(Awstats FAQ)

In order to prevent losing data we need to update the awstats data files before rotating the Apache2 access logfiles.

Create directory “httpd-prerotate”:

# cd /etc/logrotate.d

# mkdir httpd-prerotate

# cd httpd-prerotate/

Create prerotate script “awstats-update-all”:

#!/bin/bash
test -x /usr/local/awstats/tools/awstats_updateall.pl &&
  nice /usr/local/awstats/tools/awstats_updateall.pl now >/dev/null

Make the new script executable:

# chmod +x 10-awstats.scr

Add a new crontab file “awstats” in /etc/cron.d/

# awstats crontab file

# min hour daymonth month dayweek user commandline
*/10 * * * * root test -x /usr/local/awstats/tools/awstats_updateall.pl && nice /usr/local/awstats/tools/awstats_updateall.pl now >/dev/null

• Note: A cron definition can not expand over multiple lines!
• Syntax “*/10” in the first field means every 10 minutes.

(Awstats: Contribs, plugins and resources; More info: awstats vhost config file)

• Note: Rebuild the awstats database file after configuring!

Install Perl Geo::IPfree

# apt-get install libgeo-ipfree-perl

Enable “geoipfree” plugin in awstats vhost config file(s):

LoadPlugin="geoipfree"

Not tested.

• Note: Rebuild the awstats database file after configuring!

By default awstats strips the querystring of the URLs. However this behaviour is inappropriate when examining a webservice which uses a querystring to identify each page. E.g. by default awstats will count all pages of a Dokuwiki as one page: /dokuwiki/doku.php

Enabling Querystring reading will solve this:

URLWithQuery=1

Limit the examination to these parameters (e.g. “id=”):

URLWithQueryWithOnlyFollowingParameters="id"

Awstats has two reporting facilities:

1. Dynamic reporting via Apache2/cgi
2. Static HTML files using the commandline.

# cd /etc/apache2

# a2enmod cgi

The awstats cgi configuration can be configured within each Apache2 virtual host configuration or in a general Apache2 section for all hosts.
In this How-to we configure awstats cgi in a general “conf-available” section.

# cd /etc/apache2/conf-available

Create a new file “serve-awstats.conf”:

<IfModule mod_alias.c>
    <IfModule mod_cgi.c>
        Define ENABLE_USR_LIB_CGI_BIN
    </IfModule>

    <IfModule mod_cgid.c>
        Define ENABLE_USR_LIB_CGI_BIN
    </IfModule>

    <IfDefine ENABLE_USR_LIB_CGI_BIN>
        # Directives to allow use of AWStats as a CGI

        Alias /awstatsclasses "/usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/classes/"
        Alias /awstatscss "/usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/css/"
        Alias /awstatsicons "/usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/icon/"
        ScriptAlias /awstats/ "/usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/cgi-bin/"

        <Directory "/usr/local/awstats">
            AllowOverride None
            Options +ExecCGI -MultiViews +SymLinksIfOwnerMatch
            Require all granted
        </Directory>
    </IfDefine>
</IfModule>

Enable the new configuration file:

# a2enconf serve-awstats

Test the new Apache2 configuration:

# apache2ctl configtest

Syntax OK

Now restart Apache2:

# systemctl restart apache2

See documentation: https://www.awstats.org/docs/awstats_setup.html#READ

https://www.awstats.org

# /usr/local/awstats/wwwroot/cgi-bin/awstats.pl -help

Copyright © 2020 Tux4u.be - Author: Marjan Waldorp; awstats-install.md 2020-02-29