,/configure
 

Were do i get the help for the configure option?
i can see that there is quit a lot of swithes in the configure command... but no man ./, no man configure, no configure --help
Where is the info?

Usually
./configure --help
Configure options (most important ones) should be also mentioned in README, INSTALL or FAQ.

well, i have a:
-bash: ./configure: Nosuch file or directory
when i try that...

Not all programs use the ./configure method all though it is the most common. Is there a README or INSTALL file in the directory that you untarred as Mara said? Its possible that the program uses a script for installing rather then ./configure,make,make install.

well my putting together a apache, mysql, php server for a php nuke portal.
when i had try to access the index.php page, i seem the have the code of the page so i assumed that the php is not working with apache.
i went back to my howto and it says to issue the fallowing command in apache dir:
./config.status --activate-module=src/modules/php4/libphp4.a
(witch i previously did)
after i when to the php web site for installation proc, it says to issue:
./configure --prefix=/www --enable-module=so

So i assumed that prefix is the root of my web server and i wanted to correct it by issuing from the apache dir:
./configure --prefix=/opt/apache --enable-module=so

this is were i stand.

If I understand you correctly, you are trying to install php. If so, you would not issue the ./configure command from the apache directory. You would issue it from the directory that you are installing php from. If you unpacked it into say /home/user then you would have to go into the /home/user/php* directory and issue the ./configure command.

yes, that i did it to. The command i had to do when installin g php was:

./configure --with-mysql --with-apache=/opt/src/apache_1.3.27 enable-track-vars

i did that.

but see here at exemple 3.5:
http//:www.php.net/manual/en/install.apache.php

this is that is said:
Example 3-5. Installation Instructions (Apache Shared Module Version) for PHP 4

1. gunzip apache_xxx.tar.gz
2. tar -xvf apache_xxx.tar
3. gunzip php-xxx.tar.gz
4. tar -xvf php-xxx.tar
5. cd apache_xxx
6. ./configure --prefix=/www --enable-module=so
7. make
8. make install
9. cd ../php-xxx
10. ./configure --with-mysql --with-apxs=/www/bin/apxs
11. make
12. make install

Did you check your httpd.conf file. The instructions say to do this:

AddType application/x-httpd-php .php

LoadModule php4_module libexec/libphp4.so

The instructions from php's site have you totally re-installing apache. I don't think that is necessary in order to add php support.

Which directory are you in when you try to run configure? You need Apache source, not binary directory.

You were write mara i was from the bin dir...

i just did add the lines in httpd.conf and restart the server but still see the php coded page...

does my deduction is good by wanting to issue:
./configure --prefix=/opt/apache --enable-module=so
in the 3opt3src/apache_1.3.27 directory?

btw will anything i do overwrite or alter previous command i issued?

If it's your Apache source dir, yes.

Quote:

btw will anything i do overwrite or alter previous command i issued?

Yes, it will. If you'd like to keep older version, copy it to another directory.

Yes,OK ... but where is it?
when i issue ./configure where do the config goes?

To the directory you're in (when you run ./configure, you're in the same directory configure's in). But if you try to run it different way (/some/directory/configure) it shouldn't work. Configure doesn't write only to the main directory. It creates makefiles in all project directories.