README - phpExplore v1.4 - (c) 2001 J.C. Cardot <taz98@altern.org>

What is phpExplore ?

phpExplore is a very useful program that allows you to manage files and directories on a web site through a web browser only. You don't need any FTP or telnet tool.
phpExplore is very useful for those who only have access to the http protocol and no FTP nor telnet (if you are behind a web proxy, you certainly know what I'm talking about !)

phpExplore behaves like a file system browser. You can :
- browse directories
- create/delete directories
- upload/download files
- delete/move/rename files
- create empty files ("touch")
where supported on the server (unix type) :
- chmod files
- create symbolic links

There are even more possibilities ! You can also :
- edit files online (yeah !)
- have a lock on the files (if you are many to work on the same set of files, this can be a very cool feature...)
- use phpExplore to authenticate for a full web site, and integrate it to your website (it's a valuable tool for the administration of a site). See the website subdir for examples.

phpExplore is coded using the php3 language, a powerful tool for your web sites. To use it, you'll need php3 on your web server.
For the file locking, it uses MySQL also, but this is not compulsory if you don't want to use file locking mecanisms.


For installation notes, see the file INSTALL

phpExplore is published under the GPL license (see LICENSE)

For changes since the initial version, see CHANGES

For known bugs, see BUGS

For a todo list, see TODO

Usage :
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In order to use phpExplore, you simply have to call the explore2.php3 file from within your web browser (http://your.host.org/path/explore2.php3).
If you want to start directly in a particular directory, call :
http://your.host.org/path/explore2.php3?rep2browse=the_directory
For exemple, if you installed explore2 in the "explore" subdir, and you want to start at the root of your web site, call :
http://your.host.org/path/explore2.php3?rep2browse=..

You shall now type in your login/password, then choose the delay you want your web browser to keep the authentication (from 1 hour to 1 year), then click the [Login] button.

Explorer :
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You can see a list of available directories and files in the current directory (the "current directory" is the directory at the root of the files and sub-directories you are looking at).
You can expand a sub-directory, by clicking the plus sign in front of it, or go straight into it by clicking its name.

To perform an action on one or more files or directories, check the checkbox just in front of it, then push the appropriate button :
- [rm] to remove the files/dirs checked,
- [cp] to copy to the destination that you've written in the field on the right of the buttons,
- [mv] to move/rename to the destination written in this field,
- [ln] to create the symbolic link you've written on the right to the file or dir you checked,
- [chmod] to change the mode (unix concept) of the files/dirs checked.
- [checkin] to unlock a file or a whole dir
- [checkout] to lock a file or a whole dir

Some of these actions will need a confirmation, in this case you will be asked to confirm.

To create a new directory in the current directory only, type in its name on the left of the [mkdir] button, then click this button. The octal number (by default 0755) represents the unix mode of the new directory.

To create a new empty file, type in the file name in the field on the left of the [touch] button, then click this button.

To upload a file, click the "Browse" button near the [upload] button, browse to the file you want to upload (limited to 2 Mo), then click the [upload] button.

The result of all these actions will display in a grayish box at the top of the page.

To (de)activate the file locking mecanism (when properly installed, see INSTALL), click the [(de)activate lock] button at the top.

To log out of phpExplore, click the [Logout] button. If you don't log out, phpExplore won't ask you your password until it has expired. If you are the only one with an access to your workstation, it can be a good choice not to log out (but be careful...)


Editor :
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TBD