What is a CGI?

Common Gateway Interface or CGI is a specification which allows Web users to run programs on your server. CGI is not a programming language; it is a gateway which allows small programs called "scripts" to be run over the Internet. CGI scripts take input passed to them from a form on a Web page, process the information, and then format the results in HTML. The result is usually a Web page that is generated by the script itself.

The language of choice for CGI processing is Perl, (Practical Extraction and Reporting Language.) Perl is often used because it is specifically designed to grab multiple text files and format them nicely, making it exceptional for writing HTML.

Other languages used occasionally for CGI Scripts are C/C++, Visual Basic, AppleScript, UNIX Shell, and Tcl. CGI Scripts can do almost anything when they are properly written.

To understand how CGI scripts work you should have a good understanding of HTML and some programming experience.

NOTE: We are unable to provide technical support for configuring CGI scripts.

  • 141 Users Found This Useful
Was this answer helpful?

Related Articles

How do I test Python to make sure it is working for my account?

The following will allow you to create a test script to ensure Python is working on your account...

How do I parse PHP in HTML pages?

If you wish parse PHP in your HTML pages you need to add the following line you the .htaccess...

How do I use the Ioncube loaders?

The Ioncube loaders are installed and ready for use so you don't need to do anything to use them.

Is PHP ran as an Apache module or as CGI?

We run suPHP on our servers, so PHP is running as CGI.

Can I run PHP scripts anywhere on my web space?

You can run PHP scripts anywhere on your web space with the exception of the "cgi-bin".