Methods To Fix “AH01797: client denied by server configuration” in cPanel?

We should know certain details before fixing the error “AH01797: client denied by server configuration” in cPanel. It includes the complete file system path where access is not possible, and the IP or hostname of the client as using the correct path in the directory block.

Method 1: In this method, we must confirm the IP address is properly added to any relative “allow” list before restricting any part of the website or application. We should also rename and save the htaccess file as htaccess.txt. Then save the correct PHP version by visiting Software >>> MultiPHP Manager. Also, visit Software >>> MultiPHP Editor or Select PHP Version, select the directory and check PHP values and save it. By doing this, we can create the.htaccess file with its default values.

Method 2: Here, we must confirm to properly include the IP address to any relative “allow” list before restricting any part of the website or application. Then disable any security plugins that add htaccess file directives. After that visually examining the htaccess file to locate and eliminate any rules that are incompatible with server. Fixing of the problem is possible by editing or commenting out the problematic directives in that module. Finally, save the .htaccess file with default settings.

With CentOS 7.x going EOL on June 30, 2024 cPanel had to start supporting other Linux distros. Since the CentOS going EOL news hit the community it has put a lot of pressure on cPanel. Due to the news a software provider called CloundLinux went ahead and created AlmaLinux, a community-supported, production-grade enterprise operating system that is binary-compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The first stable release of AlmaLinux was published on March 30, 2021, cPanel already fully supports AlmaLinux, and the installation process is the same as on CentOS. However cPanel didn’t stop there, CentOS was great but they were on a single point of failure Linux distro, now they have eliminated that by fully supporting Ubuntu. In this blog, we are going through the installation process.

Server requirements.

1. 1. Operating system and version- Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
   2. Processor– Minimum: 1.1 GHz and Recommended: 2 GHz
   3.  Ram –  Minimum: 1 GB (Recommended 3 GB)
   4. Disk space: Minimum 20GB (Recommended 60 GB)

1. Static IP Address
2. FQDN – Fully qualified domain name (We recommend a subdomain which points to the server such as vps.domain.com)Now, login as root to the server. You can do that by executing the following command in command prompt: ssh root@1.1.1.1 -p22  (change 1.1.1.1 with your server’s IP)By default Ubuntu has a firewall enabled, by executing the below commands you will disable the rules.

   iptables-save > ~/firewall.rules
   systemctl stop firewalld.service 
   systemctl disable firewalld.service

   Update the system by executing the following rules:

   sudo apt update 
   sudo apt upgrade

   Now, we setup the fully qualified domain.

   To check your current hostname, in the console type hostname and hit enter.

   To change it edit the following file /etc/hostname with your favorite editor, we recommend nano, to install nano type the command apt install -y nano

   nano /etc/hostname delete the old FQDN and type your new one.

   Reboot the server by typing reboot

   After the server has booted, login as root and execute the following command:

   cd /home && curl -o latest -L https://securedownloads.cpanel.net/latest && sh latest

   This part doesn’t require any input from your end if everything is okay. After the installation script has done its job, type your server’s IP or FQDN you’ve setup into your browser, I.E https://vps.yourdomain.com:2087, from there you can login to the web interface and get yourself a license.

   Now, a server by default isn’t secure without a firewall, cPanel’s firewall is called ConfigServer Security & Firewall (csf)

   Before we do install the firewall, we need it to install Perl.
   
   sudo apt install perl

   And now, we will install CSF, to do so execute the following commands, one by one.

   cd /usr/src
   rm -fv csf.tgz
   wget https://download.configserver.com/csf.tgz
   tar -xzf csf.tgz
   cd csf
   sh install.sh

   Next, test whether you have the required iptables modules:
   
   perl /usr/local/csf/bin/csftest.pl

   By default CSF’s testing mode is enabled, that means that all the rules are reset every 5 minutes. We don’t want that, to disable testing do the following:

   cd /etc/csf
   nano csf.conf
   Change the TESTING = “1” to TESTING = “0” and save the changes.
   Now, restart the firewall so the changed we did apply, type csf -r

   The server is now more secure, however we will soon post a new blog that covers the hardening process of a cPanel server running on Ubuntu.

   [Do you need a system admin to install and secure your server? Contact US]