CGI

common gateway interface (CGI), a standard that allows external applications located on personal computers or other devices to interact with information servers on the Internet. Developed in the 1990s, CGI is still used, but other methods such as PHP scripts are also utilized.

CGI programs are capable of sending many kinds of media, such as documents, images, and audio clips. Many Web sites with fields for input use CGI, and a great deal of the dynamic content on the Web is done using CGI. CGI programs need to be efficient to be effective. In order to create effective CGIs, developers need to know HTML (hypertext markup language), CGI, and HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol) commands, and they also need computer programming skills.

CGI applications can be written in any computer programming language that is supported by the host computer, including compiled languages such as C and FORTRAN and scripting languages such as Perl and TCL. CGI programs commonly use the HTTP methods GET and POST and the environment variables QUERY_STRING and PATH_INFO to facilitate communication between a client and a Web server. POST is more complicated to work with, but it supports more complex data. In order to be effective, CGI transmissions must contain header messages expressing the return program’s data type. Security is also essential to the employment of CGI programs because they can open the host system to unlimited Web access. In order to improve security, programs are placed in a directory called /cgi-bin. This directory, which must be monitored by an administrator, is kept away from other Web content, and access to it is often limited to certain users. This allows the Web server to execute approved programs while excluding unauthorized access.