PQ71755: WEBSPHERE J2EE CONTAINER DOES NOT CORRECTLY PROCESS THE "IF-MODIFIED-SINCE" FIELD RECEIVED IN THE HTTP HEADER

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APAR status
Closed as program error.

Error description
Customer sees the HTTP header of a request contain, for
example, "If-Modified-Since: Fri, 28  Feb 2003 18:25:56 GMT"
and then a 200 return code with "Last-Modified: Fri, 28 Feb
2003 18:25:56 GMT".
    Customer was expecting to see a "304" returned in such a
scenario. This reported error can be seen when serving a
static HTML page and also when serving class files that have not
changed; both errors are seen only when serving these static
files through the WebSphere J2EE WebContainer.
Local fix Problem summary
****************************************************************
* USERS AFFECTED: All users of WebSphere Application Server    *
*                 V4.0.1 for z/OS and OS/390                   *
****************************************************************
* PROBLEM DESCRIPTION: When a Conditional GET request with a   *
*                      header field If-Modified-Since and the  *
*                      requested document has not been         *
*                      modified, WebSphere Application Server  *
*                      V4.0.1 for z/OS and OS/390 incorrectly  *
*                      returns the requested document and      *
*                      status code 200, OK. The correct status *
*                      code should be 304, Not Modified, and   *
*                      the response should not contain a       *
*                      message body.                           *
****************************************************************
* RECOMMENDATION:                                              *
****************************************************************
If the request header field If-Modified-Since exists, a
comparsion is not performed on the requested document file
lastModified date and the date provided in the
If-Modified-Since header field.

Because this comparsion does not occur, the requested document
is incorrectly returned to the client with a status code 200.
Problem conclusion
APAR 
PQ69582 fixed this problem in WebSphere Application Server
V3.5 for z/OS and OS/390. APAR 
PQ71896, which is included in
Service Level W401502, fixes this problem in WebSphere
Application Server V4.0.1 for z/OS and OS/390, for the Local
Rediretor Plug-in . This APAR fixes the problem in WebSphere
Application Server V4.01 for z/OS and OS/390 for the Web
container.

The Web container code now compares the date in
If-Modified-Since header field, if it exists, with the
requested document file lastModified date:

-  If the file lastModified date is not newer, the status code
   304, Not Modified, is returned without the requested file.

-  If the file lastModified date is newer, the status code
   200, OK, is returned along the requested file.

APAR PQ71755 is associated with SERVICE LEVEL W401503 of
WebSphere Application Server version 4.0.1 for z/OS and OS/390.
Temporary fix Comments
APAR information
APAR number PQ71755
Reported component name WEBSPHERE OS/39
Reported component ID 5655A9800
Reported release 401
Status CLOSED PER
PE NoPE
HIPER NoHIPER
Submitted date 2003-03-06
Closed date 2003-04-07
Last modified date 2003-05-03

APAR is sysrouted FROM one or more of the following:

APAR is sysrouted TO one or more of the following:

Modules/Macros
EJSJWCSC EJSJWCWC        

Fix information
Fixed component name WEBSPHERE OS/39
Fixed component ID 5655A9800

Applicable component levels
R401 PSY UQ75776    UP03/04/15 P F304

  Fix is available
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Document Information


Product categories: Software > Application Servers > Distributed Application & Web Servers > WebSphere Application Server for z/OS
Operating system(s):
Software version: 401
Software edition:
Reference #: PQ71755
IBM Group: Software Group
Modified date: May 3, 2003