1WARNING WARNING WARNING!!!
2
3This stuff is experimental, may change radically or be deleted altogether
4before OpenSSL 0.9.7 release. You have been warned!
5
6Configuration modules. These are a set of modules which can perform
7various configuration functions.
8
9Currently the routines should be called at most once when an application
10starts up: that is before it starts any threads.
11
12The routines read a configuration file set up like this:
13
14-----
15#default section
16openssl_init=init_section
17
18[init_section]
19
20module1=value1
21#Second instance of module1
22module1.1=valueX
23module2=value2
24module3=dso_literal
25module4=dso_section
26
27[dso_section]
28
29path=/some/path/to/some/dso.so
30other_stuff=other_value
31----
32
33When this file is loaded a configuration module with the specified
34string (module* in the above example) is looked up and its init
35function called as:
36
37int conf_init_func(CONF_IMODULE *md, CONF *cnf);
38
39The function can then take whatever action is appropriate, for example
40further lookups based on the value. Multiple instances of the same 
41config module can be loaded.
42
43When the application closes down the modules are cleaned up by calling
44an optional finish function:
45
46void conf_finish_func(CONF_IMODULE *md);
47
48The finish functions are called in reverse order: that is the last module
49loaded is the first one cleaned up.
50
51If no module exists with a given name then an attempt is made to load
52a DSO with the supplied name. This might mean that "module3" attempts
53to load a DSO called libmodule3.so or module3.dll for example. An explicit
54DSO name can be given by including a separate section as in the module4 example
55above.
56
57The DSO is expected to at least contain an initialization function:
58
59int OPENSSL_init(CONF_IMODULE *md, CONF *cnf);
60
61and may also include a finish function:
62
63void OPENSSL_finish(CONF_IMODULE *md);
64
65Static modules can also be added using,
66
67int CONF_module_add(char *name, dso_mod_init_func *ifunc, dso_mod_finish_func *ffunc);
68
69where "name" is the name in the configuration file this function corresponds to.
70
71A set of builtin modules (currently only an ASN1 non functional test module) can be 
72added by calling OPENSSL_load_builtin_modules(). 
73
74The function OPENSSL_config() is intended as a simple configuration function that
75any application can call to perform various default configuration tasks. It uses the
76file openssl.cnf in the usual locations.
77
78
79