Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

The Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections feature allows you to create a banner page and set an inactivity timeout for HTTP or HTTP Secure (HTTPS) connections. The banner page allows you to log in to the server when the session is invalid or expired.

Finding Feature Information

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Prerequisites for Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

HTTP or HTTP Secure (HTTPS) must be configured on the device.

Information About Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

Validation of an HTTP Session

When a user sends an HTTP request to an HTTP server, the request is processed as follows:

  1. The HTTP server parses the cookies and extracts the session information from them. Cookies are used to preserve the browser's across many pages and over periods of time. Every time a web browser accesses content from a domain or a URL, if a cookie exists, the browser submits the cookie information as part of the HTTP request.
  2. The server checks whether the session ID provided in the cookie is valid.
  3. If the session ID is valid, the server bypasses the authentication.
  4. If the session ID is invalid or has expired, the server sends a redirect response. A customizable banner page is sent to the user. The banner page allows the user to log in with credentials. The server then validates the credentials and processes the request. Use the command ip http banner to enable an HTTP or an HTTP Secure (HTTPS) banner and the command ip http banner-path path-name to direct the user to the banner page. If a session exceeds the default timeout of 3 minutes, the session ID is deleted from the HTTP server and the user is redirected to the banner page. To set the inactivity timeout for a session, use the command ip http session-idle-timeout.

How to Configure Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

Configuring a Banner Page for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

SUMMARY STEPS

    1.    enable

    2.    configure terminal

    3.    ip http secure-server

    4.    ip http banner

    5.    ip http banner-path path-name

    6.    end


DETAILED STEPS
     Command or ActionPurpose
    Step 1enable


    Example: 
    Device> enable
          		Enables privileged EXEC mode.
    • Enter your password if prompted.
     
    Step 2configure terminal


    Example: 
    Device# configure terminal
          		Enters global configuration mode.  
    Step 3 ip http secure-server


    Example: 
    Device(config)# ip http secure-server
     

    Enables the HTTP secure server.

     
    Step 4ip http banner


    Example: 
    Device(config)# ip http banner
          		Enables the HTTP server banner.  
    Step 5ip http banner-path path-name


    Example: 
    Device(config)# ip http banner-path welcome
          		Specifies the path name for the HTTP server banner.  
    Step 6end


    Example: 
    Device(config)# end
          		Ends the current configuration session and returns to privileged EXEC mode.  

    Configuring an Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

    SUMMARY STEPS

      1.    enable

      2.    configure terminal

      3.    ip http session-idle-timeout seconds

      4.    end


    DETAILED STEPS
       Command or ActionPurpose
      Step 1enable


      Example: 
      Device> enable
       

      Enables privileged EXEC mode.

      • Enter your password if prompted.
       
      Step 2configure terminal


      Example: 
      Device# configure terminal
       

      Enters global configuration mode.

       
      Step 3ip http session-idle-timeout seconds


      Example: 
      Device(config)# ip http session-idle-timeout 10
       

      Sets the HTTP server session idle timeout, in seconds. The range is from 1 to 1200.

       
      Step 4end


      Example: 
      Device(config)# end
       

      Exits global configuration mode and returns to privileged EXEC mode.

       

      Configuration Examples for Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      Example: Configuring a Banner Page for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      The following example shows how to configure a banner page for HTTP or HTTP Secure (HTTPS) connections. 

      Device> enable
Device# configure terminal
Device(config)# ip http banner 
Device(config)# ip http banner-path Welcome
Device(config)# end

      Example: Configuring an Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      The following example shows how to configure an inactivity timeout for HTTP or HTTP Secure (HTTPS) connections: 

      Device> enable
Device# configure terminal
Device(config)# ip http session-idle-timeout 50
Device(config)# end

      Additional References for Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      Related Documents

      Related Topic

      Document Title

      Cisco IOS commands

      Cisco IOS Master Command List, All Releases

      HTTP commands

      Cisco IOS HTTP Services Command Reference

      Technical Assistance

      Description

      Link

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      To receive security and technical information about your products, you can subscribe to various services, such as the Product Alert Tool (accessed from Field Notices), the Cisco Technical Services Newsletter, and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feeds.

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      http:/​/​www.cisco.com/​cisco/​web/​support/​index.html

      Feature Information for Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      The following table provides release information about the feature or features described in this module. This table lists only the software release that introduced support for a given feature in a given software release train. Unless noted otherwise, subsequent releases of that software release train also support that feature.

      Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco software image support. To access Cisco Feature Navigator, go to www.cisco.com/​go/​cfn. An account on Cisco.com is not required.

      Table 1 Feature Information for Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      Feature Name

      Releases

      Feature Information

      Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections

      Cisco IOS 15.2(2)E

      The Banner Page and Inactivity Timeout for HTTP or HTTPS Connections feature allows you to create a banner page and set an inactivity timeout for HTTP or HTTP Secure (HTTPS) connections.

      The banner page allows you to log in to the server when the session is invalid or expired.

      In Cisco IOS 15.2(2)E, this feature is supported on the following platforms:

      • Catalyst 4500 Series Switches
      • Catalyst 3750 Series Switches

      The following commands were introduced or modified: ip http banner, ip http banner-path, and ip http session-idle-timeout.