Subject: bug#54171: [PATCH] web: default to INADDR_ANY instead of INADDR_LOOPBACK

From: Ludovic Courtès <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 01 Mar 2022 09:49:15 +0100

Bon dia!

Aleix Conchillo Flaqué <[email-masked]> skribis:

> Using INADDR_ANY instead of INADDR_LOOPBACK makes it convenient when
> starting the web server inside containers without the need to having to
> specify INADDR_ANY all the time. This is the default in most libraries
> and languages.
>
> This doesn't break backwards compatibility since INADDR_LOOPBACK is also
> included in INADDR_ANY.

A potential problem with changing the default is that people using the
defaults would all of a sudden have their servers accessible from the
outside, which could be a real problem.

Also, defaulting to INADDR_LOOPBACK is a conservative choice, with the
understanding that you have to explicitly say so if you want your server
to be directly accessible from the outside.  (In most cases, one would
run Guile web servers behind a proxy such as nginx.)

So I have a preference for the status quo.

WDYT?

Ludo’.