CentOS - Sep 2011 - Centos 5.6 : Apache bug fix = PHP Exec no longer works

A few days ago I upgraded from the Centos 5 CR repository software
including Apache. The Apache on my development server is:

	Apache/2.2.3
	Aug 31 2011 20:18:21
	httpd.x86_64 0:2.2.3-53.el5.centos.1 

A previously working PHP Exec(...) command on a web page no longer
works.

After spending 7+ hours Googling, checking file and directory
permissions, whether SELinux is on or off and doing numerous tests my
once very nice routine will not work because the Shell processing by
Apache seems to have altered.

The consistent error message always includes:

	No such file or directory

or

	command not found

I have downgraded to

	httpd.x86_64 0:2.2.3-45.el5.centos.1 

and restarted httpd but the problem persists.

It appears to me, the PHP EXEC command is being executed in a 'black
hole' with no access to the directory structure and that is why the
weird error message occur.

Helpful comments appreciated.

Paul.

On Sun, 2011-09-04 at 02:09 +0100, Always Learning wrote:
> A few days ago I upgraded from the Centos 5 CR repository software
> including Apache ...
Found a solution: As an alternative to PHP Exec on a web page running
ImageMagick, now using GMagick (GraphicsMagick) in PHP to process
images. 

Can't explain the Exec failure but initially even PHP GMagick refused to
save files on an external partition. After repeatedly resetting file and
directory permissions, images are successfully saved.

Paul.