WebDAV
Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning is an extension of HTTP that lets users collaborate via the Internet. The Internet Engineering Task Force approved it as a standards-track specification in 1998, and it has been deployed widely on multiple platforms and in applications from many vendors.
WebDAV can be found in Web servers such as Apache and Microsoft Internet Information Server and now is also supported by leading document and content management vendors. WebDAV functionality also is embedded in common desktop operating systems, including Windows and Mac OS X, and popular applications from Adobe, Lotus, Microsoft and others.
A user editing a document stored on a WebDAV server can lock the file and protect it from anyone overwriting those changes. WebDAV version control also makes it possible for users to know which version of a file is the most current, minimizing confusion.
WebDAV access-control lists provide advanced control over read, write and sharing permissions for every file, further improving system security. Analysts recently have suggested that the file management features in WebDAV can make it a cost-effective alternative to traditional document management products.
WebDAV imposes a common data model that includes collections, resources, locks and properties, and defines a common syntax using HTTP messages with custom methods, headers and bodies.
Extending HTTP, WebDAV defines several methods for file management, such as Copy and Move, and Mkcol for creating new Web folders.
The Lock and Unlock methods let a document be protected while the author makes changes. The Propfind and Proppatch methods let folders be browsed and offer flexible management of metadata. All these methods operate on HTTP resources, so any Web server that supports WebDAV provides an integrated system for secure authoring.
From WebDAV secures collaboration, Network World Tech Update, 04/07/03.
Additional resources
IETF WebDAV Working Group
Has links to latest specs and standards work.
Collaboration research center
Latest collaboration news and analysis from Network World Fusion.
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