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(NOTE: This was brought up in but 4459, but that bug was closed due to a man page issue, even though the apachectl issue doesn't seem resolved.) apachectl should be included because it has slightly different functionality than the default init script, and it is listed in all the apache documentation as the way to restart apache. If you don't like the idea of having the init script and apachectl, maybe you could have a script that has the functionality of both and is symlinked so that it is available under both names.
The apachectl script was taken out because it duplicates some of the functionality of the init script we provide. Which specific function is missing that you need?
The most useful functionality bit in my opinion that's missing is configtest. It's much nicer to test and then fix and then test and restart the web server than to do a restart and find you made a mistake that keeps apache from restarting
The graceful option would also be useful, which apachectl has but the Redhat init script does not.
Changes in the init script in Raw Hide to make web server module installation simpler (i.e., to avoid editing httpd.conf in package %post scripts) make use of the apachectl script impractical.