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Description of problem:

StickySessions doesn't work for mod_proxy_balancer when sticky sessions is defined on a ProxyPass in a vhost, and the balancer is defined outside of the vhost.


Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):

httpd-2.2.15-39.el6.x86_64

How reproducible:

Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Configure a simple balancer like so outside of a vhost with a ProxyPass in a VHost:

<Proxy balancer://mycluster>
    BalancerMember http://localhost:8080 route=node1
    BalancerMember http://localhost:8081 route=node2
</Proxy>
<VirtualHost *:80>
     ProxyPass / balancer://mycluster/ stickysession=JSESSIONID|jsessionid
</VirtualHost>
2. curl -H "COOKIE: JSESSIONID=foo.node2" localhost
3. Note that stickiness for the above request is not maintained.  Debug logging can confirm no sticky logic is applied.

Actual results:

No stickiness is maintained.

Expected results:

Stickiness is maintained.

Additional info:

This can be avoided by just putting the balancer in the VHost instead with the ProxyPass, or putting "ProxySet stickysession=JSESSIONID|jsessionid" in the balancer when outside of the VHost.

Created attachment 966765 [details]
proposed patch

Created attachment 967641 [details]
proposed patch v2

On reviewing this we are concerned about the possible impact on backwards compatibility.  Customers could be running with configurations which happen to work because the vhost-specific settings are not applied to the balancers.  Changing the behaviour here could break, or cause surprising behavioural changes to, working configurations.

Given that the workaround required to achieve the desired behaviour is relatively simple, I'm going to decline this bug in RHEL 6.  The fix to the merging behaviour is committed upstream, so will work through into a future RHEL eventually.

Development Management has reviewed and declined this request.
You may appeal this decision by reopening this request.