514 lines
15 KiB
Markdown
514 lines
15 KiB
Markdown
<div align="center">
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# 🔥 Carbon HTTP Server
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[](LICENSE)
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[](https://www.linux.org/)
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[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_(programming_language))
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[](http://makeapullrequest.com)
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*Features HTTP/2, WebSocket, advanced security, caching, and asynchronous I/O capabilities*
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> **⚠️ WORK IN PROGRESS**: This project is currently under active development and is not yet a full release. Features may be incomplete, APIs may change, and bugs may be present. Use in production environments at your own risk.
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[Features](#-features) • [Installation](#-installation) • [Configuration](#-configuration) • [Usage](#-usage) • [Contributing](#-contributing) • [License](#-license) • [Documentation](DOCUMENTATION.md)
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</div>
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---
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## 📋 Table of Contents
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- [Overview](#-overview)
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- [Features](#-features)
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- [Prerequisites](#-prerequisites)
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- [Installation](#-installation)
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- [Configuration](#-configuration)
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- [Usage](#-usage)
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- [Project Structure](#-project-structure)
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- [Roadmap](#-roadmap)
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- [Contributing](#-contributing)
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- [Security](#-security)
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- [Documentation](DOCUMENTATION.md)
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- [License](#-license)
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- [Acknowledgments](#-acknowledgments)
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## 🌟 Overview
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Carbon is a modern, production-ready HTTP/HTTPS server implementation in C, designed for high performance and security. Built with modern Linux systems in mind, it features **full HTTP/2 support**, **RFC 6455 compliant WebSocket** implementation, epoll-based asynchronous I/O, thread pooling, and comprehensive security measures to deliver a robust web serving solution.
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**Key Highlights:**
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- 🚀 **HTTP/2 with ALPN** - Automatic protocol negotiation, multiplexing, and header compression
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- 🔌 **WebSocket Support** - Real-time bidirectional communication (ws:// and wss://)
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- 🔒 **Modern Security** - SSL/TLS, rate limiting, security headers, memory-safe operations
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- ⚡ **High Performance** - Epoll-based I/O, thread pooling, zero-copy transfers
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- 🛠️ **Easy Configuration** - Linux-style config files, comprehensive documentation
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## ✨ Features
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### 🚀 High Performance
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- **Asynchronous I/O**: Epoll-based event handling for maximum efficiency
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- **Thread Pool**: Efficient connection handling with configurable worker threads
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- **Smart Caching**: File caching system to reduce disk I/O
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- **SendFile Optimization**: Zero-copy file transfers for better throughput
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- **Keep-Alive Support**: Persistent connections to reduce overhead
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- **TCP Optimization**: Fine-tuned NODELAY and buffer configurations
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### 🔒 High Security
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- **SSL/TLS Support**: Full HTTPS support with modern cipher suites
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- **Auto HTTPS Redirect**: Automatic HTTP to HTTPS redirection
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- **Rate Limiting**: Per-IP rate limiting and DDoS protection
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- **Security Headers**: CSP, HSTS, X-Frame-Options, and more
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- **Input Sanitization**: Protection against path traversal and injection attacks
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- **Buffer Overflow Prevention**: Memory-safe operations throughout
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- **Memory Leak Prevention**: Comprehensive resource management and cleanup
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### 🌐 Modern Web Features
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- **HTTP/2 Support**: Full HTTP/2 implementation with ALPN negotiation
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- **WebSocket Support**: Full RFC 6455 compliant WebSocket implementation
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- **Secure WebSockets (wss://)**: Encrypted WebSocket connections over TLS
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- **Protocol Negotiation**: Automatic HTTP/2 or HTTP/1.1 via ALPN
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- **Real-time Communication**: Bidirectional messaging with WebSocket frames
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- **Binary & Text Frames**: Support for all WebSocket frame types (text, binary, ping, pong, close)
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### 🛠️ Developer Features
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- **Linux-Style Configuration**: Easy-to-edit .conf files with comments
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- **Comprehensive Logging**: Detailed logs with rotation support
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- **MIME Type Detection**: Automatic content-type detection via libmagic
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- **Debug Mode**: Built-in debugging support for development
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- **Echo Server**: Built-in WebSocket echo server for testing
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## 📦 Prerequisites
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Before building Carbon, ensure you have the following dependencies installed:
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```bash
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# Update package lists
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sudo apt-get update
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# Install required dependencies
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sudo apt-get install -y \
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build-essential \
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libssl-dev \
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libmagic-dev \
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libnghttp2-dev \
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pkg-config
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```
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## 🚀 Installation
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### Using HTTP configuration
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```bash
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# Clone the repository
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git clone https://github.com/Azreyo/Carbon.git
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cd Carbon
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# Install dependencies
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sudo apt-get update
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sudo apt-get install -y build-essential libssl-dev libmagic-dev libnghttp2-dev
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# Build the server
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make
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# Run the server
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sudo ./server
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```
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### Using SSL certificate or HTTPS, WebSocket, HTTP/2
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```bash
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# Generate SSL certificates (optional)
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mkdir -p certs
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openssl req -x509 -nodes -days 365 -newkey rsa:4096 \
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-keyout certs/key.pem -out certs/cert.pem \
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-subj "/C=US/ST=State/L=City/O=Carbon/CN=localhost"
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# Test HTTP/2
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curl --http2 -k https://localhost:443/
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# to use WebSocket (edit server.conf)
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# Set: use_https = true, enable_http2 = true, enable_websocket = true
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# Test WebSocket
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# Visit https://localhost:443/websocket-test.html in your browser
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```
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### Build Options
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Carbon provides multiple build configurations:
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```bash
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make # Standard build
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make debug # Debug build with symbols
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make release # Optimized release build
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make clean # Clean build artifacts
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```
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### Manual Compilation
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If you prefer manual compilation:
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```bash
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gcc src/server.c src/config_parser.c src/server_config.c src/websocket.c src/http2.c -o server \
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-D_GNU_SOURCE \
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-Wall -Wextra -O2 \
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-lssl -lcrypto -lpthread -lmagic -lnghttp2
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```
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## ⚙️ Configuration
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### SSL/TLS Setup
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> **⚠️ Important**: Self-signed certificates should only be used for testing purposes. For production, use certificates from a trusted Certificate Authority like [Let's Encrypt](https://letsencrypt.org/).
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```bash
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# Create certificates directory
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mkdir -p certs
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# Generate self-signed certificate (for testing only)
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openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:2048 \
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-keyout certs/key.pem \
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-out certs/cert.pem \
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-days 365 -nodes \
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-subj "/C=US/ST=State/L=City/O=Organization/CN=localhost"
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```
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### Server Configuration
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Create or edit `server.conf` in the project root. Carbon uses a traditional Linux-style configuration format with `key = value` pairs:
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```conf
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# Carbon Web Server Configuration File
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# Lines starting with # are comments
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# Server listening port
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port = 443
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# Enable HTTPS (requires valid certificates in certs/ directory)
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use_https = true
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# Log file location
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log_file = log/server.log
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# Maximum number of worker threads
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max_threads = 4
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# Server running state
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running = true
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# Server name or IP address (used for logging and response headers)
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server_name = 10.0.0.206
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# Enable verbose logging
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verbose = true
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# Enable HTTP/2 support (requires HTTPS)
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enable_http2 = true
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# Enable WebSocket support
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enable_websocket = false
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```
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**Configuration Options:**
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- `port`: HTTP port (default: 8080)
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- `use_https`: Enable HTTPS - accepts: true/false, yes/no, on/off, 1/0 (requires SSL certificates)
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- `https_port`: HTTPS port (default: 443)
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- `enable_http2`: Enable HTTP/2 support (requires HTTPS and ALPN)
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- `enable_websocket`: Enable WebSocket support (default: true)
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- `log_file`: Path to log file
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- `max_threads`: Number of worker threads
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- `server_name`: Your domain or IP address
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- `verbose`: Enable detailed logging - accepts: true/false, yes/no, on/off, 1/0
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**Note:** Boolean values are flexible and accept multiple formats:
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- True: `true`, `yes`, `on`, `1`
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- False: `false`, `no`, `off`, `0`
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Values can optionally be quoted with single or double quotes.
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### Directory Structure
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Set up the required directory structure:
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```bash
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# Create web root and subdirectories
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mkdir -p www/{css,js,images}
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# Create logs directory
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mkdir -p log
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```
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## 🎯 Usage
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### Starting the Server
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```bash
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# Run the server
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./server
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# The server will start on the configured port (default: 8080)
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# Access it at http://localhost:8080
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```
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### Firewall Configuration
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If you're using UFW, allow the necessary ports:
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```bash
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# Allow HTTP port
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sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
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# Allow HTTPS port (if using SSL)
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sudo ufw allow 443/tcp
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# Reload firewall
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sudo ufw reload
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```
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### Testing
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```bash
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# Test HTTP endpoint
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curl http://localhost:8080
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# Test HTTPS endpoint (if enabled)
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curl -k https://localhost:443
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# Test HTTP/2 (requires HTTPS)
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curl --http2 -k https://localhost:443
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# Verify HTTP/2 negotiation
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openssl s_client -connect localhost:443 -alpn h2 < /dev/null 2>&1 | grep "ALPN protocol"
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```
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### WebSocket Usage
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Carbon includes full WebSocket support for real-time bidirectional communication.
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**JavaScript Client Example:**
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```javascript
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// Connect to WebSocket server
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const ws = new WebSocket('ws://localhost:8080');
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// Connection opened
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ws.addEventListener('open', (event) => {
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console.log('Connected to server');
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ws.send('Hello Server!');
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});
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// Listen for messages
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ws.addEventListener('message', (event) => {
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console.log('Message from server:', event.data);
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});
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// Handle errors
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ws.addEventListener('error', (error) => {
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console.error('WebSocket error:', error);
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});
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// Connection closed
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ws.addEventListener('close', (event) => {
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console.log('Disconnected from server');
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});
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```
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**Secure WebSocket (wss://):**
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```javascript
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const wss = new WebSocket('wss://your-domain.com');
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// Same API as above
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```
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**Testing with wscat:**
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```bash
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# Install wscat
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npm install -g wscat
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# Connect to WebSocket server
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wscat -c ws://localhost:8080
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# Connect to secure WebSocket
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wscat -c wss://localhost:443 --no-check
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# Type messages and press Enter to send
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# The server will echo them back
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```
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**Python Client Example:**
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```python
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import websocket
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def on_message(ws, message):
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print(f"Received: {message}")
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def on_open(ws):
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print("Connected")
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ws.send("Hello from Python!")
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ws = websocket.WebSocketApp("ws://localhost:8080",
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on_message=on_message,
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on_open=on_open)
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ws.run_forever()
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```
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### HTTP/2 Support
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Carbon includes full HTTP/2 support with automatic protocol negotiation via ALPN.
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**Features:**
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- ✅ HTTP/2 server push (stream multiplexing)
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- ✅ HPACK header compression
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- ✅ Binary framing protocol
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- ✅ Automatic fallback to HTTP/1.1
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- ✅ ALPN protocol negotiation
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- ✅ Server-side stream management
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**Configuration:**
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Enable HTTP/2 in `server.conf`:
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```ini
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use_https = true
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enable_http2 = true
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https_port = 443
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```
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**Testing HTTP/2:**
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```bash
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# Test with curl (verbose)
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curl -v --http2 -k https://localhost:443/
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# Check ALPN negotiation
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openssl s_client -connect localhost:443 -alpn h2 < /dev/null 2>&1 | grep "ALPN protocol"
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# Test with h2load (load testing)
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h2load -n 1000 -c 10 https://localhost:443/
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# Use the diagnostic script
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./check-http2.sh
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```
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**Browser Support:**
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All modern browsers support HTTP/2:
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- ✅ Chrome/Chromium 40+
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- ✅ Firefox 36+
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- ✅ Safari 9+
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- ✅ Edge (all versions)
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- ✅ Opera 27+
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Browsers automatically negotiate HTTP/2 when connecting to HTTPS sites that support it.
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**Performance Benefits:**
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HTTP/2 provides significant performance improvements:
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- **Multiplexing**: Multiple requests over a single connection
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- **Header Compression**: Reduced overhead with HPACK
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- **Server Push**: Proactive resource delivery
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- **Binary Protocol**: More efficient parsing
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- **Stream Prioritization**: Better resource loading
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## 📁 Project Structure
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```
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Carbon/
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├── src/
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│ ├── server.c # Main server implementation
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│ ├── server_config.c # Configuration management
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│ ├── server_config.h # Configuration headers
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│ ├── config_parser.c # Configuration file parser
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│ ├── websocket.c # WebSocket implementation
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│ ├── websocket.h # WebSocket headers
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│ ├── http2.c # HTTP/2 implementation
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│ └── http2.h # HTTP/2 headers
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├── Makefile # Build configuration
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├── server.conf # Server configuration file (Linux-style)
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├── README.md # This file
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├── LICENSE # MIT License
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├── certs/ # SSL certificates (create this)
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│ ├── cert.pem
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│ └── key.pem
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├── www/ # Web root directory
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│ ├── index.html
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│ └── websocket-test.html # WebSocket test client
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└── log/ # Log files
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└── server.log
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```
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## 🗺️ Roadmap
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| Feature | Priority | Status |
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|---------|----------|--------|
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| HTTP/2 Support | High | ✅ Implemented |
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| WebSocket Support | High | ✅ Implemented |
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| Secure WebSocket (wss://) | High | ✅ Implemented |
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| API Rate Limiting | High | ⚠️ Broken (WIP) |
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| Security Headers | High | ✅ Implemented |
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| Memory Leak Prevention | High | ✅ Implemented |
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| User Authentication | High | 📋 Planned |
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| Reverse Proxy Mode | Medium | 📋 Planned |
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| Load Balancing | Low | 📋 Planned |
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| Docker Support | Medium | 📋 Planned |
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| Comprehensive API Docs | Medium | <20> In Progress |
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## 🤝 Contributing
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Contributions are welcome! Here's how you can help:
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1. **Fork** the repository
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2. **Create** a feature branch (`git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature`)
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3. **Commit** your changes (`git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature'`)
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4. **Push** to the branch (`git push origin feature/AmazingFeature`)
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5. **Open** a Pull Request
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Please ensure your code:
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- Follows the existing code style
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- Includes appropriate comments
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- Passes all tests
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- Updates documentation as needed
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## 🔐 Security
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Carbon implements multiple security layers, but for production deployments:
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- ✅ **Use a reverse proxy** (Nginx, Apache) for additional security
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- ✅ **Obtain proper SSL certificates** from Let's Encrypt or another CA
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- ✅ **Keep dependencies updated** regularly
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- ✅ **Monitor server logs** for suspicious activity
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- ✅ **Conduct regular security audits**
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- ✅ **Implement firewall rules** to restrict access
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- ✅ **Use strong passwords** and authentication mechanisms
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**Reporting Security Issues**: Please report security vulnerabilities to the maintainers privately before public disclosure.
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## 📚 Documentation
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Detailed documentation on how to use carbon server - see the [Documentation](DOCUMENTATION.md) for more details.
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## 📄 License
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This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.
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## 🙏 Acknowledgments
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Carbon is built with these excellent open-source libraries:
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- [OpenSSL](https://www.openssl.org/) - SSL/TLS cryptography and ALPN support
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- [nghttp2](https://nghttp2.org/) - HTTP/2 protocol implementation
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- [libmagic](https://www.darwinsys.com/file/) - MIME type detection
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---
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<div align="center">
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**Made with ❤️ by [Azreyo](https://github.com/Azreyo)**
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⭐ Star this repository if you find it helpful!
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</div>
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