# Finding Help

If after you have gone through all the available documentation you still cannot work out how to do something or can’t resolve a problem you are having, use the mod_wsgi mailing list to post your question. The mailing list is hosted by Google Groups at:

- http://groups.google.com/group/modwsgi

You do not need to have a Google email account as Google Groups allows you to register external email addresses as well.

Please use the mailing list in preference to raising a ticket in the issue tracker, unless you are somewhat certain that the problem is a bug in mod_wsgi and not just some environment issue related to your application, any third party packages being used or the operating system. It is much easier to have a discussion on the mailing list than the issue tracker.

The mailing list also has many people participating, or at least reading, so you have people with a broad experience with many third party Python web packages and operating systems who may be able to help.

If the problem is potentially more an issue with a third party package or the operating system rather than mod_wsgi, you might also consider asking on any mailing list related to the third party package instead.

A further option is to ask your question on StackOverflow, if a programming question, or ServerFault, if an administration issue. These sites allow a broad range of questions about many topics with quite a large user base of sometimes knowledgeable people.

A final option you might try is any IRC channels related to any third party package or the more general #wsgi.

Do be aware though that the only forum that is guaranteed to be monitored is the mod_wsgi mailing list. Questions are not gauranteed to be answered on sites such as StackOverflow and ServerFault, on IRC, or mailing lists for other packages. So, it is much preferable to use the mod_wsgi mailing list if you want an informed answer for a mod_wsgi specific question.

As a general rule, if you have never participated in public forums previously to seek answers to technical questions, including about Open Source software, it is highly recommended you have a read of.

- http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

This will help you to ensure you have exhausted all possibilities as to where to find information and try and solve the problem yourself, as well as assist you in framing your question the best way so as to get the best response possible.

Remember that people on the mailing list are volunteering their time to help and don’t get paid for answering questions. Thus, it is in your interest not to annoy them too much.

No matter which forum you use, when asking questions, it is always helpful to detail the following:

1. Which version of mod_wsgi you are using and if using a packaged distribution, who provided the distribution.

   If you are not using the latest version, then upgrade first and verify the problem still occurs with the latest version.

2. Which version of Python you are using and if using a packaged distribution, who provided the distribution.

3. Which version of Apache you are using and if using a packaged distribution, who provided the distribution.

   If not using latest version of Apache available, then consider upgrading and trying again. If at all possible, avoid using Apache 2.0 or 2.2. You definitely shouldn’t still be using Apache 1.3

4. What operating system you are using.

5. Details on any third party packages being used and what versions of those packages.

6. The mod_wsgi configuration you are using from Apache configuration files.

   In particular you should indicate whether you are using mod_wsgi embedded mode or daemon mode. Also can be helpful to indicate what MPM Apache has been compiled for and whether mod_php or mod_python are being loaded into the same Apache instance.

7. Relevant error messages from the Apache error logs.

   Specifically, don’t just quote the single line you think shows the error message. Instead, also show the lines before and after that point. These other lines from the error logs may show supplemental error messages from Apache or mod_wsgi or provide Python traceback information.