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Asked: 2026-05-17T16:21:28+00:00

I have a Virtual Private server with Dreamhost. I’m trying to create a shared

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I have a Virtual Private server with Dreamhost. I’m trying to create a shared folder that all of my domains can access. In the folder I’d like to put PHP classes, and even static files like javascripts.

I’ve created a directory on the same level as my domain folders. I’d like to call a file via something like this… /home/username/shared/file.php. This isn’t working however, and I’m hoping some magic (like .htaccess maybe) will make this work.

EDIT: Oops, OK, I am able to include PHP files using the method above. How can I include static files like Javascript, CSS, images, etc from the same directory?

This works:

<?php include('/home/username/shared/file.php'); ?>

This doesn’t work:

<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/home/username/shared/reset.css" media="screen" />

Alternatively, I realize that I could just place my static files inside of a domain, and simply point to them, but I’d like to know how to make this other configuration work.

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  1. Editorial Team

    You should be happy that <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/home/username/shared/reset.css" media="screen" /> did not work. If it would, you would have a great security hole.

    The correct way is to make a symlibk to that shared directory in your document root, or using Aliases.

    The Symlink Method

    Run the following in a shell:

    ln -s /home/username/shared /home/target/

    It’ll create a symlink named /home/target/shared, pointing to /home/username/shared. You might need add a Options +FollowSymLinks directive to your server config (or a .htaccess file)

    The Alias Method

    This method requires a change in your server configuration (e.g. httpd.conf). Add an Alias directive to it:

    Alias /shared /home/username/target

    Note: this will only be used for requests through your server (e.g. http://example/shared/reset.css), and not for PHP files. Within PHP files, you have to use the full path (/home/username/shared/file.php)

    Which method you choose is up to you. The latter is easier to configure as you do not have to worry about permissions / ownership. The former could be used if you really need to use /home/target/shared/file.php.

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