This directive is used to control how Apache httpd finds the interpreter used to run CGI scripts. The default setting is Script . This causes Apache httpd to use the interpreter pointed to by the shebang line (first line, starting with #! ) in the script. On Win32 systems this line usually looks like:

#!C:/Perl/bin/perl.exe

or, if perl is in the PATH , simply:

#!perl

Setting ScriptInterpreterSource Registry will cause the Windows Registry tree HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT to be searched using the script file extension (e.g., .pl ) as a search key. The command defined by the registry subkey Shell\ExecCGI\Command or, if it does not exist, by the subkey Shell\Open\Command is used to open the script file. If the registry keys cannot be found, Apache httpd falls back to the behavior of the Script option.

The option Registry-Strict which is new in Apache HTTP Server 2.0 does the same thing as Registry but uses only the subkey Shell\ExecCGI\Command . The ExecCGI key is not a common one. It must be configured manually in the windows registry and hence prevents accidental program calls on your system.