fix: remove Apache 2.2 compatibility blocks from htaccess files

[lbajsarowicz]

Description

Remove <IfVersion> dual-syntax blocks that maintain Apache 2.2 compatibility from all .htaccess files, keeping only the Apache 2.4+ Require directives.

Problem

Every .htaccess file that restricts access uses a dual-syntax pattern:

<IfVersion < 2.4>
    order allow,deny
    deny from all
</IfVersion>
<IfVersion >= 2.4>
    Require all denied
</IfVersion>

Apache 2.2 reached end-of-life in July 2017 — nearly 9 years ago. All major Linux distributions have shipped Apache 2.4+ for years. The <IfVersion> wrappers add visual noise and maintenance burden across 29 files without protecting any supported deployment.

Solution

Replace all dual-syntax <IfVersion> blocks with the plain Apache 2.4+ equivalent:

Require all denied

Files Changed

• .htaccess.sample (18 <Files> blocks simplified)
• pub/.htaccess (4 <Files> blocks simplified)
• setup/.htaccess (1 <Files> block simplified, comment updated)
• dev/tests/acceptance/.htaccess.sample (1 <FilesMatch> block simplified)
• pub/media/theme_customization/.htaccess (1 <Files> block simplified)
• 17 simple deny-all files: generated/, var/, pub/media/customer/, pub/media/downloadable/, pub/media/import/, pub/media/custom_options/, pub/media/customer_address/, vendor/, phpserver/, lib/, dev/, bin/, app/, .github/, setup/config/, setup/src/, setup/view/, setup/performance-toolkit/
• 6 test fixture .htaccess files under dev/tests/integration/

⭐ Support my work

Do you like the fix? Remember to react with "👍🏻" to get it merged faster,
Then Sponsor me on Github so I can spend more time on fixing issues like this one.

Learn more at https://github.com/sponsors/lbajsarowicz

[m2-assistant]

Hi @lbajsarowicz. Thank you for your contribution!
Here are some useful tips on how you can test your changes using Magento test environment.
❗ Automated tests can be triggered manually with an appropriate comment:

• @magento run all tests - run or re-run all required tests against the PR changes
• @magento run <test-build(s)> - run or re-run specific test build(s)
  For example: @magento run Unit Tests

<test-build(s)> is a comma-separated list of build names.

Allowed build names are:

1. Database Compare
2. Functional Tests CE
3. Functional Tests EE
4. Functional Tests B2B
5. Integration Tests
6. Magento Health Index
7. Sample Data Tests CE
8. Sample Data Tests EE
9. Sample Data Tests B2B
10. Static Tests
11. Unit Tests
12. WebAPI Tests
13. Semantic Version Checker

You can find more information about the builds here
ℹ️ Run only required test builds during development. Run all test builds before sending your pull request for review.

---

For more details, review the Code Contributions documentation.
Join Magento Community Engineering Slack and ask your questions in #github channel.