In the midst of all the digital transformation that we are constantly experiencing worldwide, you have probably heard of the term web server. Then you may be wondering what it is and what it is used for.
It is normal for a person who is not immersed in the digital world, especially web programming, to not know what it is or to have overlooked it. But don't worry, in this article we will clear up all your doubts.
Contents hide
1 What is a web server?
2 What is a web server used for?
2.1 What are other uses of the web server?
3 How do web servers work?
3.1 What is the step by step of how a web server works?
4 What is the importance of understanding how web servers work?
5 What are some examples of web server uses?
6 What is the difference between dynamic and static web servers?
7 What are hardware servers?
8 What are software servers?
8.1 What are some web server software on the market?
8.1.1 Apache HTTP Server
8.1.2 IIS (Internet Information Services) Server
8.1.3 Lighttpd Server
8.1.4 Sun Java System Web Server
8.1.5 Jigsaw Server
9 What are the security practices of a web server?
10 How to choose a web server platform?
11 How to optimize your web server?
11.1 Web Server Content Caching
11.2 Web Server Configuration
What is a web server?
A web server is software and hardware that stores and delivers website content, such as text, images, videos, and application data, to people who request it.
Web server hardware is connected to the Internet and allows data to be exchanged with other connected devices, while web server software controls how a user accesses hosted files.
Thus web servers are used in web hosting or data hosting for websites and web-based applications, or web apps.
What is a web server used for?
Its main function is to deliver content every time a user makes a request in their browser. This means that it allows users to view the content they want without much effort.
A web server communicates with a web browser using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol, also called HTTP.
In addition to HTTP, web servers also support SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) and FTP (File Transfer Protocol), which are used for email, file transfer, and storage.
On the other hand, it must be taken into account that the content can be static or dynamic and depending on this it can be found in HTML or Java language, among others.
If the content is static, text or images will be displayed, while dynamic content refers to a list of items for sale as part of a catalog for example.
What are other uses of the web server?
A web server can also cache content to speed up the delivery of requested content. This process is also known as web acceleration. Similarly, a web server can host a single website or multiple websites using the same software and hardware resources, which is known as virtual hosting.
Web servers may also limit the response rate to different clients to prevent a single client from dominating resources that are best used to satisfy the requests of a large number of clients.
While web servers typically host websites that are accessible on the argentina mobile phone numbers database Internet, they can also be used to communicate between web clients and servers on local area networks, such as a company's intranet.
A web server can even be embedded in a device such as a digital camera so that users can communicate with the device through any commonly available web browser.
First, the web server software is accessed through the domain names of the websites, as this ensures that the content of the site is delivered to the requesting user.
The software side also consists of several components, with at least one HTTP server taking into account that the HTTP server can understand HTTP and URLs.
As hardware, a web server is a computer that stores web server software and other files related to a website, such as HTML documents, images, and JavaScript files.
When a web browser, such as Google Chrome or Safari, needs a file hosted on a web server, the browser will request the file over HTTP. So when the web server receives the request, the HTTP server will accept the request, fetch the content, and send it back to the browser over HTTP.
What is the step by step of how a web server works?
When a browser requests a page from a web server, the process will follow a series of steps.
First, a person will enter a URL into the address bar of a web browser. The web browser will obtain the IP address of the domain name, either by translating the URL through DNS (Domain Name System) or by looking in its cache.
This will take the browser to a web server. The browser will then request the specific file from the web server using an HTTP request.
The web server will respond by sending the requested page to the browser, again, via HTTP. If the requested page does not exist or if something goes wrong, the web server will respond with an error message. The browser will then be able to display the web page.
Multiple domains can also be hosted on one web server.
What is the importance of understanding how web servers work?
If you have your own website, understanding web servers is crucial as any failure is going to directly affect the traffic on your website . This knowledge will help you better understand how your site's data is delivered to your site visitors and even help you choose the right web hosting company to store all of your site's data.
Web servers are programs that can deliver the same, or different, files to hundreds of site visitors at any given time.
They are also part of a larger network of programs that help you send email, download File Transfer Protocol (FTP) files, and create and publish web pages like yours.
What are some examples of web server uses?
Web servers are often part of a larger package of Internet and intranet-related programs used to:
Send and receive emails.
Receive File Transfer Protocol file requests.
Build and publish web pages.
What is the difference between dynamic and static web servers?
A web server can be used to serve static or dynamic content. Static refers to content that is displayed as is, while dynamic content can be updated and changed.