One of the most common terms in the web world is web server. Web server is computer software whose main task is to provide the requested information and services in the form of web pages to users. Web services therefore send the requested information as an HTML file along with any other type of data such as image, text, CSS files as well as JavaScript to the user’s browser.
In other words, web servers are computer software that receive user requests through browsers under the HTTP protocol and after processing, return their responses to them. Simply put, these are web servers that provide web pages to users.
How do web servers work?
To better understand how web servers work, you need to know where your request is going. Therefore, you must first understand the mechanism that is for exchanging information between a web browser and a server. Your request is for to the site domain to receive information about the site’s home page. After this step, your request will go to the DNS server to receive the IP of the site server.
Because each site has a unique IP through which you can access the site server. At this point, your request reaches the server and is in the web server. Finally, the answer to your request will be go to your browser in the form of HTML pages along with other information under the HTTP protocol. Thus, a web server can be a messenger that is responsible for exchanging information between a website and users.
Identify the most used web servers
Web servers offer many different services to users. Due to different services and user needs, different web servers have been developed, each offering specific services. Knowing these web servers helps users to choose the right web server according to their needs. Because the wrong choice of web server can have different consequences for the administrators of servers and sites. Some of the most widely used web servers are:
- Apache
- Lightspeed
- Nginx
- Microsoft IIS
- Lighttpd
- And…
Features of web servers
In order to meet the needs of users, some tools and required items have been installed in web servers by default. Web servers support a variety of programming languages. Because web servers have similar tasks, they also have many features in common, including:
- Manage static and dynamic concepts with support for programming languages such as PHP, Ruby, ASP, etc.
- Support HTTPS protocol for secure communication
- Control requests and responses to manage bandwidth
- Content compression
- And….
Conclusion
Due to the wide range of services offered on the web, many web servers have been developed so far. Each of these web servers has its advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, to choose a web server that fits your goals, consider various factors such as support for programming languages, security, as well as how optimized it is.