HTTP servers use HTTP to communicate with client computers, usually through a browser. They serve web pages and can receive data from clients. The most popular HTTP server is Apache, which is open source and allows for dynamic web pages.
An HTTP server is a server that uses Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to communicate with client computers, usually through an Internet browser. HTTP is the main protocol used in websites and HTTP servers take up the majority of servers on the internet. Other types of servers are used for more specific uses, such as a file server that uses the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) instead of HTTP.
Using an HTTP server is most common when browsing the Internet to a website, although many internal networks also use HTTP servers. In the typical browsing process from a client computer, the Universal Resource Locator (URL) is entered into the address bar of a browser. It almost always starts with defining what protocol will be used to make the request, which is usually the HTTP protocol. Most browsers use this protocol by default, even when it’s not specifically entered in the address bar.
After a user enters a URL, the HTTP server receives the request to view the web page and sends the web page content to the client, usually in the form of Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) documents. The HTTP protocol is what is mostly used during this process. Occasionally in a secure connection, such as a credit card transaction, the server will use the HTTPS protocol, which is the encrypted version of HTTP. Most HTTP servers can use the HTTPS protocol by default.
Besides serving web pages, HTTP servers can also receive data from clients using HTTP. This is useful for situations where you need input from the HTTP server, such as filling out a form, taking a survey, or uploading a file. It can be even more problematic when the HTTP server is only on one network, such as in a corporate or school network, as they often have interactive web pages.
The most popular HTTP server on the Internet is the Apache HTTP server. Apache is considered open source software, which means that the primary source code that created it is free and can be modified and improved by users. Besides being free, it also has the advantage of using scripting. This means that separate scripts can be run from the main server software, which allows a web page to be dynamic and to change content quickly without affecting the overall web page performance. As of early 2011, Apache HTTP servers they were used in about 60% of all servers on the internet.
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