A web server is a software application that, running on a host computer, is capable of handling web page transfer requests to a client, such as a browser. Basically when a person logs into a web browser and types in a URL, the browser sends a request to the web server to get the resource linked to that URL. The server responds by returning the searched content or with an error message if it is no longer available (eg Error 404 – page not found).
In a nutshell, the task of a Web Server is to make it possible to view sites on the web.
The communication between the web server and the client takes place thanks to the HTTP transfer protocol (HyperText Transfer Protocol) which is based on the IP and TCP network protocols.
Request processing speed depends on hardware, host load and complexity of web content, for example, dynamic content requires more resources than static.
Web Server
It is estimated that over 80% of websites are run with open source web servers.
Obviously not all web servers have the same characteristics, some are ideal to meet certain needs, others are appreciated for their frequent updates or for their stability.
There are numerous free programs through which you can manage a web server, among the most used are: Apache HTTP server, NGINX, Apache Tomcat, Node.js and Lighttpd.
Apache HTTP Server
The open source Apache HTTP server simply called httpd or Apache, was first released in 1995 and is probably the most used web server in the world today.
Apache is natively used on Linux systems, however it works on almost any operating system and can be installed safely even on Windows or MacOs.
Recently some have complained that the Apache HTTP server has lost in speed compared to other web server software.
NGINX
NGINX has been developed since 2002 and is the second most used open source web server in the world.
This software, to be able to manage many simultaneous sessions, is based on an asynchronous event-driven architecture.
NGINX also offers a reverse proxy, which lightens the web server and makes it faster.
Apache Tomcat
Apache Tomcat is an open source web server, developed in Java language.
This type of software, released under the Apache version 2 license, is generally used to run Java applications, in any case by installing Coyote it can also be used as a normal web server.
Node.js
Node.js is a server-side JavaScript environment for network applications.
It is a server-side solution based on an asynchronous I / O model that operates on events. It is a model that is particularly suitable for programming in JavaScript, especially for web applications. Asynchronicity allows an optimization of time and resources as the path that leads to the result does not encounter blocks and dead times.
Lighttpd
Lighttpd was born as a solution for servers subjected to large workloads, in fact it stands out for its low memory and CPU usage, as well as for its speed. Thanks to the low hardware requirements it is able to manage a large data traffic even on low-performing systems. It also supports FastCGI, SCGI, Auth, URL rewriting and other functions.