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web server responds to request made to it using Hypertext transfer Protocol (HTTP).
This Protocol is simple and allows the client to request documents from the server.
The HTTP protocol also allows client to provide information back to the server
for interactive operation. Because he web server uses this protocol, the actual
server daemon program is called httpd.
The basic sequence of operation performed
by the browser and server are as follows:
The browser opens a connection to
the server that is listed in the URL. This involves looking up the address of
the machine, based on its name, and using TCP/IP port 80 if node is specified.
The browser sends a GET request to the server with the path to the document that
it wants to retrive.The server translates the requested path into a path in its
local file system.The server evaluates the path to see whether any security or
othe restriction apply to the path.If the path includes a regular file, the server
returns the file to the client, indicating the file type as part of the response.
The file type is returned in MIME format as part of response header.After the
server finishes sending data to the client and after the client receives it, the
client and server terminates their conection.At this point the server actually
makes an entry in a log file about the request. <<back |