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Dated: Aug. 13, 2004

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By Najmi

A Server is a computer or device on a network that manages network resources. For example, a file server is a computer and storage device dedicated to storing files Any user on the network can store files on the server. A print server is a computer that manages one or more printers and a network server is a computer that manages network traffic.

Servers are often dedicated, meaning that they perform no other tasks besides their server tasks. On multiprocessing operating systems however, a single computer can execute several programs at once. A server in this case could refer to the program that is managing resources rather than the entire computer.

What is Server Platform?

A term often used synonymously with operating system. A platform is the underlying hardware or software for a system and is thus the engine that drives the server.

Server types

Application Servers

Sometimes referred to as a type of middleware, application servers occupy a large chunk of computing territory between database servers and the end user, and they often connect the two.

Middleware is a software that connects two otherwise separate applications. For example, there are a number of middleware products that link a database system to a Web server This allows users to request data from the database using forms displayed on a Web browser and it enables the Web server to return dynamic Web pages based on the user's requests and profile.

The term middleware is used to describe separate products that serve as the glue between two applications. It is, therefore, distinct from import and export features that may be built into one of the applications. Middleware is sometimes called plumbing because it connects two sides of an application and passes data between them. Common middleware categories include:

* TP monitors
* DCE environments
* RPC systems
* Object Request Brokers (ORBs)
* Database access systems
* Message Passing

Audio/Video Servers

Audio/Video servers bring multimedia capabilities to Web sites by enabling them to broadcast streaming multimedia content. Streaming is a technique for transferring data such that it can be processed as a steady and continuous stream. Streaming technologies are becoming increasingly important with the growth of the Internet because most users do not have fast enough access to download large multimedia files quickly. With streaming, the client browser or plug-in can starts displaying the data before the entire file has been transmitted.

For streaming to work, the client side receiving the data must be able to collect the data and send it as a steady stream to the application that is processing the data and converting it to sound or pictures. This means that if the streaming client receives the data more quickly than required, it needs to save the excess data in a buffer If the data doesn't come quickly enough, however, the presentation of the data will not be smooth.

There are a number of competing streaming technologies emerging. For audio data on the Internet, the de facto standard is Progressive Network's RealAudio.

Chat Servers

Chat servers enable a large number of users to exchange information in an environment similar to Internet newsgroups that offer real-time discussion capabilities. Real time means occurring immediately. The term is used to describe a number of different computer features. For example, real-time operating systems are systems that respond to input > immediately. They are used for such tasks as navigation, in which the computer must react to a steady flow of new information without interruption. Most general-purpose operating systems are not real-time because they can take a few seconds, or even minutes, to react.

Real time can also refer to events simulated by a computer at the same speed that they would occur in real life. In graphics animation, for example, a real-time program would display objects moving across the screen at the same speed that they would actually move.

Fax Servers

A fax server is an ideal solution for organizations looking to reduce incoming and outgoing telephone resources but that need to fax actual documents.

FTP Servers

One of the oldest of the Internet services, File Transfer Protocol makes it possible to move one or more files securely between computers while providing file security and organization as well as transfer control.

Groupware Servers

A GroupWare server is software designed to enable users to collaborate, regardless of location, via the Internet or a corporate Intranet and to work together in a virtual atmosphere.

IRC Servers

An option for those seeking real-time capabilities, Internet Relay Chat consists of various separate networks (or "nets") of servers that allow users to connect to each other via an IRC network.

List Servers

List servers offer a way to better manage mailing lists, whether they are interactive discussions open to the public or one-way lists that deliver announcements, newsletters, or advertising.

Mail Servers

Almost as ubiquitous and crucial as Web servers, mail servers move and store mail over corporate networks via LANs and WANs and across the Internet.

News Servers

News servers act as a distribution and delivery source for the thousands of public news groups currently accessible over the USENET news network. USENET is a worldwide bulletin board system that can be accessed through the Internet or through many online services The USENET contains more than 14,000 forums called newsgroups that cover every imaginable interest group. It is used daily by millions of people around the world.

Proxy Servers

Proxy servers sit between a client program typically a Web browser and an external server (typically another server on the Web) to filter requests, improve performance, and share connections.

Telnet Servers

A Telnet server enables users to log on to a host computer and perform tasks as if they're working on the remote computer itself.

Web Servers

At its core, a Web server serves static content to a Web browser by loading a file from a disk and serving it across the network to a user's Web browser. The browser and server talking to each other using HTTP mediate this entire exchange.

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