A web server is a computer that handles the requests from a web browser to display Web pages on the user’s computer. A web host is a company that provides space on its servers for websites and other digital content.
What is a web server?
A web server is a computer system that stores and delivers web pages. When you type in a web address, your browser sends a request to the server for the page you want to view. The server then fetches the requested page from its storage and sends it back to your browser.
Web servers can be either dedicated computers or they can be software programs running on general-purpose computers. A typical web server has four main components:
1) Hardware: The physical machine that houses the web server software and stores website files.
2) Server Software: The program that handles requests for website content and delivers it to browsers. Common examples include Apache HTTP Server, Microsoft IIS, and Nginx.
3) Website Files: The HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, and other files that make up a website.
4) Database (optional): A database system such as MySQL or MongoDB can be used to store website data such as user information or blog posts.
What is a web host?
A web host is a company that provides space on a server it owns or leases for use by its clients as well as providing Internet connectivity, typically in a data center. Web hosts can also provide data center space and connectivity to the Internet for other servers located in their data center, called colocation.
The Difference Between a Web Server and a Web Host
A web server is a computer that stores websites and serves them to users upon request. A web host is a company that owns or leases web servers and makes them available to customers.
The primary difference between a web server and a web host is who owns or leases the server. A web server can be owned or leased by an individual, a corporation, or a hosting company. A web host is always a company that owns or leases servers and makes them available to customers.
When you buy hosting from a web hosting company, you are actually leasing space on their servers. The hosting company manages the servers, and you pay for the use of those servers in order to host your website.
Why Do You Need Both of These?
You may be wondering why you need both a web server and a web host. After all, can’t one just do the job of the other? Well, technically yes – but there are some very good reasons why you need both.
A web server is physical hardware that stores your website’s files and serves them up to visitors. A web host is a company that provides the technology and services needed to get your website onto the internet.
So why do you need both? Well, unless you’re a big company with your own in-house IT department, chances are you’re going to need to rent space on a web server from a web hosting company. And even if you do have your own servers, you’re still going to need a reliable way to get your site onto the internet – which is where web hosting comes in.
