Technologies for Website Building (Cont.)
Web Server Software
The term web server can refer to either the hardware (the physical computer) or the software (the computer application) that helps deliver your website to the end users.
If we are referring to the software on the server that makes your website work, the web server is the layer between the operating system and the rest of the cake.
Two web servers that dominate the landscape of the Internet:
Operating Systems
For a vast majority of websites there are two underlying operating systems: Linux and Microsoft Windows.
Linux is inherently open source (free) and Windows Server requires a license for purchase.
| Operating System |
Versions |
| Linux |
Ubuntu, Red Hat, CentOs, SUSE, Debian, Fedora |
| Microsoft Windows |
|
Web Stack
A stack is a combination of technologies or components needed to deliver a fully functioning website.
Most websites fall into two categories: LAMP (Linux-based) or WISA (Windows-based).
Both are very popular choices and you can’t go wrong with either setup.
Most web developers are split between these two camps and build websites under Linux or Windows.
|
Operating System |
Web Server Software |
Database Engine |
Programming Language |
| LAMP (Linux-based) |
Linux |
Apache |
MySQL |
PHP |
| WISA (Windows-based) |
Windows |
IIS |
SQL Server |
ASP.NET |