Web Server vs. Web Browser

Web server and web browser are the terms which are commonly used for website. The basic purpose of both is to develop a platform for internet web directory. So that any users can anytime access any kind of website. Major difference between them is on their function and how they perform their functions. Check for the detail of both topics before understanding the differences between them.

What is Web Server?

Web server is a computer system, which provides the web pages via HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol). IP address and a domain name is essential for every web server. Whenever, you insert a URL or web address into your web browser, this sends request to the web address where domain name of your URL is already saved. Then this server collects the all information of your web page and sends to browser, which you see in form of web page on your browser. Making a web server is not a difficult job. You can convert your computer into a web server with the help of any server software and connecting the computer to the internet. Lot of web server software are available in the market in shape of NCSA, Apache, Microsoft and Netscape. Storing, processing and delivering web pages to clients is its main function. All the communication between client (web browser) and server takes place via HTTP. The main aim of a web server is to work is a medium for storing, processing and granting access to web pages to the users to clients of the internet. As it is already mentioned, HTTP that is a system for collaboration, distribution and hypermedia information system is used for the channel of communication between server and client. HTTP then delivers the pages in the format of HTML documents that comprises the information in the shape of scripts, style sheets, videos and images in addition to simple text-based content. The process of getting the desired information start by the web browser that sends the request for the specific page using the HTTP and then the web server respond to that request by either providing the requested content or giving the error message. Web server is designed for the purpose of providing information, however, it also receive the data from the clients as well. Uploading of files or data, submitting web forms, etc. are the common examples of giving content to the web server. The four highlighted features of web server are virtual hosting, large file support even greater than 2GB, bandwidth throttling, and server-side scripting to generate the dynamic web pages. The web server can handle the limited load normally from two to 80,000 connections at once. This is not common or everyone as by default most of the web server supports the load from 500 to 1000 connections for a single IP address.

What is Web Browser?

Web browser is a client, program, software or tool through which we sent HTTP request to web server. The main purpose of web browser is to locate the content on the World Wide Web and display in the shape of web page, image, audio or video form. You can call it a client server because it contacts the web server for desired information. If the requested data is available in the web server data then it will send back the requested information again via web browser. Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, Opera and Google Chrome are examples of web browser and they are more advanced than earlier web browser because they are capable to understand the HTML, JavaScript, AJAX, etc. Now a days, web browser for mobiles are also available, which are called microbrowser. The web browser is used as a medium for accessing information from any web server in files in a file system or in private networks. The process of getting the information from the web server starts by the web browser. The modern day web browser supports the display in almost all digital media formats like images, scripts, videos, images, and text. The main aim of the web browser is to send the request to the web server for any specific data and present them in any digital media format. However, the features of the web browser can vary from one to another. Most of the latest web browser support the various other functions in the shape of email, internet relay chat, Usenet news, etc. Almost all leading web browser support for the opening of multiple tabs at once. In order to provide the support for the private and secure web browsing, most of the web browsers have introduced the option for private web browsing. The default features of web browsers can also be extended by way of installing extensions, plugins or add-ons to get the additional features. The main components of any web browser are the user interface, UI backend, layout & rendering engine, and networking & data persistence component.

Key Differences between Web Server and Web Browser

1. Web server is essential to store all information and data of websites. While web browser are used to access and locate these information and data.
2. Web browser is used to search something on the internet via websites. While web server is used to make the links between websites and web browser.
3. Web browser is a software or application which is used for collection and presentation of data in shape of websites while web server is a program server on computer or in cloud on internet that gives the data.
4. The communication is started by the web browser that requests for the specific page using the HTTP and then the web server respond against that request by either providing the requested content or giving the error message.
5. The reasons behind web browser overload or crashes are memory leaks, complex CSS, browser bug, redundant web data, add-ins, cache, and low system configuration. The causes of overload in web server are computer worms, XSS viruses, internet bots, excess legitimate web traffic, and slow network.
6. Web server slows down or crash the web browser in the shape of redundant web data while web browser many cause the overload on the web server in the shape of computer worms and XSS viruses.
7. The web server can handle the limited load normally from two to 80,000 connections at once. This is not common or everyone as by default most of the web server supports the load from 500 to 1000 connections for a single IP address. The load on web browser depends upon the internet connection. It will support the opening of for tabs in case of faster internet connection and minimum browser crashes.
8. The main components of web server are server core, server core 64-bit binaries, sample applications, administration command line interface, etc. The components of web browser are a user interface, UI backend, layout & rendering engine, and networking & data persistence component.
9. Extending the features and functions of web server are more complex as compared to a web browser that requires the simple installation of plugins and add-ons.
10. Examples of web server are Apache, ISS, nginx, GWS, etc. Examples of web browser are Firefox, Opera, Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer, etc.
11. Web server is the source of providing information stored in internet database while the web browser is the channel to access that information.
12. Installing web browser is very simple as compared to the web server that requires setup cost and difficult as well.
13. The web browser is installed on the users’ computer while the web server is a program installed on a server computer.
14. The purpose of a web browser is to search over the internet while web server has various other functions like a server for computing, application server, etc.
15. The main highlighted features of web server are virtual hosting, large file support even greater than 2GB, bandwidth throttling, and server-side scripting to generate the dynamic web pages. The main highlighted features of web browser are a user interface, privacy & security, standards supports and extensibility.

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