2.3 Web Servers

• Presentation independence - application is independent of the display device used

  • Today, this is via http and html
  • In the past, it was via a display controller or middle-tier minicomputer whose presentation functions insulated the rest of the back-end system from different device types

• Web server performs presentation functions:

• Gathering input
• Validating input

• DB caching
• Authentication

• They also do some basic request routing

• Constructing requests

• Invoking applications

• Examples - IIS (MS), Apache, Netscape Server

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