THE 19 TYPES OF SERVERS AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS - TECHNOLOGY

The main types of servers are Mail, Web, Proxy, DNS, FTP, Char, Database, Telnet, SIP, Cluster, Dedicated, Shared, Cloud, Image, Audio / Video, and Groupware.

A server is basically a computer that is at the service of other machines that are known as clients or users. In computer language there are certain terms that have very specific meanings. That is the case of server or 'server', as it is also known by its name in English.

Its function is to attend and respond to requests made by other computers. It is precisely from their function that their name is derived, since they are at the service of others. These computers are capable of offering customers a wide variety of information, as well as a number of management programs.

Because they can receive simultaneous demands from thousands of users, servers are much more powerful machines than a common computer. These computers must have a greater memory capacity, both RAM and information storage. The servers must always remain on, as otherwise they would stop serving the other computers.

It is then based on the information required by the clients that the different types of servers were born. They demand information of all kinds such as electronic messages, text files, applications, audios, videos, images, programs and even database queries, among others.

Types of servers according to the service

Mail server

Source: RRZEicons

This type of server works as a virtual post office that is responsible for storing, sending, receiving and carrying out all operations related to email messages from clients.

These machines have programs that have a set of rules that are defined by the user. It is through this configuration that the way in which the mail server should react to a specific message is determined. Mail servers also have several types.

POP3: they are in charge of retaining the received emails until the account user checks their mail. At that moment, the messages are transferred to the computer.
SMTP: These are the ones in charge of managing outgoing email messages. Used in combination with a POP3 or IMAP server.
IMAP: this is the type of server that allows you to work with email messages without having to download them to your computer first. Thanks to this it is possible to preview the messages, as well as delete and organize them without downloading them.

Web server

Source: HenryNewman12

This server is mainly responsible for storing the HTML files of a web page. HTML documents include texts, images, videos, presentations, and all kinds of information. These files are in a special format that only customer browsers can view.

Communication through the Internet that occurs between the server and the browser follows rules called "HTTP protocol". Web servers also have several types. These are.

Apache: it is the most used type of web server in the world. It is a multiplatform system that has versions for the most important operating systems. It is open source and free to use. And also, it stands out for its performance, stability and security.
Microsoft IIS: This type of server only works with Windows systems. It offers SMTP, NNTP, FTP and HTTP / HTTPS services. Thus it is capable of turning a computer into a web server either for the Internet or for an intranet.
Sun Java System Web Server - This is also a distributed cross-platform server with open source licenses. It is available for all major operating systems and has support for PHP, JSP and Java Servlet, CGI, NSAPI, and ColdFusion technologies.
Ngnix: this type of server works on Windows and Unix operating systems. It is very light, stable and high performance. It is distributed under an open source BSD license.
Lighttp: like Ngnix, this web server is quite light and fast. It is specially designed to be used in environments where speed is very important. Therefore, it consumes little RAM. It is a multiplatform and free software.

Proxy server

Source: Marinanrtd2014

This is a server that acts as an intermediary between an Internet browser such as Explorer, Chrome or Firefox and the Internet. This means that the server that receives the order does not know who the client is that is requesting the information. It is on this connection between these two elements that it depends whether or not users can access the data.

DNS server

Source: Б.Өлзийдэлгэр

These servers are the ones in charge of managing the web domain names. Its job is to associate the domain names of the web pages with the IP address of the computer where the web page you are looking for is hosted.

When you type the name of a page in a browser, the computer sends this domain name to the DNS server, which belongs to the Internet provider, in order to return the result.

FTP server

Source: Mcolgin

FTP is the acronym for 'File Transfer Protocol', which stands for File Transfer Protocol. This type of server is used to transfer files between computers, that is, from one client to another.

The process occurs when client 1 sends a request to the FTP server and this sends a file to client 2 to be downloaded. For this, both clients must have installed a program called FTP.

FTP servers are used to upload information from web pages to web servers, such as files, images, videos, backup copies, among others.

Chat server

Source: Contributor es

This is the type of server that is dedicated to managing and maintaining the exchange of information between users in well-known chats.

One of the most popular chat servers is IRC (Internet Relay Chat). These are several separate server networks that allow real-time connection between users.

Database server

Source: Intel Free Press

These are computers that are prepared to offer storage services, host and manage databases that are used by one or more clients. These servers also perform tasks related to data analysis and manipulation, storage, among others.

Telnet server

Source: Sébastien Santoro aka Dereckson

Telnet (Telecommunication Network) is a network protocol that allows you to log into any computer remotely. The Telnet server's job is to allow this communication. In this case, access is given without any graphical interface and the main objective is to troubleshoot remotely.

SIP server

Source: Korolev Alexandr

This type of server, also known as SIP Proxy or Registrar, is in charge of establishing the connection of telephone calls over the Internet. It is the main component of an IP PBX, which handles the configuration of all SIP calls on the network.

SIP servers store the IP address that must be accessed to establish communication with a user. This is basically the goal of this type of server, since it does not transmit audio or video.

Cluster Servers

Source: Front view of Wikimedia servers knsq1-8 of the Amsterdam cluster knams. Author Dennis van Zuijlekom

Many times a single server is not enough to handle the demand of so many clients. That is why there are cluster servers, which are nothing more than a set of servers that are dedicated to the same task.

They are teams that specialize in storing information, so they have large capacities to store data. The goal of creating a server cluster is to avoid the loss of information due to problems with other servers.

Dedicated servers

Source: Rigozum2

These types of servers are used for web hosting. It consists of the rental of a complete server for the exclusive use of a company. In this way, you have complete control of the server to enjoy all the machine's resources.

The great advantage of these servers is that there is a greater amount of disk space, which allows more actions to be carried out within the configuration of the web page. Of course, dedicated servers are more expensive than shared ones.

Shared servers

Source: Hg6996

Unlike dedicated ones, shared servers are those in which several clients share the use of a server. It is usually the most used to host websites since its cost is more affordable than that of dedicated servers.

Cloud servers

Source: EgnyteHybridCloudSolution.jpg: JDC321derivative work: Jojalozzo

The function of this type of server is to rent a space for users to protect information. They are basically used to store large amounts of data and thus protect it from being outside the main computers of the company.

This type of server is used by many companies to protect their most valuable information, where they usually make backup copies.

Image Servers

Source: Jimbo Wales, Fredrik

With the increasingly widespread use of the Internet and the birth of new web pages, new types of servers have also been born. One of them has been that of images.

These teams specialize in allowing the hosting of large numbers of images without consuming web server resources. Thus, the storage of photographs is separated from the other data on the web.

Audio / video servers

Source: Wikimedia servers, by jimbo wales, dual-license gfdl, cc attribution-sharealike. From meta: Image: Wikimedia-servers-Sept04.jpg. Photo uploaded there by meta: User: Kate.

This is the type of server that is responsible for adding multimedia capabilities to websites. This means that it allows the transmission of multimedia content in the form of a continuous stream, that is, in streaming.

This is a continuous information delivery technique that has become popular in recent years. It is then thanks to these servers that users can see a video that is downloaded as it is viewed, without having to download it completely beforehand.

Groupware servers

Source: Isnelgg

It is a server that has been designed to allow collaborative work between several computers. The groupware servers have software that allows users to work together.

The great advantage in this case is that collaboration occurs via the Internet or corporate Intranet, which means that users can work with each other regardless of their location.

The files worked on and the data stored on this type of server can be altered and recovered by the members of the workgroup at any time.

Classification of servers according to their size

There are other servers that we can differ from the previous ones due to their size, these are:

Tower servers

Source: Trique303

These servers are stand-alone, vertical units that consist of all the traditional components of a server. That is, hard drive, processors, motherboard, network card, among others. Tower servers are the most basic on the market and are the most recommended for those looking for a first server.

They are very similar to a common computer in the sense of cost and space. And they are ideal for small businesses that have limited space, but still need to monitor the resources on their network.

They are also the best option for companies looking to reduce their vulnerability to intrusions and attacks that occur through a central location.

Rack Servers

Source: Source: Fleshas

This type of systems is based on a model that has expansion slots, known as mezzanine, which are used to add network interface cards, among other things. These components stack in the same way that a CD organizer stacks discs.

This is a configuration that uses space more efficiently. In addition, these servers increase the scalability of the infrastructure by allowing the addition of new servers as needed.

Rack servers are ideal for small businesses that already have experience in the world of servers. Or even for medium-sized companies that need to have more servers.

Blade Servers

Source: Freefly70

Blade servers are the most compact of the three systems, as they are organized in the form of small boxes and are projected in modules. This allows more servers to be accommodated in a small space. That is, multiple blade servers can be installed vertically in a single enclosure.

These types of servers have greater data processing and consume less power, since the different servers share both power and cooling. In this way, expenses are also reduced.

References

What is a server? And what are the types of web servers that exist / OK Hosting Consulted January 14, 2016.
What is a server and types of servers / Technology Area Consulted January 14, 2016.
What is DNS and DNS server / Technology Area Consulted January 15, 2016.
What does a Web Server like Apache do? / Digital Learning Accessed January 15, 2016.
What are Dedicated Servers? / Solingest Accessed January 15, 2016.
What is a server and what are the main types of servers / Learn to program Accessed January 15, 2016.
Server / Dell Commodity Buying Guide Accessed January 15, 2016.
How to choose a server for the company? / El Blog de Comstor México Consulted January 15, 2016.

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