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What is a server? Correspondingly what makes a
computer a server?
A server is nothing more than a computer. It has a hard drive, a cpu, memory
and all of the things you will generally find in a home computer. Your home
computer can be a server if you want it to be. A server by definition is
just a computer which serves other computers. A web hosting server is
nothing more than a computer which serves web pages to the computers
requesting them; i.e., to the person running the internet browser. So while
in the generalist sense every computer can be a server; correspondingly what
makes a computer a good server?
A web hosting server is a server set up to perform web hosting tasks quickly
and efficiently. A web hosting server does not need pretty graphics because
typically it runs by itself without input from a person. It is essentially
(after you set it up) fully automated. And unless it is necessary, it
doesn’t have a monitor. (Of course like all things it needs maintenance from
a qualified professional from time to time to ensure it is running
efficiently).
A good web hosting server does have a few characteristics that make it
different from a normal home computer. One of the characteristics is
redundancy. Typically, a server has multiple hard drives which store the
data. With a multiple hard drive system data is saved on more than one hard
drive so in the event of a hard drive failure the redundant drive takes over
exactly where the first hard drive failed. This process is known as RAID.
Another redundancy you will find is that some servers will also have
multiple network access cards (for faster input and output) and two power
sources. The name of the game with servers is *reliability*.
Aiming for reliability with a server typically means that the latest and
greatest is not necessary the best for a web hosting server. Web hosting
servers typically wait until *all* the bugs are out of the hardware and
software because they want their clients’ websites up at all times. (Of
course servers should always have the latest and greatest security patches.)
With these characteristics in mind sometimes it shocks the average person
that most servers run lower end cpus. At the time of this writing the 3.0
Ghz chips are entering the market but you will find a lot of web sites
hosted on Pentium III cpus. And quite frequently Celeron chips are used
which range from 1.0 Ghz to 1.7 Ghz. The reason for this is two-fold: these
chips generate less heat which is important to keep heat down in a server
and web hosting does not generally demand much cpu processing. RAM (the
computer’s main memory) is actually more important at times than the cpu.
Typically a server should have 512 MB to 2 GB of memory, with 1 GB being a
sweet spot for processing. But the question always arises—if a Pentium III
does a very good job at web processing won’t a Xeon cpu or dual AMDs do
better? Maybe—it really depends on what is on the server. If you have just
web sites and they don’t use much scripting programs (PHP or Perl or CGI) or
don’t have huge shopping sites like Amazon.com on them, a lower end cpu is
going to perform pretty good. Of course the dual AMDs and Xeon are going to
outperform the Pentium III but not as much as you are going to pay for the
premium in pricing for the cpus and the additional requirements brought on
by the increased heat (more fans, bigger cases, etc).
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