{"id":6971,"date":"2021-06-05T13:11:02","date_gmt":"2021-06-05T11:11:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tekmart.co.za\/t-blog\/?p=6971"},"modified":"2021-06-05T13:11:04","modified_gmt":"2021-06-05T11:11:04","slug":"what-is-a-server-an-updated-definition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tekmart.co.za\/t-blog\/what-is-a-server-an-updated-definition\/","title":{"rendered":"What is a Server? An updated definition"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time-approximately:<\/span> 6<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>\n

A\u00a0server is a computer\u00a0program\u00a0or device that provides a service to another computer program and its user, also known as the client. In a data center, the physical computer that a server program runs on is also frequently referred to as a server.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Brien<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Brien Posey<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That machine\u00a0might be a\u00a0dedicated server\u00a0or it might be used for other purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the\u00a0client\/server\u00a0programming model, a server program awaits and fulfills requests from\u00a0client\u00a0programs, which might be running\u00a0in the same or other computers. <\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A given application in a computer might function as a client with requests for services from other programs and as a server of requests from other programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How servers work<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The term\u00a0server<\/em>\u00a0can refer to a physical machine, a\u00a0virtual machine\u00a0or to software that is performing server services. The way that a server works varies considerably depending on how the word\u00a0server<\/em>\u00a0is being used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physical and virtual servers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A physical server is simply a computer that is used to run server software. The differences between a server and a desktop computer will be discussed in detail in the next section.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A virtual server is a virtual representation of a physical server. Like a physical server, a virtual server includes its own\u00a0operating system\u00a0and applications. These are kept separate from any other virtual servers that might be running on the physical server.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The process of creating virtual machines involves installing a lightweight software component called a\u00a0hypervisor\u00a0onto a physical server. The hypervisor’s job is to enable the physical server to function as a virtualization host. The virtualization host makes the physical server’s hardware resources — such as CPU time, memory, storage and network bandwidth — available to one or more virtual machines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An administrative console gives administrators the ability to allocate specific hardware resources to each virtual server. This helps to dramatically drive down hardware costs since a single physical server can run multiple virtual servers, as opposed to each workload needing its own physical server.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Server software<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a minimum, a server requires two software components: an operating system and an\u00a0application. The operating system acts as a platform for running the server application. It provides access to the underlying hardware resources and provides the dependency services that the application depends on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The operating system also provides the means for clients to communicate with the server application. The server’s IP address and fully qualified domain name, for example, are assigned at the operating system level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Desktop computers vs. servers<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There are both similarities and differences between desktop computers and servers. Most servers are based on X86\/X64 CPUs and can run the same code as an X86\/X64 desktop computer. Unlike most desktop computers, however, physical servers often include multiple CPU sockets and error correcting memory. Servers also generally support a far greater quantity of memory than most desktop computers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because server hardware typically runs\u00a0mission-critical\u00a0workloads, server hardware manufacturers design servers to support redundant components. A server might for instance be equipped with redundant power supplies and redundant network interfaces. These redundant components allow a server to continue to function even if a key component fails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Server hardware also differs from desktop hardware in terms of its form factor. Modern desktop computers often exist as mini towers, designed to be placed under a desk. Although there are still some vendors that offer tower servers, most servers are designed to be\u00a0rack mounted. These rack mount systems are described as having a 1U, 2U or 4U form factor, depending on how much rack space they occupy — a 2U server takes up twice as much rack space as a 1U server.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
A rack server is designed to fit into a standard-size metal frame.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Another key difference between a desktop computer and a server is the operating system. A desktop operating system might be able to perform some server-like functionality but isn’t designed or licensed to take the place of a server operating system.\u00a0Windows 10, for example, is a desktop operating system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some Windows 10 editions include Hyper-V, Microsoft’s virtual machine platform. Even though both Windows 10 and Windows Server can run Hyper-V, Windows 10’s hypervisor is intended to be primarily used for development purposes, whereas the version of Hyper-V included with Windows Server is designed for running production virtual servers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although an organization could conceivably run a virtual server on top of Windows 10 Hyper-V, there are licensing issues to consider. Additionally, Windows Server Hyper-V includes resiliency features that aren’t found in the Windows 10 version. For example, Windows Server supports failover clustering and virtual machine replication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, the Windows 10 operating system can make files available to devices on a local network. However, Windows 10 was never designed for large-scale file sharing. Windows Server, however, can be configured to act as a fully featured file server. In large organizations, a distributed file system can be created across an entire\u00a0server farm\u00a0for the purpose of providing better performance, scalability and resiliency than what one physical server would be able to provide by itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Types of servers<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Servers are often categorized in terms of their purpose. A few examples of the types of servers available are as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  • A\u00a0web server\u00a0is a computer program that serves requested\u00a0HTML\u00a0pages or files. In this case, a web\u00a0browser\u00a0acts as the client.<\/li>
  • An\u00a0application server\u00a0is a\u00a0program in a computer in a\u00a0distributed\u00a0network\u00a0that provides the business logic for an application program.<\/li>
  • A\u00a0proxy server\u00a0is software that acts as an intermediary between an\u00a0endpoint device, such as a computer, and another server from which a user or client is requesting a service.<\/li>
  • A mail server is an application that receives incoming emails from local users — people within the same\u00a0domain\u00a0— and remote senders and forwards outgoing emails for delivery.<\/li>
  • A\u00a0virtual server\u00a0is a\u00a0program running on a shared server that is configured in such a way that it seems to each user that they have complete control of a server.<\/li>
  • A\u00a0blade server\u00a0is a server chassis housing multiple thin, modular electronic circuit boards, known as\u00a0server blades. Each blade is a server in its own right, often dedicated to a single application.<\/li>
  • A\u00a0file server\u00a0is a computer responsible for the central storage and management of\u00a0data\u00a0files so that other computers on the same network can access them.<\/li>
  • A\u00a0policy server\u00a0is a security component of a\u00a0policy-based network that provides\u00a0authorization\u00a0services and facilitates tracking and control of files.\u00a0<\/li>
  • A database server is responsible for hosting one or more databases. Client applications perform database queries that retrieve data from or write data to the database that is hosted on the server.<\/li>
  • A print server provides users with access to one or more network-attached printers — or print devices as some server vendors call them. The print server acts as a\u00a0queue\u00a0for the print jobs that users submit. Some print servers can prioritize the jobs in the print queue based on the job type or on who submitted the print job.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
    \"data
    Figure out the use case to determine what server resources and features you’ll need.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Server components<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Hardware<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Servers are made up of several different components and subcomponents. At the hardware level, servers are typically made up of a rack mount\u00a0chassis\u00a0containing a power supply, a system board, one or more CPUs, memory, storage, a network interface and a power supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Most server hardware supports\u00a0out-of-band management\u00a0through a dedicated network port. Out-of-band management enables low-level management and monitoring of the server, independently of the operating system. Out-of-band management systems can be used to remotely power the server on or off, to install an operating system, and to perform health monitoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Operating systems<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Another component is the server operating system. A server operating system, such as Windows Server or\u00a0Linux, acts as the platform that enables applications to run. The operating system provides applications access to the hardware resources that they need and enables network connectivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The application is what enables the server to do its job. For example, a database server would run a database application. Likewise, an email server would need to run a mail application.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Choosing the right server\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    There are many factors to consider in the midst of a server selection, including virtual machine and\u00a0container\u00a0consolidation.\u00a0When choosing a server, evaluate the importance of certain features based on the use cases. Security capabilities\u00a0are also important and there will probably be a number of protection, detection and recovery features to consider, including native data\u00a0encryption\u00a0to protect data in flight and data at rest, as well as persistent event logging to provide an indelible record of all activity.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If the server will rely on internal storage, the choice of disk types and capacity is also important because it can have a significant influence on input\/output (I\/O) and resilience.\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Many organizations are shrinking the number of physical servers in their data centers as virtualization enables fewer servers to host more workloads.\u00a0The advent of\u00a0cloud computing\u00a0has also changed the number of servers an organization needs to host on premises.\u00a0Packing more capability into fewer boxes can reduce overall capital expenses, data center floor space and power and cooling demands. Hosting more workloads on fewer boxes, however, can also pose an increased risk to the business because more workloads will be affected if the server fails or\u00a0needs to be offline for routine maintenance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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