Web Server

 A web server is a system that stores and

delivers the content for a website (such as text,
images, video, and application data) and
respond to client requests made over the World
Wide Web (WWW).
 A web server communicates with a web
browser using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol
(HTTP).
 The content of most web pages is encoded in
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).
 Web Server
 It is accessed through the domain names
of websites and ensures the delivery of the
site's content to the requesting user.
 The Web server process is an example of
the client/server model. Leading Web
servers include Apache, Microsoft's
Internet Information Server (IIS).
 The most common type of client is a web
browser program.
HTTP overview

HTTP: hypertext transfer

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Domain Name System (DNS)
 A DNS server is a computer server that contains
a database of public IP addresses and their
associated hostnames.
 It is used to that translates human-friendly
domain names, such as pugc.edu.pk into
machine-readable IP addresses, such as
173.194.32.195
 The DNS is a distributed system arranged in a
hierarchy, made up of lots of DNS servers.
Domain Name System (DNS)
 A DNS server is a computer server that contains a database
of public IP addresses and their associated hostnames.
 It is used to that translates human-friendly domain names,
such as google.com into machine-readable IP addresses,
such as 173.194.32.195
 The DNS is a distributed system arranged in a hierarchy,
made up of lots of DNS servers.
 During a domain name resolution query, DNS records are
searched, and if found, the domain name record is returned.
If the domain name is not registered or added to that DNS
server, the query is then passed to other DNS servers until
the domain name record is found.
How DNS Resolves Query
 In a typical DNS query without any caching, there are
four servers that work together to deliver an IP address
to the client: recursive resolvers, root nameservers, TLD
nameservers, and authoritative nameservers.
 The DNS recursive (also referred to as the DNS
resolver) is a server that receives the query from the
DNS client, and then interacts with other DNS servers to
hunt down the correct IP.
 Once the resolver receives the request from the client,
the resolver then actually behaves as a client itself,
querying the other three types of DNS servers in search
of the right IP.
How DNS Resolves Query
 First the resolver queries the root nameserver.
The root server is the first step in translating
(resolving) human-readable domain names into
IP addresses.
 The root server then responds to the resolver
with the address of a Top Level Domain (TLD)
DNS server (such as .com or .net) that stores
the information for its domains.
How DNS Resolves Query
 Next the resolver queries the TLD server. The TLD
server responds with the IP address of the domain’s
authoritative nameserver. The recursor then queries
the authoritative nameserver, which will respond with
the IP address of the origin server.
 The resolver will finally pass the origin server IP
address back to the client. Using this IP address, the
client can then initiate a query directly to the origin
server, and the origin server will respond by sending
website data that can be interpreted and displayed
by the web browser.
Root Servers
 There are 13 important DNS root servers on the
internet that store a complete database of
domain names and their associated public IP
addresses. These top-tier DNS servers are
named A through M for the first 13 letters of the
alphabet.
 Ten of these servers are in the US, one in
London, one in Stockholm, and one in Japan.
 The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA)
keeps this list of DNS root servers.
Checking DNS Records on Windows

 To check a specific DNS Record, we need

to specify the “Nslookup” command
 Launch Windows Command Prompt by
navigating to Start > Command Prompt or
via Run > CMD.
 Type NSLOOKUP and hit Enter. The
default Server is set to your local DNS, the
Address will be your local IP.
 The first two lines of output specify the server to
which the request was directed. This server is
the default server that your system uses for DNS
name resolution.
 The second section gives the name of the
record and the corresponding Internet Protocol
(IP) address.
Electronic Mail (E-mail)

 Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of

exchanging messages ("mail") between people using
electronic devices.
 Email operates across computer networks, which
today is primarily the Internet.
 E-mail messages are usually encoded in ASCII text.
However, you can also send non-text files, such as
graphic images and sound files, as attachments sent in
binary streams.

Application 2-13
 outgoing
Electronic Mail message queue
user mailbox
Three major components: user
 user agents agent
mail
 mail servers user
server
agent
 simple mail transfer protocol:
SMTP SMTP mail
server user
User Agent SMTP agent
 composing, editing, reading
mail messages SMTP
mail user
 e.g., Outlook, Mozilla server agent
Thunderbird, iPhone mail
client user
agent
user
agent

Application 2-14
Mail User Agents

 A mail user agent (MUA) is a program that allows you to

receive and send e-mail messages; it's usually just called
an e-mail program.
 To use an MUA such as Eudora or Microsoft Outlook,
you install the MUA program on your computer and then
use it to download and store e-mail messages to your
computer; it will also allow you to read or write messages
offline.
 Web-based MUAs, such as Hotmail and Yahoo, store
messages on their own mail servers and allow access to
them through a Web page. An MUA is sometimes called
an e-mail agent or an e-mail client.
Application 2-15
Electronic Mail: mail servers
user
Mail Servers agent
 mailbox contains incoming mail
user
messages for user server
agent
 message queue of outgoing
SMTP mail
(to be sent) mail messages
server user
 SMTP protocol between mail
servers to send email
SMTP agent

messages SMTP
 client: sending mail server mail user
server agent
 “server”: receiving mail
server user
agent
user
agent
Scenario: Ahmed sends message to
Baber
1) Ahmed uses UA to compose 4) SMTP client sends Ahmed’s
message and “to” message over the TCP
Baber@someschool.edu connection
2) Ahmed’s UA sends message 5) Baber’s mail server places
to his mail server; message the message in Baber’s
placed in message queue mailbox
3) Client side of SMTP opens 6) Baber invokes his user agent
TCP connection with Baber’s to read message
mail server

1 mail
mail
server user
user server
2 agent
agent 3 6
4 5
Mail access protocols
SMTP SMTP access user
user
agent protocol agent

sender’s mail receiver’s mail

server server
 SMTP: delivery/storage to receiver’s server
A user's mailbox can be accessed in two dedicated ways.
 1. The Post Office Protocol (POP) allows the user to download messages one at a time and
only deletes them from the server after they have been successfully saved on local storage.
 2. Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) allows users to keep messages on the server,
flagging them as appropriate. IMAP provides folders and sub-folders, which can be shared
among different users with possibly different access rights. Typically, the Sent, Drafts,
and Trash folders are created by default.
DHCP Server

 DHCP stands for dynamic host configuration protocol. It

is a network protocol used on IP networks where a DHCP
server automatically assigns an IP address and other
information to each host on the network so they can
communicate efficiently with other endpoints.
Working of DHCP
 DHCP assigns an IP address when a system is started, for example:
 A user turns on a computer with a DHCP client.
 The client computer sends a broadcast request (called a DISCOVER
or DHCPDISCOVER), looking for a DHCP server to answer.
 The router directs the DISCOVER packet to the correct DHCP
server.
 The server receives the DISCOVER packet. Based on availability
and usage policies set on the server, the server determines an
appropriate address (if any) to give to the client. The server then
temporarily reserves that address for the client and sends back to the
client an OFFER (or DHCPOFFER) packet, with that address
information.

Application 2-20
Working of DHCP
 The server also configures the client's DNS servers,
WINS servers, NTP servers, and sometimes other
services as well.
 The client sends a REQUEST (or DHCPREQUEST)
packet, letting the server know that it intends to use the
address.
 The server sends an ACK (or DHCPACK) packet,
confirming that the client has a been given a lease on the
address for a server-specified period of time.
Benefits of DHCP
 Accurate IP configuration: Typographical errors are
typically very difficult to troubleshoot and the use of a
DHCP server minimizes that risk.
 Reduced IP address conflicts: Each connected device
must have a unique IP address.
 Automation of IP address administration: Without DHCP,
network administrators would need to assign and revoke
addresses manually. Keeping track of which device has
what address is nearly impossible
 Efficient change management: The use of DHCP makes it
very simple to change addresses, scopes or endpoints. no
network configuration is required.
FTP Server
 FTP is a standard network protocol used for the
transfer of files between a client and server on a
computer network.
 FTP is a very well-established protocol, developed in
the 1970s to allow two computers to transfer data
over the internet.
 One computer acts as the server to store information
and the other acts as the client to send or request
files from the server. An FTP server will use TCP
port 20 for data connection and port 21 for control
connection.