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Tribhuvan university > CSIT - 2074 Syllabus > Web Technology > Old Questions > 2074

Web Technology - Old Questions

Syllabus Notes Old Questions Unit Wise Questions Question Bank

1.  Define HTTP. Explain the overall function of HTTP with example.

10 marks | Asked in 2074

HTTP is a TCP/IP based communication protocol, that is used to deliver data (HTML files, image files, query results, etc.) on the World Wide Web. The default port is TCP 80, but other ports can be used as well. It provides a standardized way for computers to communicate with each other. HTTP specification specifies how clients' request data will be constructed and sent to the server, and how the servers respond to these requests.

There are three important features of HTTP:

  • HTTP is connectionless: After a request is made, the client disconnects from the server and waits for a response. The server must re-establish the connection after it processes the request.
  • HTTP is media independent: Any type of data can be sent by HTTP as long as both the client and server know how to handle the data content. How content is handled is determined by the MIME specification.
  • HTTP is stateless: This is a direct result of HTTP's being connectionless. The server and client are aware of each other only during a request. Afterwards, each forgets the other. For this reason neither the client nor the browser can retain information between different requests across the web pages.

The following diagram shows a very basic architecture of a web application and depicts where HTTP sits:

HTTP Architecture

The HTTP protocol is a request/response protocol based on the client/server based architecture where web browsers, robots and search engines, etc. act like HTTP clients, and the Web server acts as a server.

Client:

The HTTP client sends a request to the server in the form of a request method, URI, and protocol version, followed by a MIME-like message containing request modifiers, client information, and possible body content over a TCP/IP connection.

Server:

The HTTP server responds with a status line, including the message's protocol version and a success or error code, followed by a MIME-like message containing server information, entity meta information, and possible entity-body content.