Introduction

How the Web Works

When you visit a website, the web server hosting that site could be anywhere in the world. In order for you to find the location of the web server, your browser will first connect to a Domain Name System (DNS) server.

For example:

when a web user in England wants to view the website of the Louvre art gallery in France which is located at www.1- louvre.fr. Firstly, the browser in Cambridge contacts a DNS server in London. The DNS server then tells the browser the location of the web server hosting the site in Paris.

1- When you connect to the web, you do so via an Internet Service Provider (ISP). You type a domain name or web address into your browser to visit a site; for example: google.com, bbc.co.uk, microsoft.com.

2-Your computer contacts a network of servers called Domain Name System (DNS) servers. These act like phone books; they tell your computer the IP address associated with the requested domain name. An IP address is a number of up to 12 digits separated by periods / full stops. Every device connected to the web has a unique IP address; it is like the phone number for that computer.

3-The unique number that the DNS server returns to your computer allows your browser to contact the web server that hosts the website you requested. A web server is a computer that is constantly connected to the web, and is set up especially to send web pages to users.

4-The web server then sends the page you requested back to your web browser.