What is Apache? A Detailed Overview of the Apache Web Server

Apache is one of the preferred web servers for website owners, developers and even hosting providers, dominating the market share with 33% across all websites.

At HolyHosting, for example, our hosting infrastructure runs on LiteSpeed, another popular web server. This particular setup greatly enhances the strengths of both servers, allowing us to offer optimal performance for our users.

Read on to find the answer to what Apache is, how it compares to other web servers like NGINX and Tomcat, as well as its pros and cons.

What is Apache?

Apache is free and open-source software that allows users to deploy their websites on the internet. It is one of the oldest and most reliable web server programs, maintained by the Apache Software Foundation, with the first version released in 1995.

What is a Web Server?

File servers, database servers, mail servers and web servers use different types of server software. Each of these applications can access files stored on a physical server and use them for various purposes.

The job of a web server is to serve websites on the internet. To achieve that goal, it acts as an intermediary between the server and client machines. It extracts content from the server on each user request and delivers it to the web.

The greatest challenge of a web server is serving many different web users at the same time, each of whom is requesting different pages. Web servers process files written in different programming languages like PHP, Python, Java and others.

They convert them into static HTML files and serve these files in the browser for web users. When you hear the word web server, think of the tool responsible for proper communication between server and client.

How Does the Apache Web Server Work?

Although we call Apache a web server, it is not a physical server but rather software that runs on an HTTP server. Its task is to establish a connection between a server and the browsers of website visitors (Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, etc.) while delivering files back and forth between them (client-server structure). The Apache software is also compatible with any operating system, from Windows to Unix.

When a visitor wants to load a page on your website, for example, the homepage or your "About Us" page, their browser sends a request to your server and

Apache returns a response with all the requested files (text, images, etc.).

The server and client communicate through the HTTP protocol, and the Apache web server is responsible for the smooth and secure communication between the two machines.

Apache is highly customizable thanks to its open-source infrastructure. Because of this, web developers and users can adapt its source code to the type of website they are creating.

Additionally, Apache provides many modules that allow server administrators to enable and disable additional functionalities. The Apache web server has modules for security, caching, URL rewriting, password authentication and other functions.

To configure Apache, you will need to access .htaccess. This Apache configuration file is compatible with all HolyHosting web hosting plans.

Apache HTTP Server vs Other Web Servers

In addition to the Apache web server, there are many other popular options. Each web server application has been created with a different purpose. While the Apache web server is the most widely used, it has several alternatives and competitors.

Apache vs NGINX

Nginx is free and open-source software. Compared to Apache, it is a newer web server application released in 2004.

Nginx was created to solve the so-called c10k problem, which means that a web server using threads to handle user requests cannot manage more than 10,000 connections at the same time.

Since Apache uses the thread-based structure, high-traffic website owners may encounter performance issues. Nginx is one of the web servers that addresses the c10k problem and probably the most successful.

Nginx has an event-driven architecture that does not create a new process for each request. Instead, it handles each incoming request in a single thread. This master process manages several child processes that perform the actual request processing.

The event-based model of Nginx distributes user requests among child processes efficiently, leading to much better scalability.

If you need to manage a high-traffic website, Nginx is an excellent choice, as it can do so using minimal resources. It cannot be a coincidence that it is used by many high-visibility websites like Netflix, Hulu, Pinterest and Airbnb.

However, for small and medium players, Apache has several advantages over Nginx, such as its easy configuration, many modules and a beginner-friendly environment.

Apache vs Tomcat

Tomcat is a popular web server also developed by the Apache Software Foundation.

Like Apache, Tomcat is an HTTP server. However, its primary functionality is to power Java applications rather than static websites. Tomcat can run several different Java specifications, such as Java Servlet, JavaServer Pages (JSP), Java

EL and WebSocket.

Tomcat has been created specifically to serve dynamic web content running on Java applications, while Apache is a general-purpose HTTP server.

You can use Apache alongside different programming languages (PHP, Python, Perl, etc.) with the help of the appropriate Apache modules (mod_php, mod_python, mod_perl, etc.).

Although you can use a Tomcat server to serve static web pages as well, it is less efficient for that purpose compared to the Apache server. For example, Tomcat preloads the Java Virtual Machine and other librari

es related to Java that you will not need on most websites.

Tomcat is also less configurable compared to other web servers. For example, to run WordPress, the best choice is a general-purpose HTTP server like Apache or NGINX.

Pros and Cons of Apache

An Apache web server can be an excellent choice for running your website on a stable and versatile platform. However, it also has some drawbacks that you should pay attention to.

Pros:

- Open source and free, even for commercial use.

- Reliable and stable software.

- Frequently updated security patches.

- Flexible due to its module-based structure.

- Easy to configure, suitable for beginners.

- Cross-platform (works on Unix and Windows servers).

- Optimal delivery for static files and compatibility with any programming language (PHP, Python, etc.).

- Works out of the box with WordPress sites.

- Large community and easily available support in case of any issues.

Cons:

- Performance issues on extremely congested websites.

- Too many configuration options can lead to security vulnerabilities.

So, What is Apache?

One of the most popular web servers, Apache allows you to run a secure website without too many hassles. It is free and open source, making it a frequent choice for entrepreneurs and small businesses looking to have a web presence.

The way the Apache HTTP server works is that it will accept requests from the web browser, such as Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge, and convert programming scripts into web pages whose contents are visible to visitors.

You can install a WordPress website on an Apache web server without any customization. Additionally, the Apache server works perfectly with many other content management systems (Joomla, Drupal, etc.), web frameworks (Django, Laravel, etc.) and programming languages. This makes it a solid choice for all types of web hosting platforms, such as VPS or shared hosting.

We hope this article provides all the answers you need about what Apache is. Leave any comments below if you still have questions about this web server!