Handbook of Local Area Networks, 1998 Edition:Applications of LAN Technology Click Here! Search the site:   ITLibrary ITKnowledge EXPERT SEARCH Programming Languages Databases Security Web Services Network Services Middleware Components Operating Systems User Interfaces Groupware & Collaboration Content Management Productivity Applications Hardware Fun & Games EarthWeb sites Crossnodes Datamation Developer.com DICE EarthWeb.com EarthWeb Direct ERP Hub Gamelan GoCertify.com HTMLGoodies Intranet Journal IT Knowledge IT Library JavaGoodies JARS JavaScripts.com open source IT RoadCoders Y2K Info Previous Table of Contents Next 5-5Choosing and Equipping an Internet Server NATHAN J. MULLER The Internet is a global collection of servers interconnected by routers over various types of carrier-provided lines and services. It comprises more than 4 million hosts on about 100,000 networks in 160 countries. Approximately 30 million people have access to the Internet, a number that is expected to grow to 200 million by the turn of the century. The Internet comprises data bases that have a combined capacity that can only be measured in terabytes—more information than has ever been printed on paper. It is accessed and navigated by PCs and workstations equipped with client software such as Mosaic and Netscape. INTERNET AND INTRANET SERVICES One of the most popular and fastest-growing services on the Internet is the World Wide Web, also known as WWW or simply “the Web.” The Web is an interactive, graphically-oriented, distributed, platform-independent, hypertext information system. Browser software such as Netscape and Mosaic make it easy for users to find information published on Web servers, which can be configured for public or private access. When configured for private access, companies can create virtual private networks or “intranets” to facilitate information exchange among employees, customers, suppliers, and strategic partners. Of all the services that can be accessed over the Internet, the Web holds the greatest promise for electronic commerce. Using catalogs displayed on the Web, customers can order products by filling out forms transmitted through E-mail. Often the transactions include buyers’ credit card numbers, which requires a secure means of transmission. Other electronic commerce applications include online banking and stock trading. With a Web server, an organization can leverage Web technology for internal communication on an intranet by producing online documentation of corporate materials, automating sales force activities, providing training-on-demand, or using data warehousing capabilities to analyze large amounts of data or complex data. The factor driving these activities is the same in every case: providing users access to information. As companies use the Web to deliver new services, they need solutions that are capable of storing, managing, and organizing all of their existing data. Furthermore, these mechanisms need to tie into existing applications and be reliable, scalable, and open. Early Web implementations focused on providing access to static data, mostly in the form of simple text and graphics. As Web-based interactions become more complex, the next step is the creation of real-world applications that can manipulate, input, modify, analyze, and apply this content to everyday tasks. The need for live, online applications that can manipulate dynamic, constantly changing data is driving the Web into the next phase of its evolution. PLATFORM CONSIDERATIONS The key to delivering services over the Internet is the server. The Internet is a true client/server network. Integrating into this client/server environment requires servers with strong connectivity capabilities suitable for high-traffic and mission-critical applications. The server must have ease-of-use functionality that allows corporate users to access information quickly and easily. The server must have security features that enable users to share confidential information or conduct encrypted electronic transactions across the Internet. Finally, the server must be able to support the many applications that have become the staple of the Internet, including electronic mail and newsgroups. Processor Architecture A high-performance server is a virtual requirement for any company that is serious about establishing a presence on the Internet. There are basically two choices of processor architectures: reduced instruction set computing (RISC)-based or complex instruction set computing (CISC)-based. RISC processors are usually used on high-end UNIX servers; CISC processors, such as Intel’s Pentium Pro, are used on Windows NT machines. The performance of the Pentium Pro rivals that of RISC processors and costs less. Because of the volume of service requests—sometimes tens of thousands a day—the server should be equipped with the most powerful processor available. The more powerful the processor, the greater the number of service requests (i.e., page lookups, data base searches, and forms processing) the server will be able to handle. SMP Servers Servers with symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) enable the operating system to distribute different processing jobs among two or more processors. All the CPUs have equal capabilities and can handle the same tasks. Each CPU can run the operating system as well as user applications. Not only can any CPU execute any job, but jobs can be shifted from one CPU to another as the load changes. This capability can be very important at high-traffic sites, especially those that do a lot of local processing to fulfill service requests. Some servers come equipped with multiple RISC or CISC processors. Users should be aware, however, that the added cost of an SMP server is not merely a few hundred dollars per extra processor. There are costs for additional hardware resources as well—such as extra RAM and storage space—that can add several thousand dollars to the purchase price. However, as needs change, users can upgrade SMP servers incrementally without having to buy a new system. In this way, performance can be increased and the original hardware investment can be protected. This requirement is especially critical in the rapidly evolving Internet market in which organizations want to implement new applications on their servers that require increasing data base and search performance. Previous Table of Contents Next Use of this site is subject certain Terms & Conditions. 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