I hear the word server in all sorts of contexts whenever computers are involved. What is a server and how does it relate to a PC?
In: Technology
To quote [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Server_(computing)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Server_(computing))
>A server is a computer that provides information to other computers called “clients” on computer network.[1] This architecture is called the client–server model.
The computer you read Reddit on is a client, cellphones etc are just a type of mobile computer. Reddit has a computer that stores all the website content. Your client provides the content and the server provides it.
It is a difference in the tasks the computer does not how the computer works. Lost of small devices works as servers too, if you log into the configuration interface of a router you have at home the router works as a web server. You could use the same computer as a server and as a client. You could even do that at the same time.
A typical computer used as a server for a website will be a bit different to your computer at home because the components are chosen for that task. So they often have more ram, CPUs with a lots of cores, the can have large and fast storage systems too. That makes it possible to provide information to many clients. A computer you have at home might have a powerful GPU so you can play games with advanced graphics on it. A computer you use in an office likely has less advanced graphics because they are used for different stuff.
So a server is a computer that is used to provide information to other computers, clients. The also typically have components that make them great at that task.
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