A Description of a Client Server Network

Client server networking accounts for the vast majority of network activity.

Since the dawn of computer networking in the 1960s, client server networks have served as mainstays for data exchange and global commerce. Client server networks are by far the most popular network model, as the clearly defined relationship between client and server helps streamline data transfer and enrich the user experience. Client server networks are fairly simple to setup, and many software networking tools are readily available.

History

The global network model of today started in the early 1960s with clusters of laboratory computers interconnected with modems via the phone system. In 1968, Bob Taylor of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) proposed a global network infrastructure, called ARPANET. This model is the basis for the modern Internet, and included a client server schema for computer connections. Client server networks, in their modern form, exchange many forms of data, such as web pages, email and online purchase information.

Significance

Client server networks literally run the Internet. Because this model clearly defines the relationship between server (data host) and client (data consumer), connections are efficient and streamlined between computers, in an orderly exchange of data. Network connections based on the client server model have captured the market share of server and client software, including email systems and web hosting because of the reliability of data in transit. Thanks to special error-correction algorithms, client server data transfer is virtually free of anomaly.

Types

Client server networking runs on top of a number of network "layers," which provide everything from the physical connection (wired/wireless) to the addresses of computers (Internet Protocol - IP). Client server networks frequently user TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), which provides an orderly, error-free method of connecting to servers. As an advantage over peer-to-peer networks, client server connections are centralized, scalable, flexible, interoperable and accessible to many different types of computers run by clients.

Drawbacks

There are some minor drawbacks to the client server networking model. Networks run over TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) take additional data and time overhead to implement their error correction algorithms. Centralized servers are more susceptible to hacker attack than peer-to-peer systems. Additionally, servers may be subject to overwhelming traffic load, as they are the only ones who store data (as opposed to cloud or peer-to-peer data systems). In spite of these drawbacks, the client server model is overwhelmingly the most popular form of network as of 2010.

Advantanges

The advantages of using a client server network system are numerous. Often, businesses and home users desire the the centralized access of data in a database or other storage schema. Standard protocols, such as IP (Internet Protocol) addressing and DNS (Domain Name System) make it simple to set up and scale a client server network to work with several different clients. The primary goal for client server networks is to be accessible by clients with different operating systems and hardware through a common interface.

References

• Internet Society: History of Networks and the Internet
• University of South Florida: Network Topology