HTTP is an application-layer protocol for transmitting hypermedia documents, such as HTML. It was designed for communication between web browsers and web servers, but it can also be used for other purposes, such as machine-to-machine communication, programmatic access to APIs, and more. HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is a core Internet protocol that defines how data is exchanged between clients and servers on the web.

Understanding the Context

Enables communication between web browsers and web servers. Basically, HTTP is an TCP/IP based communication protocol, which is used to deliver data (HTML files, image files, query results etc) on the World Wide Web. The default port is TCP 80, but other ports can be used. It provides a standardized way for computers to communicate with each other.

Key Insights

An extension mechanism for HTTP designed to address the tension between private agreement and public specification and to accommodate extension of HTTP clients and servers by software components HTTP is the protocol behind nearly all communication on the web. A browser loading a page sends an HTTP request for the HTML document, parses the response, then sends additional requests for stylesheets, scripts, images, fonts, and other subresources.