How Websites Actually Work

September 3, 2024

As long as you are connected to the internet from anywhere on Earth, you can load almost any successful website in just seconds. This technical marvel is pretty complex, but in this article I’m going to simplify the process so you will know how websites actually work and what helps us successfully deploy any website development project!

The Network

The internet is a collection of computers which are all connected together. When you are connected to the internet, you have access to the information that resides in the collection.

A computer in the collection is typically referred to as a ‘server’, and the collection which connects all computers is typically referred to as a ‘network’.

There are massive cables that extend across oceans, connecting computers together from different continents to make sure the internet is accessible across the world.

Accessing a Server

Every server in the network has at least one unique address assigned to it, typically referred to as the ‘IP Address’ which consists of a series of numbers. When those numbers are typed into the address bar of your internet browser (like Edge, Firefox or Chrome), it will load a specified server.

Domain Names

As humans, we are less likely to remember an IP Address, like 72.253.115.94, so we instead use domain names that act as an alias for any given IP Address.

Every domain name has an IP Address assigned to it, and in the case of the www.google.com domain name, it points to the 72.253.115.94. When you type google.com into the address bar, your browser uses the IP assigned to the domain name to find the server.

Websites

While website development can utilize a wide range of solutions, a website is primarily written in a language called HTML, which your browser will translate into a visual website like any website that you visit regularly. In addition to HTML, there are other languages that can add additional functionality and design to your website which the browser can render as well.

When someone types www.google.com into the address bar of their browser, the server with the same IP address as the domain is found, and the browser then gets the website’s HTML code to display the website. Some browsers interpret HTML differently, which is why your website may look different in Chrome than it does on Firefox.

Hosting

Once you have your website built, you will need to find a hosting provider that will set you up with one of their servers and allow you to register a domain name. There are countless hosting options available, but we recommend these providers.