Skip to content

6-Mechanism-Behind-example.com.md

Latest commit

 

History

History
44 lines (32 loc) · 2.13 KB

6-Mechanism-Behind-example.com.md

File metadata and controls

44 lines (32 loc) · 2.13 KB

What Happens When You Type "example.com"?

When you type example.com in your browser and press Enter, several steps take place to load the website. Here's a breakdown:

1. Check Browser Cache

  • Browser checks if the website was visited recently.
  • If the IP address is cached, the website loads immediately.

2. Operating System Lookup

  • If the IP address is not cached, the browser asks the OS to find the IP address.
  • The OS first checks its hosts file for any mapped IP address.

3. DNS Lookup

  • If not found in the hosts file, the OS queries the DNS Resolver (usually provided by your ISP).
  • If the Resolver doesn’t have the IP address, it contacts the Root DNS server.
  • The Root server directs the request to the TLD (Top-Level Domain) server (e.g., for .com, the .COM TLD server).
  • The TLD server either has the IP cached or forwards the request to the Authoritative Name Server for example.com.
  • The Name Server returns the IP address for example.com.

4. Send HTTP Request

  • The OS sends a GET request to the obtained IP address for the website’s data.
  • The request is packaged using the TCP protocol and sent to the server.

5. Firewall Check

  • The request is checked by both the OS and the server's firewalls for any security issues.

6. Server Response

  • The server (often behind a load balancer) receives the request and sends back:
    • The IP address of the appropriate server.
    • An SSL certificate (if HTTPS, to ensure a secure connection).

7. Send Website Data

  • The server sends back the website’s files (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to the OS.
  • The OS forwards these files to the browser for rendering.

8. Render the Website

  • The browser processes the HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files and displays example.com.

Summary:

Although this process involves multiple steps, from DNS lookups to server communication, it all happens in milliseconds. This complexity is largely invisible to users but ensures seamless access to websites like example.com.