What is a server?

Servers are machines more powerful and reliable than standard personal computers. Servers respond to requests from other clients for data or resources. The most commonly available categories of servers are x86 (CISC: Complex Instruction Set Computers)-based and UNIX (RISC: Reduced Instruction Set Computers)-based servers. x86 is the generic name for the Intel microprocessor series of servers and is associated with the Windows and Linux operating systems. Proprietary RISC-based enterprise class servers from HP (with HP-UX OS) and IBM (with AIX-OS), among others, are on the decline.