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lighttpd VS SimpleHTTPServer

Compare lighttpd VS SimpleHTTPServer and see what are their differences

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lighttpd logo lighttpd

A secure, fast, compliant, and very flexible web-server that has been optimized for high-performance environments

SimpleHTTPServer logo SimpleHTTPServer

Serve a single directory over HTTP
  • lighttpd Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-28
  • SimpleHTTPServer Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-22

lighttpd features and specs

  • Low Memory Footprint
    Lighttpd is known for its low memory usage, making it ideal for environments where memory resources are limited.
  • High Performance
    It is designed to handle large numbers of parallel connections efficiently, making it suitable for high-traffic websites.
  • Easy to Configure
    Lighttpd offers straightforward configuration files that are easy to understand and modify.
  • Supports FastCGI, SCGI, and CGI
    It has built-in support for various interfaces like FastCGI, SCGI, and CGI, allowing it to interact with different types of applications.
  • Event-Driven Architecture
    The event-driven design allows for non-blocking and asynchronous operations, contributing to its speed and efficiency.

Possible disadvantages of lighttpd

  • Limited Module Support
    Lighttpd has fewer third-party modules and plugins compared to more popular web servers like Apache and Nginx.
  • Community Support
    The community around Lighttpd is smaller, which might result in slower updates and fewer tutorials or examples.
  • Learning Curve
    New users might find the initial setup and configuration challenging compared to more widely-used web servers.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Some applications or tools that are designed with Apache or Nginx in mind might not work seamlessly with Lighttpd.
  • Less Frequent Updates
    The development and release cycle for Lighttpd updates may not be as frequent as for more popular web servers.

SimpleHTTPServer features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    SimpleHTTPServer is extremely easy to use, requiring just a single command to spin up a basic web server, making it ideal for quick testing and development purposes.
  • No Installation Required
    As a standard module in Python 2.7, SimpleHTTPServer does not require any additional installation processes, reducing setup time for developers.
  • Platform Independent
    Being part of Python's standard library, it is platform-independent and can run on any system that supports Python.

Possible disadvantages of SimpleHTTPServer

  • Security
    SimpleHTTPServer lacks security features like HTTPS, authentication mechanisms, and protection against vulnerabilities, which makes it unsuitable for production environments.
  • Limited Functionality
    Designed for serving static files, SimpleHTTPServer lacks advanced functionalities like CGI scripting or integration with databases needed for dynamic content serving.
  • Obsolete
    Being a part of Python 2.7 which is no longer maintained, SimpleHTTPServer is obsolete, and users are encouraged to use Python 3, specifically the http.server module for better functionality and support.
  • Single Threaded
    By default, SimpleHTTPServer handles requests sequentially in a single-threaded manner, which can result in performance bottlenecks when handling multiple requests simultaneously.

Analysis of lighttpd

Overall verdict

  • Overall, lighttpd is a highly recommended choice for those needing a lightweight and efficient web server, especially where system resources are constrained.

Why this product is good

  • Lighttpd is often considered a good web server because it is designed to be fast, secure, and very lightweight. It effectively handles large volumes of traffic, supports important features like FastCGI, SCGI, Auth, Output Compression, URL Rewriting, and is highly configurable. Its asynchronous architecture allows it to serve multiple requests simultaneously, making it suitable for environments with high concurrency.

Recommended for

    Lighttpd is especially suited for situations where low resource usage is a priority, such as on embedded systems or servers with limited hardware capabilities. It is also useful for hosting static content, serving as a reverse proxy, or when hosting web applications with specific performance requirements.

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to lighttpd and SimpleHTTPServer)

lighttpd

SimpleHTTPServer

Web And Application Servers
92 92%
Web And Application Servers
8% 8
Application Server
91 91%
Application Server
9% 9
Web Servers
92 92%
Web Servers
8% 8
Development Tools
100 100%
Development Tools
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare lighttpd and SimpleHTTPServer

lighttpd Reviews

13 Best XAMPP Alternatives
Lighttpd is a simple and lightweight web server that allows you to do very fast static file serving. It can also be used as a content cache, a reverse proxy, or an HTTP accelerator. Lighttpd is not only lightning-fast but also straightforward to set up; in many cases, you only need one configuration file to work. Lighttpd has been around for some time now, so there are...
Source: thetechtian.com
Top 5 open source web servers
Great article Robin. Most of my experience is with Apache. I first started using it on Windows about 1998 or 1999. When I got into using Linux in 2001 I switched my previous install to that OS and have since deployed it many times. I have tried NGINX and lighttpd but never in production.
Source: opensource.com
Alternative web servers compared: Lighttpd, Nginx, LiteSpeed and Zeus
The huge leap for Lighttpd in January-March of 2007 is most likely due to one or more web hosting or domain registration companies switching over to Lighttpd either for their regular pages, or for parked pages, or both. If anyone knows what happened there in more detail, please feel free to let us know in the comments.
Source: www.pingdom.com

SimpleHTTPServer Reviews

We have no reviews of SimpleHTTPServer yet.
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing lighttpd and SimpleHTTPServer, you can also consider the following products

Apache HTTP Server - Apache httpd has been the most popular web server on the Internet since April 1996

nginx - A high performance free open source web server powering busiest sites on the Internet.

Microsoft IIS - Internet Information Services is a web server for Microsoft Windows

Apache Tomcat - An open source software implementation of the Java Servlet and JavaServer Pages technologies

LiteSpeed Web Server - LiteSpeed Web Server (LSWS) is a high-performance Apache drop-in replacement.

mongrel - A small fast HTTP library and server that runs Rails, Camping, Nitro and Iowa apps.

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