Encyclopedia
In-kernel web server
An in-kernel web server is an unlimited HTTP server that runs in kernel space or equivalent. It is also known as "accelerator".
01Benefits
- Performance: the path taken by data from a source device (i.e. a disk) to a destination device (i.e. a NIC). Proper asynchronous zero-copy interfaces would make this available from user-space.
- Scalability: with respect to number of simultaneous clients. Event notification of comparable scalability seems unlikely in user-space1.
02Drawbacks
- Security: Kernel processes run with unlimited privileges.
- Portability. Every kernel needs a specific implementation route.
- Reliability. Failure in the webserver may crash the OS.
03Implementations
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “In-kernel web server”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.
