Web Watch: A Survey Of Web Server Software Used In UK University Web Sites
What Web server software is used within the UK Higher Education community? What trends are there? How can I find out which institutions are using the same software as mine? Am I running a dated version of the software, compared with the rest of the community? This survey aims to provide answers to these questions by surveying the server software used on the main institutional entry point.
Using The Netcraft Service
Netcraft [1] is a company based in Bath which carries out surveys of Web server software. The Netcraft survey is very comprehensive, with the survey in May 2000 successfully polling over 15 million sites. Netcraft publish monthly reports on their surveys [2].
Netcraft also provide an interface which enables details of the Web server used at a site to be obtained. The Netcraft interface to this service is shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1: Netcraft interface
This service has been used to analyse the Web server software used by UK Universities on the main institutional Web site. The results are provided in Appendix 1 of this article.
Summary of Findings
As expected the Apache server was the most widely used server software. In second place came Microsoft's IIS. A histogram showing the results is given in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Histogram of Number of Web Server Software
70% (111) of Web servers appear to run on Unix platforms, with 26.25% (43) on a Microsoft Windows platform. The remaining 3.75% of servers run on Novell Netware (3), Apple Macintosh (2) or DEC VMS (1) platforms. There were a small number of unusual hardware / software combinations, including two occurrences of Apache running on MS Windows and one occurrence of IIS running on Unix.
In addition to the Apache and IIS server software, the Netscape server software was used at 13 institutions (10 on a Unix platform, two on Novell Netware and one on MS Windows), followed by CERN (3), NCSA and WebSTAR (two each) and one occurrence of the SWS, Novell, OSU, Vegserver and WebSite Pro software.
As well as Unix and MS Windows operating system environments, there were two occurrences of the Apple Macintosh platform and one of the Digital Alpha/VMS platform.
Comparison With Previous Survey
in October 1997 the WebWatch robot was used to survey UK University Web sites. The results were published in Ariadne [3]. A pie chart illustrating the findings and a comparison with the current findings is shown below.
Figure 3: Chart of Web Server Software Usage in 1997 and 2000
Since 1997 many of the less well-used server software (such as WN, BorderWare, Purveyor, HTTPS and Roxen Challenger) are no longer used. Use of the NCSA, CERN and Netscape server software has decreased. The only server software to show an increase is Apache and Microsoft.
Please note that additional surveys were carried out in July 1998 [4] and November 1998 [5].
References
- Netcraft,
http://www.netcraft.com/ - Web Server Survey, Netcraft
http://www.netcraft.com/survey/ - WebWatching UK Universities and Colleges, Ariadne, issue 12, November 1997
http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue12/web-focus/ - Trawl Of UK University Entry Points - July 1998, Appendix 4 of "WebWatching UK Web Communities: Final Report For The WebWatch Project", UKOLN
http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/webwatch/reports/final/rtf-html/report-Appendix-4.html - Third Trawl of UK Academic Entry Points, UKOLN, November 1998
http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/webwatch/reports/hei-nov1998/
Appendix 1: Survey Results
The Netcraft service was used to record the Web server software used on the main institutional Web server in UK Universities. The survey was carried out on 28 July 2000.
The following table contains details of the survey. Column 1 gives the name of the institution and a link to the institutional web server. Column 2 gives the name of the Web server software found within the university's domain. Column 3 enables the Netcraft service to be used to check the current status.
| Institution | Server Software 20 July 2000 | Current Server Software |
| Aberdeen | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) PHP/3.0.15 mod_ssl/2.3.11 OpenSSL/0.9.4 on Solaris | Try it |
| Abertay | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Aberystwyth | Apache/1.3.0 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Anglia Polytechnic University | Apache/1.2.4 on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Aston | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.0 mod_ssl/2.6.4 OpenSSL/0.9.5a on Solaris | Try it |
| Bangor | Netscape-Enterprise/3.5.1 on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Bath Spa | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Bath | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Belfast, The Queen's University of | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Birkbeck | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Birmingham | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/3.0.14 on Solaris | Try it |
| Bolton Institute of Higher Education | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 SP2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Bournemouth University | Apache/1.2.4 on HP-UX | Try it |
| Bradford | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Bretton College | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Brighton | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Bristol | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on IRIX | Try it |
| Brunel | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) mod_perl/1.20 on Solaris | Try it |
| Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Cambridge | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Canterbury Christ Church | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Cardiff | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Cardiff, University of Wales Institute (UWIC) | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Central England, University of (UCE) | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Central Lancashire | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Central School of Speech and Drama | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Cheltenham and Gloucester College of HE | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) (Red Hat/Linux) on Linux | Try it |
| Chester College | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/3.0.15 on FreeBSD | Try it |
| Chichester, University College | Apache/1.3.1 (Unix) on Linux | Try it |
| City | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| College of Guidance Studies | CERN/3.0A on Solaris | Try it |
| Coventry | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Cranfield | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) mod_ssl/2.5.0 OpenSSL/0.9.4 PHP/3.0.14 mod_perl/1.21 on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Dartington College of Arts | NCSA/1.5.1 on IRIX | Try it |
| De Montfort (DMU) | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Derby | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Dundee | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) mod_perl/1.19 on Solaris | Try it |
| Durham | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/3.0.16 on Solaris | Try it |
| East Anglia, University of (UEA) | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) mod_perl/1.21_03 on Solaris | Try it |
| East London | Apache/1.3.4 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Edge Hill | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Edinburgh | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) PHP/3.0.16 mod_perl/1.21 on Solaris | Try it |
| Essex | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Exeter | Apache/1.2.6 on IRIX | Try it |
| Falmouth | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Glamorgan | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Linux | Try it |
| Glasgow Caledonian University | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) FrontPage/3.0.4.2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Glasgow School of Art | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Glasgow | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Goldsmiths College | Vegserver/3.0.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Greenwich | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Harper Adams | Apache/1.2.5 Cobalt on Linux | Try it |
| Heriot-Watt | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) mod_ssl/2.5.0 OpenSSL/0.9.4 on Linux | Try it |
| Hertfordshire | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Huddersfield | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0RC2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Hull | Apache/1.2.5 on Solaris | Try it |
| Imperial | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Institute of Education | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Keele | Apache/1.3.12 on BSD/OS | Try it |
| Kent | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) PHP/3.0.13 on Solaris | Try it |
| Kent Institute of Art and Design | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| King Alfred's College, Winchester | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| King's College London (KCL) | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Kingston | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Lampeter | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) mod_perl/1.21 mod_ssl/2.5.0 OpenSSL/0.9.3a on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Lancaster | Apache/1.3.12 on Solaris | Try it |
| Leeds | Netscape-Communications/1.1 on Solaris | Try it |
| Leeds Metropolitan University (LMU) | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) PHP/3.0.5 on Solaris | Try it |
| Leicester | Netscape-Enterprise/3.5.1 on IRIX | Try it |
| Lincolnshire and Humberside | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on FreeBSD | Try it |
| Liverpool | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Liverpool John Moore | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Liverpool Hope | Netscape-Enterprise/3.5-For-NetWare on NetWare | Try it |
| London Business School | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 SP2 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| London Guildhall | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| London Institute | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| University of London (Institutes) | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Linux | Try it |
| London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Loughborough | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Luton | Apache/1.3.4 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Manchester Institute of Science & Technology (UMIST) | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) | Apache/1.3b3 on Solaris | Try it |
| Manchester | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) Debian/GNU PHP/3.0.16 AuthMySQL/2.20 mod_perl/1.21_03-dev on Linux | Try it |
| Manchester Business School | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Medicine, University of Wales College of | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Middlesex | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Napier | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Newcastle | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.1pl2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Newman | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) Debian/GNU on Linux | Try it |
| Newport | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| North-East Wales Institute of Higher Education (NEWI) | Novell-HTTP-Server/3.1R1 on NetWare | Try it |
| North London (UNL) | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 SP1 on Solaris | Try it |
| North Riding College Higher Education Corporation | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Northampton, University College | Apache/1.2.6 on Solaris | Try it |
| Northern College of Education | SWS-1.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Northern School of Contemporary Dance | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| University of Northumbria at Newcastle (UNN) | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) PHP/3.0.12 on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Norwich School of Art and Design | Microsoft-IIS/3.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Nottingham Trent | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Nottingham | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.0 PHP/3.0.16 on Solaris | Try it |
| Oxford | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) (Red Hat/Linux) on Linux | Try it |
| Oxford Brookes | NCSA/1.5.2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Paisley | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 SP3 on Solaris | Try it |
| Plymouth | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Portsmouth | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Queen Margaret University College | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Queen Mary and Westfield College | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Reading | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/3.0.16 mod_perl/1.21 on Solaris | Try it |
| Ripon and York St John, College of | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Robert Gordon University | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Roehampton | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Rose Bruford College | CERN/3.0A on Solaris | Try it |
| Royal Academy of Music | Apache/1.2.4 on Linux | Try it |
| Royal College of Art | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Royal College of Music | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Royal Holloway | OSU/3.3b | Try it |
| Royal Northern College of Music | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) mod_perl/1.19 PHP/3.0.7 on FreeBSD | Try it |
| Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama | Netscape-FastTrack/3.02 on IRIX | Try it |
| Royal Veterinary College | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| St Andrews | Netscape-Enterprise/4.1 on Solaris | Try it |
| St George's Hospital Medical School | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| St Mark and St John, College of | Apache/1.3.0 on FreeBSD | Try it |
| St Mary's College | Microsoft-IIS/3.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Salford | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) | WebSTAR/4.2(SSL) ID/77067 on MacOS | Try it |
| Scottish Agricultural College | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Sheffield Hallam University | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Sheffield | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) AuthMySQL/2.20 PHP/3.0.16 on Solaris | Try it |
| South Bank University | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Southampton | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on IRIX | Try it |
| Southampton Institute | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Staffordshire | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) ApacheJServ/1.0 PHP/3.0.12 on Compaq Tru64 UNIX | Try it |
| Stirling | Apache/1.3.12 (Win32) on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Strathclyde | Apache/1.3.4 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Sunderland | Apache/1.2.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Surrey Institute of Art and Design | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Surrey | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Sussex | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.1pl2 mod_ssl/2.6.4 OpenSSL/0.9.5a on Solaris | Try it |
| Swansea Institute of Higher Education | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Swansea | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) FrontPage/4.0.4.3 on Solaris | Try it |
| Teeside | Apache/1.3.1 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Thames Valley | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 SP2 on Solaris | Try it |
| Trinity and All Saints | WebSitePro/2.3.7 (Using iHTML/2.17) on NT4 or Windows 98 | Try it |
| Trinity College of Music | CERN/3.0A on Solaris | Try it |
| Trinity College, Carmarthen | Apache/1.3.6 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| Ulster | Apache/1.3.12 on Solaris | Try it |
| University College London | Apache/1.2.6 | Try it |
| Warwick | Apache/1.3.11 (Unix) mod_perl/1.21 DAV/0.9.15 PHP/3.0.16 on Solaris | Try it |
| Welsh College of Music and Drama | Apache/1.3.3 (Unix) (Red Hat/Linux) on Linux | Try it |
| West of England, University of (UWE) | Apache/1.2.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Westhill College | Netscape-Enterprise/3.6 on Solaris | Try it |
| Westminster College | WebSTAR (could not be determined by Netcraft) | Try it |
| Westminster | Microsoft-IIS/4.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Wolverhampton | Apache/1.3.12 (Unix) PHP/4.0.0 on Solaris | Try it |
| Worcester, University College | Apache/1.3.6 (Win32) (could not be determined by Netcraft) | Try it |
| Writtle College | Netscape-Enterprise/3.5-For-NetWare on NetWare | Try it |
| Wye College | Apache/1.3.9 (Unix) on Solaris | Try it |
| York | Apache/1.3.9 on Solaris | Try it |
Table 2 gives a summary of the Web server software usage, by institution.
Author Details
Brian Kelly
UK Web Focus
UKOLN
University of Bath
Bath
BA2 7AY
Email: b.kelly@ukoln.ac.uk
Brian Kelly is UK Web Focus. He works for UKOLN, which is based at the University of Bath