Why refreshing your single page app gives a 404
8 min readHow the Web Works
Your routes work until someone reloads or opens a link directly. Here is why the server has never heard of that URL, and how to tell it what to do.
Category
How the Web Works
Understand how the web works through practical guides covering HTTP, DNS, browsers, networking, caching and the technologies that power every website.
Why your API works in Postman but not in the browser
9 min readHow the Web Works
The same request succeeds in Postman and fails in your app. Here is what the browser adds on top, and how to tell which of its rules you broke.
Why your cookie is not being set
8 min readHow the Web Works
Your server sends the header but the browser stores nothing. Here are the reasons a cookie is silently dropped, and how to find which one is yours.
Session vs session cookie vs sessionStorage
8 min readHow the Web Works
Three different things share the word session. Learn what each one stores, who can read it, and exactly what ends it.
What is a server? Types, Hardware, Software and the Cloud
19 min readHow the Web Works
What is a server? Learn how servers work, why the word means hardware or software, what the main server types do, and how machines become the cloud.
What happens during a DNS lookup? A step-by-step guide
12 min readHow the Web Works
Before your browser can connect, it must find the site's IP address. Learn how a DNS lookup works step by step, from browser cache to authoritative server.
7 HTTP request headers every developer should understand
12 min readHow the Web Works
Every HTTP request carries headers describing who is asking and what they want. Learn the 7 request headers you will meet most often, with examples.
Why you should check a domain's history before buying it
7 min readHow the Web Works
Domains are secondhand goods. Search engines, browsers and mail servers all keep long memories about names, and you inherit them at checkout.
What happens after you press Enter
6 min readHow the Web Works
DNS, TCP, TLS, HTML parsing, rendering: the journey from typing a URL to seeing the first pixel on screen.