How to Set Up Linux Apache Server
Page 8: How Routing Works
This is very important to have some basic knowledge of routing before you can set up a LAN or webserver.
This is very common that you have two or three computers at home or in office that sharing a single broadband line from your ISP. I will use a most common case as an example.
You have three computers. Now you want two computers for working (e.g. browse Internet, doing homework, etc...) and one computer as a Web Server. The situation is shown in the following diagram:
Basic concept:
- You are connected to a small home Local Area Network (LAN).
- Your LAN has an Internet connection.
- The Internet connection is made through a router connected to your home LAN and your home's connection to the ISP.
- The router act as a Gateway.
- As a Gateway, it has a connection and an IP address on your LAN.
- The Gateway also has an IP address assigned by your ISP.
Since, the LAN has only a single connection, routing is a simple matter. Here's how routing works:
Each computer is configured with a default Gateway, which is the IP address of the router on your LAN. Whenever a computer on the LAN wants to connect with a computer outside the LAN, it sends the request to the Gateway IP address (i.e. the router). The router is then responsible for redirecting the information to your ISP.