What is the LiteSpeed Web Server?

The most well-known and widely used web server is the Apache HTTP Server. Many internet users have heard of this name before. Less known, however, is the LiteSpeed Webserver (LSWS). But the lower level of recognition does not mean that the software cannot compete with the competition. On the contrary, LiteSpeed has its own distinct strengths and far outperforms systems like Apache or Nginx in terms of performance.

What is a Webserver?

A web server is a computer software that delivers documents or files to a client. This client is usually a web browser.

When an external request is made for a computer's data, the server software delivers it accordingly. Websites are typically stored in the form of HTML or image files. To access these files, the server is assigned an IP address, which consists of a combination of 4 or 6 numbers.

As number combinations are difficult to remember, IP addresses are now converted into easily readable URLs by DNS servers.

The History of the LiteSpeed Webserver

The company Litespeed Technologies was founded in 2002 by a team of developers led by George Wang in the USA. The group's mission was to enable a faster and more cost-effective internet.

On 1st July 2003, the company introduced the Litespeed Webserver for the first time. During this period, the internet was growing rapidly, and website traffic was increasing significantly.

To avoid server overload due to increasing traffic, many hosts upgraded their hardware. Wang and his colleagues took a different approach with LSWS by optimising performance through server software. This method was much more resource-efficient and cost-effective, leading to rapid growth in the Litespeed community.

In 2013, the company released OpenLiteSpeed, a free community version of its server solution.

The technical features of LSWS

One of the key features of the Litespeed Webserver is its focus on performance while optimising the existing hardware efficiently. A noticeable difference in loading times compared to Apache is attributed to the event-driven structure of LSWS. In contrast, Apache operates in a process-oriented manner.

Switching users should have no issues as Litespeed is fully compatible with Apache. Modules like mod_rewrite, mod_Security, or the .htaccess file are fully functional on LSWS.

In addition, LSWS incorporates cutting-edge technologies such as

• support for HTTP/3 - the latest version of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol, which is even faster than HTTP/2,
• QUIC - a transfer protocol for higher speed and metadata encryption,
• TLS 1.3 - the latest version of the Transport Layer Security encryption protocol, and
• LSCache - the integrated caching system of LSWS, which optimises images, JavaScript, and CSS.

These features enable the Litespeed Server to handle significantly more traffic or visitors than competing products.

Also tailored to most CMS like WordPress, Joomla, or Magento, LSWS is. The special caching solution allows these programs to run much faster.

Advantages and Disadvantages of LSWS

Advantages

• Improved performance leads to higher search engine rankings and, along with other factors such as the domain name, is an important part of search engine optimization (SEO).
• No new configuration is needed when switching from Apache HTTP Web Server. This allows for the complete adoption of the .htaccess file.
• The LiteSpeed Server can handle more websites and visitors than Apache or Nginx with the same resources.
• LSWS enables a cost-effective performance improvement for a web project by optimally utilizing existing hardware.
• LSWS is an open-source software that allows for individual customizations.

Disadvantages

• Support is usually chargeable as community support is not as extensive as with the Apache Server.

Learn more in a detailed comparison of the advantages and disadvantages:

Apache vs. LiteSpeed
Nginx vs. LiteSpeed

And discover which option is considered the most popular and best web server.

Who is the LiteSpeed Web Server suitable for?

At the beginning of a web project, the performance of the server software is not yet a significant factor. The website's traffic is low at the start and can be managed with any server solution on the market. However, as visitor and access numbers increase over time, the initial capacities can quickly reach their limits and increase the loading times of web hosting.

Especially for Apache users, the LiteSpeed web server is ideal for improving the performance of their own websites. The switch is even possible at no cost through OpenLiteSpeed. All software from the company is open source, allowing for individual customisations at any time. However, LiteSpeed is not an alternative on Windows servers using Microsoft's IIS web server due to lack of operating system support.

For those who prefer to have an official support team in the background when maintaining a server, LiteSpeed Technologies is a good choice. For a monthly fee, the company offers hosting packages for a wide range of web projects.

The LiteSpeed web server is therefore ideal for larger web projects, but also demonstrates its advantages with smaller websites, particularly in terms of user-friendliness and SEO.

Image credit: Gerd Altmann on Pixabay