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Definition: hostname


The name assigned to a workstation or server in a network. In a Windows local area network, computers are given alphanumeric hostnames up to 15 characters in length with no spaces. For example, Maria's computer could be named maria or workstation3 or hplaptop003.

Internet Hostnames
On the Internet, a hostname is part of the address typed into a browser to access a website. Traditionally, WWW has been used for Web server hostnames. However, most websites can be addressed without the WWW, because the HTTP server (Web server) network port number 80 is automatically passed to the correct server by the routing or firewall equipment whether the WWW is present or not. See HOSTS file, IP address, FQDN and DNS.




The Format of an Internet Address
The hostname follows the protocol in a Web address. However, due to the ways Web servers can be shared, distributed, virtualized and clustered, merely looking at a domain name cannot really determine the true name of the host computer that will respond to the request.