XML - XML Server

 What is an XML Server?

An XML Server is a server or software system that stores, processes, and delivers XML data to client applications (such as web browsers or mobile apps) over a network.

 Functions of an XML Server:

  1. Stores XML Files or Databases
    It acts as a central repository for structured XML documents.

  2. Delivers XML Data to Clients
    Responds to requests from clients (via AJAX, APIs, or web services) with XML-formatted data.

  3. Processes XML with Technologies
    Can use tools like XSLT (for transformation), XPath (for querying), or DOM/SAX parsers (for reading).

  4. Supports Web Services (SOAP/XML-RPC)
    Often used in older or enterprise systems where SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) is used for communication in XML format.

Example

A weather service might have an XML server that stores forecast data like this:

<forecast>
  <city name="Delhi">
    <temperature>35</temperature>
    <condition>Sunny</condition>
  </city>
</forecast>

When a user visits a website or app, the frontend sends a request to the XML server, which responds with this XML data to display.

Benefits of an XML Server:

  • Platform-independent data exchange

  • Ideal for integration with legacy systems

  • Compatible with multiple languages (Java, .NET, PHP, etc.)

  • Useful in B2B systems, banking, ERP, and web services

 Example in AJAX:

A web page can make an AJAX request to an XML server to retrieve data:

xhr.open("GET", "https://example.com/products.xml", true);