What is server software identification?

Every website is served by web server software running on a remote machine, such as Nginx, Apache, IIS, or a custom application framework. When a browser or client requests a page, the server often includes HTTP response headers that reveal details about the software and technology stack powering it, most commonly the Server and X-Powered-By headers.

Identifying this information is useful for security research, competitive analysis, and troubleshooting. Developers use it to verify their own server configuration, while security researchers use it to understand what technologies a site relies on before assessing potential vulnerabilities.

Tool description

This server software identifier sends a request to any hostname you provide and inspects the HTTP response headers to reveal the server software in use. It reports the Server and X-Powered-By header values along with the HTTP status code and status text returned by the server. You can choose whether to connect over HTTPS or plain HTTP.

Features

  • Detects server software from the Server and X-Powered-By response headers
  • Supports both HTTPS and HTTP connections
  • Displays the HTTP status code and status text returned by the server