56 Ease of programming : HTTP is coded in plain text and therefore is easier to
follow and implement than protocols that make use of codes that require lookups. Data is formatted in lines of text and not as strings of variables or fields.
Search capabilities : Although HTTP is a simple messaging protocol, it includes the ability to search a database with a single request. This allows the protocol to
be used to carry out SQL searches and return results conveniently formatted in an HTML document.
On the other side, HTTP has the following drawbacks : Stateless protocol : Each transaction is essentially separate from others. While the
user may perceive the transaction as an ongoing communication, there is no preservation of data state thus all the data must be stored somehow, using
server-side processing, cookies, hidden variables, or some combination of the above.
One minor drawback of HTTP is the need to create multiple connections in order to transmit a typical Web page, which causes an administrative overhead.
In a framework where the bandwidth is little or not limited, and the access to the network is quasi instantaneous, the drawbacks of HTTP could appear irrelevant. However, in a
context of limited resources in terms od bandwidth for instance, those inconveniences can become problematic.
Hereafter will be tackled the following alternatives to HTTP : FTP File Transfer Protocol
SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol AMQP Advanced Message Queuing Protocol
11.4.1.2 FTP File Transfer Protocol
FTP is a standard network protocol used to transfer files from one host or to another host over a TCP-based network. FTP users may authenticate themselves using a clear-
text sign-in protocol, normally in the form of a username and password, but can connect anonymously if the server is configured to allow it.
FTP, contrary to HTTP, is an Out-of-Band protocol, meaning that there is two separate connections for controlling and for data transfer, while in HTTP which is an In-Band
Protocol, control and data are exchanged on the same connection, which may imply that a greater volume of data is exchanged in FTP. This increases the reliability of the
exchange over FTP, but generates additional message exchanges that could be problematic in a limited resources environment.
The advantages of FTP are presented hereafter:
57 FTP is a fast and efficient way of transferring bulks of data across the internet.
It has an automatic backup .Whenever files are edited on a local system they can be updated by copying them to the host system editing the file. It then provides a
backup system that works both ways. FTP gives control over transfer. The data can be transferred either in ASCII mode
for text files, in Binary mode for executables or compressed files or in Local mode, allowing two entities with identical setups to exchange data in a proprietary
format.
While using FTP, tools like macros can also be used to make your work more efficient and easier.
However, FTP has the following drawbacks: FTP was not designed to be a secure protocol.
It is therefore vulnerable to attacks such as spoof, brute force, packet sniffing, ... There is no possibility for data encryption over FTP.
FTP provides no Meta-data together with the files exchanged.
11.4.1.3 SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
