IntegrAuth Academy
Identity, security and practical AI — free, from zero. Byte-sized lessons, real diagrams, hands-on labs, zero fluff. Two programs, each with its own exam and certificate.
English is hard? Your browser can translate this page into Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam or Hindi. Tech words stay in English so you learn the real names.
How?
- Chrome on phone: ⋮ menu → Translate
- Chrome on computer: right-click → Translate to …
- Edge: the translate icon in the address bar
What happens when you visit a website
Maya types a website address and presses enter. A page appears in a second. Your goal: know the small steps between the address and the page.
- Your browser asks. A server answers.
- A URL has parts: scheme, domain, path and query.
- DNS turns a site name into a number.
- The padlock means a private line, not an honest site.
Two computers talking
Your browser is a program on your phone or laptop. A program is a list of steps a computer follows. The browser fetches pages and shows them. Because it asks, we call it the client.
A server is another computer, often in a big building far away. Its job is to answer. The word means "the one who serves", like a waiter. Every visit has a client that asks and a server that answers.
The parts of an address
The address you type is a URL. It has parts, and each part tells the browser something. Here is a flight site: https://travel.example/flights?from=BLR&to=DXB
| Part | In our example | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| scheme | https:// | How to talk. With https, the line is private (see lesson 6). |
| domain | travel.example | Whose computer to reach. This is the site's name. |
| path | /flights | Which page you want on that site. |
| query | ?from=BLR&to=DXB | Extra details. Here: from Bangalore to Dubai. |
Finding the server
Computers find each other with numbers, called IP addresses. One looks like 203.0.113.7. Names are for people. So the browser must first look up the number for the name.
The DNS (Domain Name System) does this lookup. It works like the internet's phone book. You ask for "travel.example". It gives back "203.0.113.7". Now the browser knows where to go.
ordering food. The restaurant's name is the domain. DNS gives you its street address. You send your order (the request). The kitchen sends back your food (the page).
Maya types travel.example. Her browser asks DNS where it is. DNS gives a number. The browser sends its request to that server. A moment later the flight page appears. It felt instant, but it took several steps. Much of security happens in those steps.
Look for the padlock next to the address. Some browsers now show a small settings icon instead. It means the line between you and the site is private. It does not mean the site is honest. A scam site can have a padlock too. Lesson 6 explains more. Lesson 9 shows how to spot fake sites.
🧪 Interactive lab — enable JavaScript to play with this one.
Want to see a real server answer? Point Well-Known Scan at any real domain. You will see the public settings a live server gives back when you ask.