Xitami

In computing, Xitami is a free, open-source FTP and web server developed by iMatix Corporation. It runs as a single process with a small footprint. It is not as fast as the fastest servers but scales well. It supports several web application protocols. It also has a Web Interface to configure the web/FTP server simply with a Browser.

Development

iMatix originally wrote the Xitami server in 1996 as a demonstration of its "SMT" technology for building protocol servers. It attracted people looking for a fast but simple web/FTP server, mainly on Microsoft Windows. The Xitami team continued to add features until mid-2000.

Demise

There are several opinions as to why work on Xitami slowed and then halted at a time when it was becoming increasingly popular. Some say that the software was perfect and needed no more work. Others, pointing to the way the software would crash twice a year when the computer's clock switched from, and back to, daylight saving time, believe that the Xitami team suffered the kind of collective burn-out that affects many free software teams where the insatiable demand for functionality and support can turn a pleasant part-time hobby into a multi-year coding frenzy.

The Xitami developers themselves, when asked this question, replied "Oh, yes, we've been a bit busy but we may come back to Xitami in five or ten years." The last Xitami release, 2.5 has been in beta since 1999.

There is reputed to be a 3.0 version, but this has never been available to the public.

Name

Xitami has long been accused of starting the trend of making unpronounceable product names starting with "X". The name was, in fact, chosen at the last minute when the developers realized that their original choice had already been taken by another web server that is now long extinct. "Xitami" is simply "iMatix", backwards.

Availability

A commercial version of the Xitami server with SSL support is also available.

Xitami runs on Windows, Linux and other Unix-type operating systems, OpenVMS, BeOS, and OS/2.

See also

* Comparison of web servers

External links

* [http://www.imatix.com iMatix Corporation]
* [http://www.xitami.com Xitami.com]
* [http://legacy.imatix.com/html/xitami/license.htm Xitami License]
* [http://www.xitami.com/download.htm Download Xitami]