Why Can't Servers Access the Hash Part of a URL?

Why is the Hash Part of the URL Not Accessible on the Server Side?

In web development, the URL consists of several components, including the protocol, domain name, path, and hash. The hash, denoted by the "#" symbol, is used to identify a specific part of the page, such as a heading or section.

Question:

However, it has been observed that the hash part of the URL is not available on the server side. For instance, if a user types "http://www.foo.com/page.php?parameter=kickme#MOREURL" into their browser's address bar, the server does not receive the "#MOREURL" portion.

Answer:

Yes, the hash portion of the URL is not accessible to the server without using external tools. This is because the hash component is intended to be processed solely by the browser client. The server never receives it as part of the HTTP request.

Explanation:

According to the HTML standard, the hash fragment is not sent to the server. The browser interprets it and may handle it in various ways, such as scrolling to a specific location on the page. This behavior is consistent across different browsers and server-side technologies like PHP.

Wikipedia provides further clarification:

"The fragment identifier functions differently than the rest of the URI: namely, its processing is exclusively client-side with no participation from the server. When an agent (such as a Web browser) requests a resource from a Web server, the agent sends the URI to the server, but does not send the fragment. Instead, the agent waits for the server to send the resource, and then the agent processes the resource according to the fragment value."

The above is the detailed content of Why Can't Servers Access the Hash Part of a URL?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!