The HTTP protocol is a stateless one. This means that every HTTP request the server receives is independent and does not relate to requests that came prior to it. For example, imagine the following scenario: a request is made for the first ten user records, then another request is made for the next ten records.
On a stateful protocol, the server remembers each client position inside the result-set, and therefore the requests will be similar to:
- Give me the first ten user records
- Give me the next ten records
On a stateless protocol, the requests will be a bit different. The server doesn't hold the state of its client, and therefore the client's position in the result-set needs to be sent as part of the requests: ...
