HTTP 1.1 Vs. HTTP 2: What Are the Differences?

According to this recent report by McKinsey, 87% of consumers say they won’t do business with your company if they have concerns about your security practices. So if you’re serious about protecting your company’s reputation and bottom line, data privacy can never take a back role.

To be able to transfer data efficiently over networks, one of the key technologies you will want to implement is the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP). But still with HTTP, there are variations.

So, it can get a little confusing especially if you’re a first timer hence the seemingly, never-ending debate on HTTP 1.1 vs. HTTP 2. We created this guide to clarify the differences between HTTP 1.1 and HTTP 2. At the end of this guide, you should be able to tell;

• What is HTTP 1.1 plus its features and benefits
• What is HTTP 2.0 plus its features, benefits
• What are the key differences between HTTP 1.1 and HTTP 2? And most importantly,
• How to implement HTTP 2.0 on your website

Read on!

What is HTTP 1.1?

When talking about HTTP, one of the versions that get mentioned quite a lot is HTTP 1.1. Developed in 1997, it is the current version of HyperText Transfer Protocol and is used for data exchange between web servers and clients. The most standout features which differentiate this version of HTTP from its predecessor are;

• The incorporation of methods like PUT, DELETE and OPTIONS to enhance functionality,
• The introduction of features like chunked transfer encoding and HTTP pipelining to improve performance and flexibility over HTTP 1.

Also, when talking about HTTP 1.1 vs. 2.0 a key question that comes up quite often is; what are the benefits of HTTP 1.1? Well, the benefits of HTTP 1.1 are numerous but the most significant ones include;

• Improved Caching: HTTP 1.1 offers better caching mechanisms. For example, it offers conditional GET requests and caching negotiation which means that clients can store responses and reduce unnecessary network traffic. This ensures that load times are faster and the server load gets reduced. GET request is essentially an option of accessing data from a server, and caching negotiation just as it sounds is a quick negotiation between a client and the origin server.

• Persistent Connections: Unlike HTTP 1.0, which requires a new connection for each request, HTTP 1.1 provides support for persistent connections. This allows multiple requests to be sent over the same connection hence reduced latency and improved overall performance.
• Efficient Request and Response Handling: As earlier mentioned, HTTP 1.1 introduces new methods like PUT, DELETE, and OPTIONS. These new methods allow for finer control over server resources. What’s more, they also support HTTP pipelining and chunked transfer encoding which further reduces latency and enhances efficiency when handling large payloads.

What is HTTP 2.0?

Still, in the debate of HTTP 1.1 vs. 2.0, many people ask; what is HTTP 2.0 and what are its features? Here’s a quick back story and what HTTP 2.0 really is;

With HTTP 1.1 already in place, technology continued to evolve and HTTP 1.1 became outdated. To keep up with the technology advancements, HTTP 2.0 was developed.

Now, HTTP 2.0 is the second major HTTP network protocol version used in the transmission of data over the Internet. It comes with several key features that enhance performance and efficiency in web communications. Key among these features include;

• Server Push to allow the server to send additional information needed for a request before it is requested.
• Multiplexing to allow for multiple requests and responses to be sent at the same time over a single connection.
• Header Compression to compress headers that have been requested previously to reduce overhead and improve data transfer speeds.
• Binary Protocol. Here, HTTP 2.0 introduces the use of a binary format instead of plain text, which is more efficient for parsing and processing by computers.
• Stream Prioritization which allows for the exchange of multiple streams of data at the same time, with the ability to prioritize streams based on importance.

HTTP 2.0 Advantages

Thanks to the new features that HTTP 2.0 introduces, it also comes with several advantages, mostly leaning on security and efficiency. Here’s a quick roundup of HTTP 2.0 benefits;

• Binary Protocol: Unlike its predecessor, HTTP 2.0 uses a binary protocol which means that only binary commands in the form of 0s and 1s are transmitted over the wire. This binary framing layer divides messages into frames segregated by type to enhance not just security, but also compression, and multiplexing efficiency.

• Server Push: HTTP 2.0 introduces server push; a feature that allows the server to anticipate the resources needed by the client and push them before the client requests them. Now, while the client can reject server pushes, this feature improves efficiency by reducing the need for additional requests.
• HPACK Header Compression: HTTP 2.0 also utilizes the HPACK header compression algorithm. This feature is resistant to attacks like CRIME and uses static Huffman encoding to reduce overhead and improve performance.\

• Multiplexing: HTTP 2.0 introduces multiplexing. This feature allows for the interleaving of requests and responses over a single TCP connection without head-of-line blocking. It enhances performance by reducing latency and improving efficiency.

What are the Differences between HTTP 1.1 and HTTP 2.0?

HTTP has evolved significantly. But it is available in more than one version. So, when wanting to implement the technology, it is natural to wonder; what are the differences between HTTP 1.1 and HTTP 2.0?

Well, the key difference is that HTTP 2.0 offers substantial improvements over HTTP 1.1. Here’s a quick rundown of the key differences:

• Buffer Overflow Handling: While HTTP 1.1 is Vulnerable to buffer overflow due to fixed buffer size HTTP 2.0 comes with a flow control mechanism. This feature allows HTTP 2.0 to mitigate overflow risk and send data in manageable chunks.
• Protocol Efficiency: HTTP 1.1 relies on plain text. Even though the shared data is readable, it is less efficient. HTTP 2.0 on the other hand uses binary protocol, a feature that enhances data transmission efficiency.
• Resource Request Prediction: HTTP 1.1 is reactive. It requires the client to request resources sequentially. On the contrary, HTTP 2.0 is proactive with features like server push which preemptively sends resources to the client to reduce page load times.
• Multiplexing Capability: HTTP 1.1 establishes separate connections for each request/response which increases latency. However, HTTP 2.0 supports multiplexing which enables simultaneous transmission to improve performance and reduce latency.

The table below summarizes the key differences between HTTP 1.1 and HTTP 2.0

How do you implement HTTP 2.0 on the website?

HTTP has evolved considerably since its inception. Now with HTTP 2.0 offering faster, more efficient browsing experiences, it is the version you may want to implement on your website.

Implementing HTTP 2.0 isn’t as difficult as it may sound though. Follow the steps below to implement HTTP 2.0 on your website;

• Updating Web Server Software: Ensure your web server (e.g., Apache, Nginx) supports HTTP 2.0. Upgrade if necessary.
• Get an SSL Certificate: HTTP 2.0 requires SSL encryption. So, you will have to buy and install a valid SSL certificate for your website.
• Update Website Code: Modify your website’s code to use HTTP 2.0 features. This includes using multiplexing for concurrent requests and server push for faster loading.
• Test Compatibility: Thoroughly test your website for HTTP 2.0 compatibility. Check for browser support and overall performance.
• Configure Server: Configure your server to use HTTP 2.0. Redirect all HTTP 1.1 requests to the new protocol.

The Bottom Line

HTTP is still the primary protocol for sharing information over the internet. It has gone through plenty of changes over time thanks to the changing needs of web security and performance. I hope that with this in-depth HTTP 1.1 vs. 2.0 comparison, you will have a better idea of what works for you.

About the Author

Russell Walter is working as a freelance content marketer. Currently, mainly he works for SSL2BUY.com He has expertise in tech and cybersecurity niches. His insights into web security and threat mitigation are helpful for readers. You can contact Russell at – https://www.linkedin.com/in/walter-russell-89a1b1254/