What is the difference between server and client? What difference does it make for some software installations?
For example, I've checked on how to download and install cvs and one of the user asked about server or client.
A server is a program, or machine, that waits for incoming requests.
A client is a program, or machine, that sends requests to servers.
Wikipedia: Server (computing), Client (computing)
For cvs; Are you setting up your own project, in which case you will need to set up the cvs server as well as a client to connect to said server. Or are you connecting to an existing project, in which case you need the client.
In simplest form, a server is a connection point for several clients, that will handle their requests.
A client is software that (usually) connects to the server to perform actions. The client provide a user interface that allows users to carry out actions. It forwards these requests to the server, which carries out the action and returns a response.
In CVS, the server is where the central data repository is held, and client is what you use to access the said repository.
来源：https://stackoverflow.com/questions/18508964/difference-between-server-and-client