====== Uniform Resource Locator (URL) ======

[[dido:99_annexes:annex-b-terms-and-definitions:start|Go to Terms and Definitions]]

===== Discussion =====

A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) that identifies a resource and provides information for locating or accessing that resource.

A URL typically identifies the access mechanism through its URI scheme and provides the information required by that scheme to locate the resource.

Examples include URLs using schemes such as:

  * ''https''
  * ''http''
  * ''ftp''

A URL is therefore a URI, but not every URI is necessarily a URL.

The distinction is important because identification and location are separate concepts. A URI may provide a persistent identity for a concept or resource without specifying where that resource can be accessed.

===== Definition =====

//a Uniform Resource Identifier that identifies a resource and provides a means for locating or accessing that resource//

===== Source =====

  * RFC 3986, //Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax//

===== Note =====

URL is a subset of URI.

A URL generally describes a resource's primary access mechanism or network location. A URI used solely as a persistent name or conceptual identifier need not be a URL.

===== Example =====

><code>
https://example.org/documents/report
</code>

The value identifies a resource and provides an ''https'' access mechanism through which the resource may be located.

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