(Delphi ActiveX) Explaining the Path Part of a URL

The general URL syntax is based on this format:

<scheme>://<host>:<port>/<path>?<query>#<frag>

Note: We've left out a few less commonly used parts, such as username/password and params that are not query params.

The path part of a URL is the local name for a resource on a server. When an HTTP request is going to be sent to "www.something.com", the HTTP client must first resolve the domain name to an IP address. It then establishes the connection to that IP address, potentially negotiating an SSL/TLS secure channel if the scheme is "https". The HTTP request is then sent over the connection. However, a given IP address could host many websites. It is the HOST header within the HTTP request header that allows the server to direct the request to the correct website. At this point, it is the path part of the URL that is used to locate the resource within the website.

Chilkat for Delphi Downloads Chilkat ActiveX DLL for Delphi Chilkat non-ActiveX DLL for Delphi * The examples here use the ActiveX DLL.

uses
    Winapi.Windows, Winapi.Messages, System.SysUtils, System.Variants, System.Classes, Vcl.Graphics,
    Vcl.Controls, Vcl.Forms, Vcl.Dialogs, Vcl.StdCtrls, Chilkat_TLB;

...

procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
var
req: TChilkatHttpRequest;

begin
req := TChilkatHttpRequest.Create(Self);

// An HTTP request object can be loaded from a full URL.
req.SetFromUrl('https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAZdTchQePc&t=45s');

// This Path property is set to the path part of the URL (including the starting "/" char).
// In this case, the path will be "/watch"
Memo1.Lines.Add('path = ' + req.Path);
end;