A personal web server is an appliance

Computer appliance

A computer appliance is generally a separate and discrete hardware device with integrated software , specifically designed to provide a specific computing resource. These devices became known as "appliances" because of their similarity to home appliances, which are generally "closed and sealed" –...

 that allows users to store and access private files remotely from any device connected to the web

World Wide Web

The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...

. A personal web server

Web server

Web server can refer to either the hardware or the software that helps to deliver content that can be accessed through the Internet....

 might just be an occasional user's computer loaded with the requisite software for remote management or a dedicated high-end computer with dedicated network hardware and software.

Francine Brevetti, business writer with the Oakland Tribune, describes new devices that will store and share personal information for consumers. Hard drive manufacturer, Seagate Technology

Seagate Technology

Seagate Technology is one of the world's largest manufacturers of hard disk drives. Incorporated in 1978 as Shugart Technology, Seagate is currently incorporated in Dublin, Ireland and has its principal executive offices in Scotts Valley, California, United States.-1970s:On November 1, 1979...

 is identified as one of the first companies to offer consumers such a product. Dubbed the Maxtor Fusion Personal Web Server

Maxtor

Maxtor Corporation, founded in 1982 and acquired by Seagate Technology in 2006, was an American manufacturer of computer hard disk drives, the third largest in the world immediately prior to acquisition...

, it lets users organize, share, link and access digital files of all kinds.