In Object Linking and Embedding (OLE), what is the key difference between an OLE Server and an OLE Container application?

Introduction / Context:
Object Linking and Embedding, often abbreviated as OLE, is a Microsoft technology that allows one application to embed or link objects created by another application. For example, a word processor can embed a chart created in a spreadsheet program. Two key roles in this model are the OLE Server and the OLE Container. Understanding the difference between these two roles is important in desktop application development and integration questions.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• We are working with the classic OLE architecture used in Windows applications.
• One application creates objects that can be embedded or linked into another application.
• One application acts as the provider of the object, while the other acts as a host that displays or manages that object.
• We are not dealing with antivirus or backup utilities.

Concept / Approach:
In OLE terminology, an OLE Server is an application that creates and manages objects that can be embedded in or linked to other documents. Examples include spreadsheet programs or drawing tools that expose charts, diagrams, or images as OLE objects. An OLE Container, on the other hand, is an application that can embed or link to these objects inside its own documents. The container stores references to the objects and provides the user interface through which users can activate and edit them. A word processor embedding a spreadsheet chart is a classic example of an OLE Container and OLE Server working together.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify which component creates and supplies the objects that are embedded or linked. Step 2: Recognize that this provider role is performed by the OLE Server application. Step 3: Identify which component hosts, displays, and stores the embedded or linked objects inside its own documents. Step 4: Recognize that this host role is performed by the OLE Container application. Step 5: Choose the option that clearly states that the OLE Server provides objects and the OLE Container hosts those objects within its own documents.

Verification / Alternative check:
Documentation on OLE and COM technology consistently describes the server as the application that supplies OLE objects and the container as the application that embeds or links to them. For example, when you insert an Excel chart into a Word document, Excel is the OLE Server and Word is the OLE Container. This matches exactly with the explanation that servers provide objects and containers host them.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B is wrong because printing and networking are unrelated to the basic distinction between server and container in OLE. Option C incorrectly refers to operating system files and database tables, which are outside the OLE object model. Option D is incorrect because OLE servers and containers are not antivirus or backup tools. Option E is wrong because there is a clear difference in roles: one provides objects, the other hosts them.

Common Pitfalls:
A common confusion is to think that any application that uses OLE is both a server and a container, which may be true in some advanced cases but does not remove the conceptual distinction. Another pitfall is assuming that server means hardware, when in OLE it refers to an application that serves objects. Remember that the key difference is the direction of service: servers provide embeddable objects, containers host and display them in their documents.

Final Answer:
The correct statement is that an OLE Server provides embeddable or linkable objects, while an OLE Container hosts and displays those objects inside its own documents.