====== Local tile server included ======

A tile server is a piece of software that can break down large images into smaller pieces, at a specified resolution. The resulting "pieces" are referred as "tiles".

There's a tile server behind Google Maps, and most software for digital pathology relies on tile server technology as well. What makes PMA.start unique in this context is that the desktop-viewer can also serve as a tile server.

This means that PMA.start can be used to set up bespoke digital pathology and image analysis workflows, without the need for dedicated hardware or server-software. 

You can learn more about [[https://realdata.pathomation.com/what-whole-slide-images-wsis-are-made-of/|how this process works on our blog]], where we explain why [[https://realdata.pathomation.com/what-whole-slide-images-wsis-are-made-of/|tile servers are essential to tackle digital pathology data streaming bottlenecks]].

** Discover PMA.core **

[[https://www.pathomation.com/pims/ce/|PMA.core]] is PMA.start's big brother. It is a powerful image management software technology that supports all network and cloud storage options, has CE-IVD certification, offers user management, manages slide meta-data like annotations.