A generic lovely question.

Hello everyone,
I've got somewhat general question regarding server building.
I'm quite an advanced Java programmer, but I'm looking for a bit of general piece of knowledge I'm missing.

What technologies are usually used to build high performance / load of users Server ? (Webserver for instance, or any other server)

I want to build a service that will require a big user data base and a relatively a lot of traffic per minute. I'm certain it is a challenge but what I wonder is where to begin, what technologies are usually used for such purpose.

Are there any books on the matter for instance ?

All reponses are welcomes,
Thanks in advance.

Hi!
A quick search on a rather well-known site that sells books yields, among others, the following two books:
Building Scalable Web Sites: Building, Scaling, and Optimizing the Next Generation of Web Applications
High Performance Web Sites: Essential Knowledge for Front-End Engineers
Haven't read either, but they have good reviews.
Best wishes!

I'd also advice reading up on the async I/O features in java 7, which probably won't be covered in too many books, and take a look at the Selector API.