Dedicated Linux Hosting
Windows vs Linux
The debate over deciding which is better, Windows of Linux; is more or less based on their factors in relation to the web hosting business and what customers want, but factors such as security and usability do come into consideration. Linux is rarely used as a desktop operating system, as its main use is as a Operative System (OS) server. However, Microsoft has released many different versions of Windows, meaning that it can be used in almost any scenario.
Linux
Linux is a free, open source operating system which comes in many different versions,these versions are commonly known as ‘distributions’, or ‘distros’. Each distribution has been made for a different use in most cases, but all can be used for similar things.
Linux also has the advantage over Windows that it is less resource intensive, Security wise, Linux also comes out better than Windows; although viruses do exist for Linux, the number is far less than the number of viruses which can have an affect on the Windows operating system. In most cases viruses can sit in a Linux environment and not have any negative effect.
From a web developer’s point of view, Linux is much easier to work with than Windows is, this is because there is a greater range of free resources and scripting languages that will work within a Linux environment. Also, Linux web hosting is much cheaper than Windows web hosting because the cost of the server software is little or nothing when compared to Windows software.
Windows
Windows is a premium operating system which comes in many different versions, that you can only buy. It is the world’s most commonly used computer operating system and is what has made Bill Gates the richest man in the world.
Today, the current main versions of Microsoft’s operating system are:
Vista and Server 2003;
Windows Vista is Microsoft’s latest desktop operating system and Windows Server is run on servers. As Windows is widely popular, it is a virus magnet meaning that there is thousands of viruses at the current time capable of causing damage to someone’s computer. So, people have to fork out more money for anti-virus and Internet security software to ensure that their computer is safe.
Windows was the first main-stream computer operating system which gave it a head start within the market. However, Unix based systems like Linux and Mac OSX are starting to eat their way into Microsoft’s market share. If you are a web developer, Windows isn’t a very versatile system to work with as you are limited to the languages which will run on Windows, the main ones being Microsoft’s classic ASP and ASP.NET.
Conclusion
If you are looking for a robust system then you can go with either Windows or Linux, but if you don’t have any experience with Linux then you shouldn’t go with it as the only support that you will receive is community support which may not always give you the answer you need.
With Windows you are paying a price, but you are guaranteed support from Microsoft. There is also enough websites on the internet to help you along with both. If you want better security then go with Linux, but if you have the ability to fork the extra money out for Windows’ security software then go with Windows.