Windows Hosting

Hosting a website on the web server, which is installed with Windows operating system and web server software by Microsoft (as opposed to other operating systems, for example Linux). 

Choosing Windows hosting you will commonly be lead to using other related Microsoft technologies, such as Asp Scripting for the database driven sites or SQL server for running database.Windows hosting is generally somewhat more expensive due to higher cost of the underlying software.

Advantages of Windows Servers
Ease of use is a key advantage that Windows systems have. A user with little experience can get advanced features working relatively quickly and easily, especially considering the various Microsoft tools and programs that are available. Because many people use Windows on their personal machines, they are already comfortable with using Windows.

Disadvantages of Windows Servers
A major disadvantage of running Windows is the cost involved. While the software might be easy to use, the cost of purchasing them is quite high. Windows is also not as easy on servers as Unix. In order to maintain stability, a significant amount of resources have to be made available. This, in turn, impacts on hardware costs.

Linux hosting 

Hosting a website on the web server, which is installed with Linux operating system (as opposed to other operating systems, for example Windows). Having chosen Linux hosting you will commonly be lead to using a set of Open source technologies, such as PHP scripting for the database driven sites or mySQL server for running a database. Linux hosting is generally less expensive, as it often uses free (Open source) software.

Reasons For Choosing A Linux Hosting
Plan(Advantages/disadvantages)
Linux Plans can be configured to work with a wide variety of applications to include proprietary and/or free shopping carts, data bases, guestbooks, counters, text editors, live audio and video extensions, on-line auctions, chat rooms, etc.Linux server solutions for e-commerce, virtual postcards, polls and surveys, secure conferencing, application hosting, market research, banner advertisements, email (virtual post offices), classified ads, search engines, on-line stores and malls and much more.

Advantages of Unix Servers
A major advantage is that many commercial and freeware server applications are designed for use with Linux machines. The fact that Linux is open-source (ie. the source code is freely available) means that it is constantly being developed, updated and any bugs discovered are fixed in a short space of time. The most significant appeal that Linux systems have is their reliability. The operating system is able to squeeze a lot more out of a lot less resources. The stability of the Linux OS has been its major attraction.

Disadvantages of Unix Servers
The learning curve can be quite steep for those wanting to take advantage of advanced features. Also, some Microsoft server applications cannot be used in a Unix environment (eg. Active Server Pages).


What’s better: UNIX/Linux or Windows?
Which is better — Linux-based hosting or Windows-based hosting — depends greatly on what types of web development tools, scripts and programs are most important to you. For example, you’ll want Linux if you plan to run PHP scripts or use a MySQL database. Linux also is widely considered a more stable and versatile platform for hosting, as well as a lower-cost one. Linux, a free, open source flavor of UNIX, is free; all of Microsoft’s software costs money (usually lots of it).On the other hand, if you expect to make heavy use of Microsoft tools like Active Server Pages, Visual Basic or SQL Server, you should probably consider Windows hosting. Keep in mind that just because you might use Windows on your home or office computer doesn’t mean Windows-based hosting is the best option for you.

The following are the advantages of using Linux based web server compared to Windows based web server: 

1. Stable: Linux/Unix operating systems has traditionally been believed to be very stable and robust. A web site housed on a Linux operating system will have very high up-time (of the order of 99.9%). Of course, other factors such as power supply, network admin skills, and network load etc. also matter when it comes to maintaining the system uptime. 

2. Low cost of ownership: The Linux OS comes free of cost (or at very insignificant cost, usually cost of distribution). Also, it has full-fledged server, and desk top applications that comes free along with the OS. These server applications (such as FTP, Web Server, DNS Server, File Server etc.) being free, are also very stable. 

3. Ease of use: When it comes to web hosting, it is easy to host on Linux web servers. The process of uploading and hosting is almost same for both Linux and Windows web servers. If you want to use a Windows based tool such as Front Page for uploading a web site on to a Linux based web server, make sure that the Front Page extensions are enabled. This is only required if you are uploading using HTTP feature (http://www.yourwebsite.com) of Front Page. Front Page also makes it possible to upload a web site using FTP. You need to select ftp://www.yourwebsite.com for up loading using front page FTP option. Note that if you select "Front Page Extensions" during web site design, you must enable Front Page extensions on a Linux web server also. These days, all Linux web servers are coming with installable Front Page extensions, and this should pose no problem for hosting on a Linux platform. 

4. You can use almost all types of file extensions (or scripts) when using Linux web server. Commonly, the following extensions are supported: .cgi, .html, .htm, .pl, .php, .shtml, .asp (requires additional plug-in), .xml, and others. Basically it means that you can host web sites that use different types of server side scripts including .cgi, .pl, .php, and .asp (with plug-in).
 
5. Easy to move between hosts: A web site designed to be hosted on a Linux based web server can be hosted on a Windows web server easily, where as the reverse is not always true. This provides flexibility in changing hosts as required. 
6. Most widely used: Linux/Unix based web hosting is most widely used compared to Windows based web hosting, hence greater choice in choosing a web host. 

7. Scalability: A web site is dynamic. Usually, a web site starts with a few pages of html and grows over a period of time to suit the customer’s requirements. It is preferable to design a web site keeping these requirements in mind. A web site designed for compatibility with a Linux/Unix based web server meets the scalability requirement easily without making any site wide design changes. 

8. On the downside, Linux based web server is not fully compatible with Microsoft technologies. If you are using any specialized applications or VB for development of your web site, it is preferable to host with a Windows based web server. 


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What Is DNS? What is the Domain Name Server/Domain Name System?

What is FTP? What is Frontpage ? What are the Scripts: ASP-PHP-PERL-Cold-Fusion?

What is an IP Address? Where do I get an IP Address? Do I need an IP address for my website ?