Categories
- Arts & Entertainment
- Business
- Communications
- Computers
- Culture & Society
- Disease & Illness
- Fashion
- Finance
- Food & Beverage
- Health & Fitness
- Hobbies
- Home & Family
- Home Based Business
- Internet Business
- Adsense
- Affiliate Programs
- Affiliate Revenue
- Auctions
- Audio Streaming
- Autoresponders
- Banner Advertising
- Blogging
- Click Bank
- Directories
- Domain Names
- Ecommerce
- Email Marketing
- Ezine Publishing
- Forums
- Internet Marketing
- Link Popularity
- List Building
- Podcasting
- PPC Advertising
- RSS
- Security
- SEO
- Site Promotion
- Spam Blocker
- Technologies
- Traffic Building
- Tutorials
- Video
- Video Streaming
- Viral Marketing
- Web Design
- Web Development
- Web Hosting
- Webmasters
- Legal
- Pets & Animals
- Politics
- Product Reviews
- Recreation & Sports
- Reference & Education
- Religion
- Self Improvement
- Shopping
- Travel & Leisure
- Vehicles
- Writing & Speaking
Information
Windows Hosting versus Linux Hosting - Which is right for you?
Submitted: 2007-01-17 15:02:54
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher |
There are literally hundreds of thousands of web hosting companies out there. Many of these companies offer both Windows hosting and Linux hosting plans. Windows plans usually cost more because of the license costs imposed by Microsoft. Knowing this, how can you know when you need Windows hosting and when Linux hosting will work just as well or better? Keep reading to find out.
Windows operating systems are found on something like 95% of all personal computers in the world. With such a total dominance, Microsoft Windows is top of mind to most new people looking for web hosting.
In the web server world though, Windows based servers are behind less than 20% of all websites on the internet. This is according to the latest web server survey from securityspace.com. By choosing a Linux hosting plan, you will find yourself in good company.
When do you have to use Windows Hosting?
1. .NET technologies including ASP.net are not available on Linux platforms. If you have a website built with Microsoft .NET technologies you will have to choose a Windows hosting plan. In fact, if you need ASP without .NET features, most Linux hosting plans do not offer support for it.
2. Access Databases are only available with a Windows hosting plan. Access runs on a Microsoft Windows platform and cannot run on a Linux Operating system.
3. MSSQL is an enterprise class database put out by Microsoft. If you need an enterprise class database there are some alternatives that run on a Linux platform but if you need Microsoft's MSSQL database, a Windows hosting plan will have to be your choice.
4. If you are using Microsoft's Sharepoint services like some of the Sharepoint features found in Frontpage 2003, a Windows Hosting plan is your only choice.
What is the advantage to choosing Linux Hosting?
All the major services you need to run an enterprise class website are available on Linux based systems for free. Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP are being used together to provide the infrastructure behind some of the most traffic intensive sites on the internet.
PHP runs better on a Linux server than on a Windows server. Having said that, unless you are putting a heavy load on your PHP scripts, this will not be noticable.
In general, Linux hosting plans are at least 20% cheaper than Windows hosting plans. If you don't need any of the features mentioned above, Linux hosting is a fine choice for your needs.
For Microsoft specific technologies, Windows hosting plans are usually your best bet. For everthing else, Linux hosting plans will usually do quite well. With the cost savings usually found with Linux hosting plans, Linux hosting is usually the right choice for you.
This article was written by Joe Duchesne, president of http://www.yowling.com/, a web hosting company that offers Linux Hosting plans. Copyright 2004 Yowling. Reprint Freely as long as you provide a clickable link back to my website from this resource box.
Article source: Expert Articles
Most Recent Articles in Web Hosting category
- Getting Ranked By Google - By: James Betchley
Once you have created your web site you need to get Ranked by Google and the other search engines, and more importantly, ranked highly in Google and the Search Engine Result Positions SERPs. Search engine optimization (SEO) has been compared to an art form, and while it is true that due to the changing ranking algorithms of Google and the major search engines it is not an exact science, but there are some tried and tested methods which will help you towards that coveted first page position. - Web Hosting the 6 Factors You Need to Consider - By: James Betchley
The webhosting market is flooded with tens of thousands of different webhosts all offering lots of choices, so how do you decide? The truth is 80% is these hosts all offer great hosting and to avoid the 20% that don't you just need to follow the following 5 steps. - Tips for reseller web hosting - By: Gardner Wilkinson
The term 'reseller web hosting' may seem a little confounding. But, reseller web hosting is a popular way of making money by selling hosting plans. These packages are meant for small companies that do not have their own hosting servers, but take the server space from a parent company and resell it on their behalf. - Why You Need a Paid Web Hosting - By: Mike Bowden
Lots of web hosting service providers are offering identical packages today. And hence it will be difficult for you to choose the right web hosting service for your web site. Choosing the best suited web hosting plan is very important for a smooth running web site. - The Different Types of Web Hosting - By: Mike Bowden
Choosing the right web hosting entirely depends on your web site needs. There are lots of web hosting solutions that are available today. Therefore it is very important to research and evaluate the different web hosting services to pick the correct one. - Choosing the Right Web Hosting - By: Mike Bowden
Web hosting can be defined in a simple form, as the space provided on a web server for storing the collection of files related to a web site. A web site is a combination of various files and text linked together with the help of HTML or other programming languages. - Cheap Web Hosting Versus Expensive Web Hosting - By: Joel McLaughlin
Today we are going to compare a few of the differences that you can find when it comes to cheap web hosting and expensive web hosting. - Features To Look For When Buying Cheap Web Hosting - By: Joel McLaughlin
Just because a company offers cheap web hosting does not mean that their service is no good. In fact, some of the best web hosting companies out there actually offer great prices on their web hosting. - Who Uses Cheap Web Hosting Services - By: Joel McLaughlin
Not everyone is able to afford the top of the line web hosting, thus, people like to use cheap web hosting. The important thing to remember is that cheap web hosting does not always mean bad web hosting. - Cheap Web Hosting That Focuses On Customer Service - By: Joel McLaughlin
It can be hard starting up your own web page for the first time. If you have never started up a web page before, then you are more than likely going to have a lot of questions before you get started.