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.
Nowadays, anybody can afford to order a feature-packed web hosting... Read More
Web Hosting AdviceChoosing a web hosting company to host your... Read More
Every individual when it starts surfing the net for choosing... Read More
All the good ones are taken. The really good ones,... Read More
The fact that an estimated 40,000 new blogs are being... Read More
It may seem simple yet it is often times overlooked.... Read More
"2GB web space with 50GB traffic for $5.95 per month!"A... Read More
Bandwidth in its simplest terms refers to the amount of... Read More
The internet is one of the world's top sources of... Read More
A client of mine paid for a solo advert to... Read More
Perhaps your web hosting company has a technical support group... Read More
You're not alone! Many people are bound to the old... Read More
--Company Email Addresses--Web hosting companies should provide company email accounts... Read More
Yesterday I received a nice email in my inbox, I... Read More
For the "big things" to be build it was certainly... Read More
Computers, Internet, Web sites?what do they all mean? Hey, you're... Read More
The basic command for changing file permissions in unix based... Read More
Managed Hosting Services are used primarily by companies that either... Read More
With plethora of hosting companies offering services, choosing a good... Read More
Whenever you have a technical question that needs answering, you... Read More
If you are looking for a solid, reliable web host,... Read More
Some web hosts are offering more than others for the... Read More
If you operate several websites, each with its own domain... Read More
Most web site hosting services like the one you're probably... Read More
The main thing wrong today with trying to find a... Read More
A web host reseller account is a web hosting account... Read More
When building your first site the main things that you... Read More
Many online entrepreneurs these days are faced with the problem... Read More
If you are anything like me, you'd probably like to... Read More
It's tempting. There are so many companies offering cut-rate hosting... Read More
Web Hosting ? Made Simple What is web hosting... Read More
Web hosts are service companies that provide space on their... Read More
Before you begin your search for a web host you... Read More
Yesterday I received a nice email in my inbox, I... Read More
After the dot.com bubble burst a few years back I... Read More
Discover how to go about choosing a web hosting provider... Read More
Every year as school starts web hosts see an up... Read More
You have carried out the hard part and that's creating... Read More
Here are some things you should know before finding a... Read More
First of all we must determine the meaning of the... Read More
Every website needs a great web host, however when you... Read More
You've decided to get a reseller web hosting account to... Read More
When looking for a Web Host there are lots of... Read More
Before we talk about what it takes to... Read More
A few time ago appeared a lot disagreements between opinions... Read More
You've already got a website, but your current hosting provider... Read More
There is no concept of free lunch in the world,... Read More
Whenever you have a technical question that needs answering, you... Read More
There are two main types of host providers. They are... Read More
All the good ones are taken. The really good ones,... Read More
There are few things as critical to your e-business success... Read More
If you run a website hosting business, you already know... Read More
Well? you've purchased a domain name? created a pretty design?... Read More
When it comes to web hosting, the quality of the... Read More
Spam is a real problem today. Forged email is a... Read More
Finding a good and reliable web hosting company is like... Read More
Professional web designers don't come cheap. A good web designer... Read More
You're not alone! Many people are bound to the old... Read More
Some folks classify low cost web hosting on the same... Read More
The DNS is a distributed, hierarchical database where authority flows... Read More
There are a number of things to consider when choosing... Read More
When choosing a web hosting company there are a whole... Read More
For those in the Internet business the availability of their... Read More
Indeed, choosing a right web hosting service for your website... Read More
Bandwidth in its simplest terms refers to the amount of... Read More
Many people think that all web hosts offer the same... Read More
Web Hosting |