What Are The Differences Between Unix And Windows Web Hosting?
From the point of view of the website designer there are very little differences between Unix and Windows web hosting. If you have finished designing your own website and you are ready to publish you might have noticed that both Unix and Linux systems are used by web hosting companies, Window is offered less commonly.
Because we use Microsoft Windows at work, in the home and even in schools, most people have become familiar with it, the same applies to Windows Home and advanced Server editions. It is an incredibly easy system to use and this is the reason for its mass popularity. This is the goal was intended when it was designed, and Windows has certainly achieved this goal big time!
Novices are able to make use of it and operating Windows does not include having any knowledge of command-line. All you do is point your mouse and click you way to different folders, no mess no fuss.
Both Linux and Unix are open source operating systems, which means source codes are free, well documented and easily distributed. Unix is the older of the two and is unable to run with x86 PC’s and this the only real difference. Linux is obviously more modern and is able to function with high powered servers.
Linux is definitely the proven workhorse and there are a couple of different varieties to choose from as we see with Red Hat Linux and Mandrake Linux. They are able to easily handle large amounts of websites that receive daily hits in the millions. Unix version of these are FreeBSD and OpenBSD, and are also readily available.
When working with web servers, office and home PC’s are fine, they are easy to use and website design is generally completed mostly offline. System-specific programming that has to be undertaking whilst online is very advanced, and in this instance a difference between Windows and Unix based servers can be quite noticeable.
Both these systems are able to deal with heavy traffic sites with add-ons such as email, web stats, and chat rooms, and the biggest differences really are software compatibility and price.
With Windows it continuously has to be purchased and the license renewed, and this makes Windows hosting plans generally more expensive. Unix-based plans regularly offer added value such as MySQL databases, free email, community as well as statistics programs. If you want MS SQL with Windows based plans this has to be purchased.
Popular programming languages may be run by both systems and this includes java, php and perl as well as others. Active server pages will be more secure when they are hosted on the Windows server, but they will still function on Unix, although perhaps with not immediately noticeable glitches.
If you are making use of Microsoft programming, in particular third party applications such as MS SQL 2000, or active server pages, you may want to play it safe and select a Windows based hosting plan. But before you sign up for any plan, ask all the relevant questions before you make a commitment. If you are still unsure, the technical or sales staff will help you to ensure that every facet of your web site’s design will work with the plan they are selling you.
