Unix and Windows are the two main types of operating system platforms that hosting companies offer on their web servers. Most people are familiar with using Microsoft Windows at their home or office. Nevertheless, it must be said that the type of operating system that you use on your desktop is independent of the one used by your web host to serve your web page. In fact, they have nothing to do with each other. A Windows hosting environment simply uses Microsoft’s products to make hosting accessible to the website developer. Most hosting companies however use the Unix operating system on their web server.
If you are confused as to which platform will be the best choice for your requirements, an overview of features for the two would be of help.
Unix Hosting
* Open-source - the operating system is free and the source code is well documented.
* Considered as being more stable, flexible and faster than Windows.
* Easier to upgrade and expand.
* Provides better compatibility if you are applying dynamic content on your site using PHP or CGI scripts and want to interface with a MySQL database.
* Servers are installed in text mode. System uses less resources and devotes all its power to the webpages hosted.
* Supports Perl, PHP3, CGI-BIN, Shells, MySQL, PostgresSQL, MS FrontPage, among others.
Windows Hosting
* Easier for novices to use.
* Windows plans cost more since the software must be purchased and licenses renewed continuously.
* You will need a Windows hosting if you’re going to develop in .NET.
* Using Microsoft Front Page, the popular web design program, is easier if hosted on Windows.
* Has enough wizards to help you create a decent website without any knowledge of coding.
* Windows media files such as videos and audio can be hosted only in a Windows operating system.
Whether your website is hosted on a Unix or Windows server, it will be universally accessible because both of them serve identical data, the only difference being the software used to serve it. It is necessary to take into account the sort of technologies you will need before you decide on a suitable hosting platform. The advantage can be said to be with Unix bearing in mind its greater reliability, lower costs and a wider choice of hosts.
Tags: Difference Unix and Windows, Features of Unix and Windows hosting, hosting operating platforms, Unix hosting plans, Unix or Windows hosting, Web Hosting Platforms, Windows hosting plans
