In this article I will explain the differences between Linux VPS and Windows VPS Hosting. Hopefully this article can help those who are looking for references to choosing a VPS web hosting package for websites and applications.
When you are looking for web hosting for a website and comparing one hosting company package to another, you will get quite a significant difference. One of the differences that will be discussed in this article is between servers that use the Linux VPS hosting operating system and Windows hosting.
The operating system most commonly used by many companies for web hosting servers is Linux. However some of them also use Windows operating system and provide windows web hosting services.
For those of you who feel confused in determining this, as a big picture this has no effect on the appearance of your website pages. However, there are striking differences in terms of server administrators and settings.
Read more about: Different Cheap VPS Hosting
Web Hosting Control Panel
Over the years, hosting control panels have been released for a variety of different operating systems, there are even some control panels that can only be used on certain operating systems.
cPanel is one of the most popular control panel from many years, linux OS is also provided by the cPanel. At start cPanel only provided Control panels for linux VPS but now they are also providing it for windows version which is known as Enkompass. There are many other numerous types of control panels such as vDesk, Parallel and many more which provides control panels for linux VPS hosting and windows hosting.
If you want to use control panels which supports only one operating system such as linux or windows then there are some companies which provides website hosting controls panels which are only supported by any one of these. You need to find such companies but keep that in mind before purchasing do little research about these.
Application
There are some applications that can only be used on Linux or Windows only. However, there are also so many applications that can be used on both operating systems.
Windows – Supports ASP.NET programming languages, Cold Fusion, VB Development, C # and other Microsoft products such as Access.
Linux – Is native to use SSH access to operate, using the Apache Module. Because Linux is mostly an open source product, there are thousands of applications available on this Linux operating system. On the other hand, most windows applications need to be purchased.
MySQL can be used on both systems although there are options for Windows users. Programming languages like PHP and Perl are close to Linux but you can also use them on Windows.
Read more about: Common uses of VPS hosting
Scalability
Most companies with linux VPS services provide 100% uptime assurance. Moreover if you have an application which uses Python or Perl then linux VPS is the finest option for you.
Some companies provide 100% uptime assurance for windows but not all windows VPS comes with such guarantee. If you have an application which uses PHP, ASP.net then windows VPS is the finest option for you.
Price
The price of VPS web hosting that uses the Linux operating system tends to be cheaper as compared to the windows operating system because linux is an open source product, whereas VPS of windows operating systems are expensive
Security
From many years cyber attacks like data breaches, DDoS and file deletions are the most ordinary security threats. It is essential that you should choose a company which provided you better security protection.
Linux VPS is consider more safe in term of security because is don’t provide freedom to edit unless you are an administrator. Windows is also safe if used in the right way but in windows VPS provides the option to its user to hide files from administrator’s analysis.
I have heard that servers using the Linux operating system are safer than those using Windows. This may be true of a problem; however nothing shows they are more secure than one another because they and the hosting company really take serious steps for server security.
Read more about: Best ways to secure your VPS server
Technical Support
Technical issues are the part of running a website. Make sure you can contact support for technical issues.
Linux VPS is an open source which means you can get the support from different 3rd part communities. Whereas windows is the product of Microsoft which means it is not an open source.
Other Differences
There are lots of subtle differences between the way Linux and Windows handle certain things, although most of them you may not notice.
i) File names in Linux are case sensitive, whereas on Windows they are not. Like on a Linux system the page is page.html and cannot use PAGE.html.
ii) Windows uses hidden files to handle temporary swap files but the Linux uses hard disk partitions for such task.
iii) Windows has boot to primary partition, while Linux can boot to extended partition.
iv) Windows separates directories or folders using a backslash while in linux are using a slash.
There are pros and cons in using an operating system to run good web hosting, but I myself prefer to use Linux for hosting to run my website compared to Windows hosting, because I am more popular with setting up using Linux which in my opinion is easier and cheaper. If you need to use Microsoft products, make sure you are using Windows based hosting.
Final Words
Choosing between windows VPS and linux VPS is very hard now because both services have their advantages and disadvantages. We would like to suggest that if you are looking to purchase VPS they first note down your requirements and budget and then select which it the best fit for you.
