When determining an ideal web hosting plan for your website, an operating system is one of the most important consideration factors.
It’s common to get stuck between the choice of whether I should be using a Linux or Windows operating system for managing my website. Linux is a popular operating system, whereas Windows is an intuitive and user-friendly choice.
But which one do you choose with your Shared Hosting service?
In this article, we’ll see and compare how Linux and Windows Shared Hosting differ from one another and which web hosting solution is the right choice for your business. But first, let’s take a quick look at Shared Hosting.
Shared Hosting And The Importance Of An Operating System
Shared Hosting hosts multiple websites on a single web hosting server with common hosting resources, like disk space, CPU Cores, and RAM.
Thus, each website taps into the common hosting resources for its web hosting and traffic needs. While the web hosting provider manages the server administration and backend technical maintenance, you get an intuitive control panel to manage and optimise your website with a Shared Hosting plan.
Besides, you also get the choice of choosing a desirable operating system that best suits your business needs and experience.
An operating system is used for managing and running your website. It performs essential operations like processing data that flows in and out of the web hosting server. Thus, an operating system helps server users’ requests, bringing together all the components (software and hardware) that make up a server.
Linux And Windows Shared Hosting
Linux is an open-source and free operating system which is most commonly used and has remained an industry standard for years.
Its open-source environment allows you to access the code freely with no restrictions to make changes or necessary modifications on your website.
On the other hand, Microsoft owns and created Windows, which is perfect for beginners and professional developers. In addition, it offers a great range of Microsoft-compatible applications and software to make your job easier.
Linux vs Windows Shared Hosting: What Is The Difference?
Understanding the factors that differentiate Linux and Windows Shared Hosting is essential when choosing an ideal operating system for your business.
Here are the critical factors you must consider when choosing between Windows and Linux Shared Web Hosting.
1. Technical knowledge
The OS technology is a critical differentiating factor between Linux and Windows Shared Hosting.
Linux supports most programming languages and uses custom software. On the other hand, Windows uses a particular Microsoft software to manage and run data.
Hence, if you aren’t comfortable dealing with coding and managing software, choosing an easy-to-use operating system, like Windows, is the right choice. It’s a user-friendly OS that doesn’t require advanced coding experience or much technical knowledge.
On the contrary, Linux can be overwhelming and difficult for beginners. Hence, familiarising yourself with the OS’s working is important before choosing an ideal Shared Hosting plan.
2. Customisability
Linux Shared Hosting offers more advanced customisation abilities than Windows Shared Hosting.
You get the flexibility to install any desirable Linux distro with the Linux OS. At the same time, Windows offers a licensed version of the Windows data centre.
While this customisation may not be as important for beginners, it provides excellent opportunities to developers with great technical skills and configuration knowledge to make their Shared Servers more efficient.
3. Applications
Applications that need a Linux-based server include SSH, applications, and scripts requiring specific Apache modules.
Applications that need a Windows-based server include ASP.NET, ASP Classic, C#, MSSQL, MS Access, Remote Desktop, and Visual Basic Development.
4. Control panel
Both Linux and Windows operating systems support different control panels.
While you can use cPanel for your Linux Shared Hosting Server, Windows support the Plesk control panel to make website management a breeze.
5. Security
Many consider the Linux operating system much more secure and reliable. However, both Windows and Linux offer a great level of security.
It depends upon your web hosting server’s administration and security configurations. Besides, it’s also important to choose a suitable web hosting provider that guarantees advanced security for your business.
6. Cost
Being open-source, the Linux OS costs less and is much more cost-efficient than the Windows OS.
Thus, Linux Shared Hosting is ideal if you need a budget-friendly and user-friendly hosting solution.
Conclusion
Choosing the right operating system with your Shared Hosting plan is important to facilitate website maintenance and management for your business.
Depending on your web hosting requirements, technical expertise, security needs, compatibility requirements, and budget, you can choose from Linux and Windows operating systems.
If you’re not a developer and need a user-friendly and budget-friendly hosting solution, you can go for Windows Shared Web Hosting. But if you need more customisation and configuration capabilities to enhance your server operation, choose a suitable Linux Shared Hosting plan.
If you’re still confused between the two, you can contact us at ResellerClub to understand our Windows and Linux Shared Hosting plans and services. We’ll be happy to help you choose the best-suited plan that fits your specific requirements and budget.
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